Health Secretary RFK Jr. Should Be Fired, Not CDC Director Susan Monarez
WASHINGTON, D.C. – After U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. sought to oust Susan Monarez, the first Senate-confirmed director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), she refused to resign. A lawyer for Monarez argued that the purported firing was “legally deficient,” because as a Senate-confirmed officer, only the president has the authority to dismiss her. Dr. Robert Steinbrook, director of Public Citizen’s Health Research Group, issued the following statement:
“President Trump should fire Robert F. Kennedy Jr., not Susan Monarez. Monarez stood up for scientific integrity by refusing to fire the CDC leadership team and refusing to rubber stamp vaccine recommendations from Kennedy’s handpicked appointees to the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices. Week after week, Kennedy continues to demonstrate that he is completely unqualified to be the nation’s health secretary.”