Senate committee advances Dr. Erica Schwartz to be Trump's CDC director

Senate Committee Advances Dr. Erica Schwartz to be Trump's CDC Director

The U.S. Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee voted Thursday to advance the nomination of Dr. Erica Schwartz to lead the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The 13-10 vote represents a rare victory for the Trump administration following several failed attempts to install leadership in top health positions.

Schwartz, the president's third pick for the role, is a 54-year-old former deputy surgeon general with medical and law degrees and a background in leadership with the U.S. Coast Guard. Democratic Senator Tim Kaine was the only member of the committee to cross party lines in support of her nomination. Independent Senator Bernie Sanders opposed the move, questioning whether administration officials have the guts to stand up to people who are anti-science and into conspiracy theories.

The nomination had previously appeared unstable following a committee hearing this month. Senator Bill Cassidy, R-La., the committee's chairman, and other members questioned whether Schwartz would resist orders from Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. If they were unsupported by science or good public health practice. However, Cassidy reversed his course last week, stating he was confident that Schwartz knows what she is doing and will stand against those who do not.

If confirmed by the full Senate, Schwartz will become the 22nd director of the Atlanta-based agency. She would be the first permanent leader of the CDC since Susan Monarez, Trump's second pick, was fired last year by Secretary Kennedy Jr. After less than a month due to a clash over vaccine policy. The CDC has lacked a permanent director for all but one month of Trump's second term.

Schwartz assumes leadership at a time of significant public health challenges. The agency is currently managing the worst U.S. Measles resurgence in three decades—attributed to falling childhood immunization rates—as well as the largest U.S. Foodborne illness outbreak in recent years. Internationally, the CDC is facing an Ebola outbreak in Uganda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

The broader Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is experiencing similar instability. Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Marty Makary resigned in May without a nominated replacement. The deputy health secretary position has been vacant since February after Jim O'Neill departed. Additionally, 12 of the 27 institutes and centers within the National Institutes of Health currently lack permanent directors.

On the same day, the committee voted 12-11 along party lines to advance Sean Kaufman for the role of Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response. Kaufman has previously advocated for those refusing the Covid vaccine and argued against hepatitis B vaccinations for newborns. While Senator Cassidy described some of Kaufman's comments on immunization as pretty stupid things and irresponsible things, he supported the nomination after receiving assurances from HHS that Kaufman would not be the ultimate decision-maker on vaccine policy.

Neither Schwartz nor Kaufman is expected to be confirmed before the Senate's August recess. A final vote by the full Senate is unlikely to occur until September.