Amna Nawaz
@PBSNewsHour·5.3M subscribers·62.2K videos
WATCH: What ousted CDC director Monarez wants parents to know about vaccines
Posted
September 17, 2025
Views
945
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24
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September 17, 2025
945
24
2.54%
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1:27Now PlayingFormer CDC Director Susan Monarez said at a Senate committee hearing Wednesday that she would encourage all parents to talk to their children’s pediatricians so they can understand the benefits of vaccination.
“Vaccines are safe. They’re life-saving," Monarez said when asked by Sen. Angela Alsobrooks, D-Md., about her message to parents confused by recent changes and anti-vaccine statements by Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
Monarez testified before the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions about the political pressure she says she faced from Kennedy. She says she was fired 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.
Monarez’s firing led to the resignations of several other top health officials, including former chief medical officer Dr. Debra Houry, who also testified in Wednesday’s hearing.
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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