Amna Nawaz
@PBSNewsHour·5.3M subscribers·62.2K videos
WATCH: Former CDC doctor says U.S. is on track to see uptick in preventable diseases under Kennedy
Posted
September 17, 2025
Views
1,118
Likes
32
Engagement
2.86%
September 17, 2025
1,118
32
2.86%
Every word spoken in this episode is indexed. Type any phrase to jump straight to the moment it was said.
Type any word or phrase that may have been spoken. Click a result to seek the player to that exact moment.
Try a name, a topic, or a quoted line
See what was published immediately before and after this episode.
3:58Now PlayingDr. Debra Houry, former chief medical officer for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, testified Wednesday that the United States "is on track to see drastic increases in preventable diseases and declines in health" as a result of Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s actions.
In her opening remarks in front of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, Houry said, "America's progress in health is one of the greatest success stories in history." Less than two centuries ago, the nation's life expectancy "hovered around 39 years," she said. Today, while that figure has roughly doubled, the institutions responsible for those gains are being eroded, Houry said. Under Kennedy's policies and actions, she said, "We trade proven gains for avoidable harm."
Houry pointed to multiple examples, including Kennedy's decisions to halt a flu vaccine campaign and to replace public health experts with vaccine skeptics on the CDC's advisory group on immunization practices. She also noted actions that have weakened the CDC's lab and data systems, which have been "our nation's first line of defense against pandemics and biothreats."
"Due to the secretary's actions, our nation is on track to see drastic increases in preventable diseases and declines in health," Houry said. "Trust and transparency have been broken. Here again, the problem is not too much science, but too little."
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.
Sign up for Here's The Deal with Lisa Desjardins
Subscribe for exclusive content in our newsletters
PBS News podcasts
Stream your PBS favorites with the PBS app
Find more from PBS News at
Subscribe to our YouTube channel
Sentinel Indexing in Progress
Metadata and chapters are available. Claim extraction for this episode is pending.
All video content is delivered via YouTube embedded players in accordance with the YouTube Terms of Service. Sentinel provides research tools that promote discovery and accountability across political media.
