Amna Nawaz
@PBSNewsHour·5.3M subscribers·62.2K videos
WATCH: Dr. Houry tells senators she left CDC because Kennedy censored science, politicized process
Posted
September 17, 2025
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September 17, 2025
3,631
106
2.92%
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5:25Now PlayingFormer chief medical officer Dr. Debra Houry gave her opening statement Wednesday in a hearing on recent turmoil at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the implications for children’s health.
Houry and other top officials resigned from the CDC last month after the ouster of former director Susan Monarez, who testified Wednesday that Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. fired her after she refused to preapprove vaccine recommendations from a CDC panel without seeing scientific evidence. Kennedy has denied these claims and told senators earlier this month that she was lying.
"I resigned because CDC leaders were reduced to rubber stamps," Houry said in her opening statement.
The hearing comes a day before a meeting of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, the panel that issues vaccine recommendations. Kennedy, known for his anti-vaccine advocacy, has come under fire for removing all members of the board and replacing them with people who align with his views. The panel is expected to vote on authorizations for COVID-19 vaccines, among others.
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