JUANA SUMMERS, HOST:

Right this moment, over 1,000 present and former federal well being employees signed a letter urging Well being Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to resign. The letter, which was addressed to the well being secretary and to Congress, accuses Kennedy of endangering the nation’s well being. This comes days after the Meals and Drug Administration imposed new restrictions on who’s eligible for the up to date COVID-19 vaccines and after the Trump administration fired the newly confirmed director of the Facilities for Illness Management and Prevention, Susan Monarez.

One of many organizers and signatories of this letter is Dr. Elizabeth Soda. Till yesterday, she was a doctor with the CDC’s Nationwide Heart for Rising and Zoonotic Infectious Ailments. She joins us now from Atlanta. Welcome to this system.

ELIZABETH SODA: Thanks a lot for having me.

SUMMERS: Dr. Soda, I do know that you’ve got been voicing your considerations about adjustments on the CDC for a while – for weeks now. However yesterday, you lastly took the step of resigning. Inform us what led you to make that selection.

SODA: You recognize, it wasn’t a simple one, however I joined the CDC to advertise well being, not solely only for a person however for a big inhabitants. And now I really feel like I’ve to depart CDC in order that I can do the identical and extra freely advocate for these actually vital public well being matters.

SUMMERS: Within the letter you and over 1,000 different federal well being employees penned, you say, quote, “our oath requires us to talk out when the Structure is violated and the American individuals are put in danger,” finish quote. Dr. Soda, how, in your view, is Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the well being secretary’s, management placing People in danger? Give us an instance.

SODA: Yeah, I strongly consider within the oath I took. And Secretary Kennedy is certainly placing us all in danger. I believe his stance on vaccines is one very clear instance of how he’s politicizing the vital public well being motion of vaccines, and it is going to have very severe penalties for all People at this level.

SUMMERS: We reached out to HHS, and spokesperson Andrew Nixon instructed NPR in an announcement that Secretary Kennedy has been clear in regards to the CDC being, quote, “damaged for a very long time” and went on to say that restoring belief in it would take, quote, “sustained reform and extra personnel adjustments.” He additionally went on to say that the well being secretary is dedicated to evidence-based science. What do you say to that?

SODA: I might argue the secretary is certainly not dedicated to evidence-based science, you recognize, primarily based upon lots of the actions he is already taken. Trying, for instance, of what he – what occurred to ACIP and the folks and appointees that he is placing at CDC, who’ve clearly been not utilizing evidence-based science to again lots of their conclusions.

SUMMERS: If you say ACIP, I assume you are referring there to the Advisory Committee on Immunization…

SODA: That is right.

SUMMERS: …Practices.

SODA: That’s right.

SUMMERS: I’m wondering, do you are worried in any respect that the collection of latest departures from CDC are literally fulfilling the imaginative and prescient that the Trump administration and the well being secretary have for the way forward for the company?

SODA: You recognize, that could be a actually good query, and I believe we undoubtedly have to consider these issues as we focus on these matters. However, you recognize, I can even say that CDC nonetheless clearly has loads of actually devoted and fantastic public servants who’re devoted to proceed its mission. They need to have the ability to do their work and help the American public. So I – you recognize, I do consider that due to these superb people, CDC will proceed to attempt to work and defend American lives as finest they will.

SUMMERS: I do know that you’ve got resigned, however I do should ask you. We have seen quite a few cases over the previous couple of months of people that communicate out in opposition to President Trump or his administration’s insurance policies dealing with quite a lot of detrimental penalties. Do you will have any considerations about talking out, going public your self?

SODA: Yeah, in fact. I believe there’s all the time threat, not solely from retaliation from the administration but additionally how, you recognize, most of the people goes to view us and doubtlessly the danger that comes with that. However, you recognize, I really feel very strongly. I swore an oath. Even when I’ve resigned, I will maintain by that oath for the remainder of my life. And that’s to talk out after I consider the Structure and the American individuals are in jeopardy. And so I am prepared to take that threat so as to assist promote the superb work that we’re making an attempt to do to advertise well being amongst all People.

SUMMERS: We have a couple of minute left. States are starting to take public well being issues into their very own palms. Florida simply introduced it intends to finish vaccine mandates. Right this moment, the states of California, Washington and Oregon launched the West Coast Well being Alliance to coordinate their very own well being steerage and vaccine suggestions moderately than to depend on the CDC. In your view, ought to the nation be making contingency plans to function with out the CDC, as we see these states doing?

SODA: I believe, sadly, we’re there, proper? We’re seeing states roll again these mandates. They are going to have penalties. The college mandates have helped. And I believe that if CDC is just not going to have the ability to present that dependable voice, we’re going to should depend on our state and native well being departments to step in and fill these gaps.

SUMMERS: Final thing I would prefer to ask – if Robert F. Kennedy Jr. doesn’t resign as well being secretary, as you and your colleagues – your former colleagues – ask, what would you hope comes subsequent for the CDC?

SODA: I do hope Congress takes motion. You recognize, that is our massive plea. Please, Congress, you recognize, take motion and put somebody in that position who’s going to have the ability to comply with evidence-based scientific knowledge to make good…

SUMMERS: OK.

SODA: …Choices for the American public.

SUMMERS: We’ll have to depart it there. Dr. Elizabeth Soda was till yesterday a doctor on the CDC, one in all greater than 1,000 federal well being employees calling for Well being Secretary Robert F. Kennedy to resign. Thanks.

SODA: Thanks a lot.

Copyright © 2025 NPR. All rights reserved. Go to our web site phrases of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for additional data.

Accuracy and availability of NPR transcripts might range. Transcript textual content could also be revised to right errors or match updates to audio. Audio on npr.org could also be edited after its authentic broadcast or publication. The authoritative file of NPR’s programming is the audio file.