Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. visited the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta on Friday, on the eve of the first anniversary of a shooting that terrorized the agency’s workforce and killed a police officer. He praised CDC scientists and their work, but also urged greater skepticism of scientific authorities.
Kennedy held an in-person fireside chat attended by about 200 people, according to CDC employees who were present. The session was not live-streamed. Questions had to be submitted in advance. Some scientists in the room, speaking on the condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation, said Kennedy’s expressions of appreciation were difficult to hear after his previous criticisms of the CDC, as well as federal health department cuts last year that included hundreds of positions at the agency.
Although Kennedy praised scientists and their work, he also called for greater scrutiny of scientific findings. “You can’t just trust a scientist, because scientists have biases, too,” he said, according to a transcript of his 43-minute chat obtained by The Washington Post.
He also said the CDC’s data was too difficult to access, describing as “shocking” how inaccessible the databases are. “They’re all hoarding their own data.”
Kennedy and his allies have sought greater access to CDC data to pursue studies of vaccines. Administration officials and career scientists have sparred for months over access to one of the federal government’s premier vaccine-safety surveillance systems. Scientists have raised concerns about giving political appointees direct access to the sensitive data.
Some CDC employees said they were unsettled by Friday’s events. Saturday marks one year since a gunman who blamed coronavirus vaccines for his health problems fired hundreds of rounds at the agency’s Atlanta campus, killing DeKalb County police officer David Rose and forcing terrified employees to shelter inside.
Larger-than-life cutouts of interim CDC director Jay Bhattacharya were displayed in the building, portraying him as a wrestler and thanking him “for stepping into the ring for public health.” Photos and criticism of the display immediately popped up on social media.
Catch up quickly every weekday morning with a rundown of the 7 most important and interesting stories. Sign up for The 7 newsletter.