Former Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Susan Monarez is accusing Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. of sabotaging public health by increasing regulations on vaccines.

Monarez, who was terminated by President Donald Trump last week in a tumultuous hemorrhaging of leadership at the CDC, wrote in a Wall Street Journal op-ed Thursday morning that Kennedy “pressured [her] to resign or face termination” on Aug. 25.

Recommended Stories

• Florida surgeon general says state vaccine mandates will end, invoking 'slavery'
• Liberal states team up to counter Kennedy on vaccines and public health
• Over 1,000 HHS staffers demand RFK Jr.'s resignation after CDC director ousted

The former CDC director outlined that she was “told to preapprove the recommendations” from the agency’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, which Kennedy disbanded earlier this year and replaced with members in line with his vaccine-critical views.

“Once trusted experts are removed and advisory bodies are stacked, the results are predetermined. That isn’t reform. It is sabotage,” wrote Monarez.

ACIP’s next meeting is scheduled for Sept. 18-19, during which time it is supposed to issue new recommendations on the childhood vaccine schedule, including the measles, mumps, and rubella vaccine, and the Hepatitis B vaccine.

“It is imperative that the panel’s recommendations aren’t rubber-stamped but instead are rigorously and scientifically reviewed before being accepted or rejected,” Monarez said.

Trust in the CDC dropped drastically during the COVID-19 pandemic, but it has increased among Republicans since Trump and Kennedy took office.

According to a May poll from the health policy organization KFF, only 16% of people reported a “great deal” of trust in the CDC. Roughly half, 47%, say they have a “fair amount” of trust.

Seven in 10 Democrats said they trust the CDC, down from 88% in September 2023. Trust in the agency has increased since 2023, from 40% trusting the agency in 2023 to 51% reporting trust in the CDC this year.

Hours before Monarez was fired, Kennedy announced on social media that the COVID-19 vaccine would only receive Food and Drug Administration approval for those with comorbidities that increase a patient’s likelihood for severe disease, including seniors over age 65.

Vaccine advocates have said that ACIP and CDC recommendations are essential for insurance coverage for vaccines.

Monarez’s op-ed condemning Kennedy was published moments before the health secretary was scheduled to testify before the Senate Finance Committee in a previously scheduled hearing.

The hearing, however, comes as Republicans have expressed increasing frustration with Kennedy’s heavy-handed leadership style, especially when it comes to vaccines.

KENNEDY DEFENDS CDC SHAKE-UP TO REBUILD TRUST IN AGENCY

Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) told reporters on Wednesday in advance of the hearing that Kennedy has “gotta take responsibility” for Monarez’s firing, adding that “because somebody’s supportive of or in favor of vaccines is not disqualifying for that job.”

“We go through a lot of work to get them confirmed. And they’re in office a month?” said Thune.