President Trump recently nominated Dr. Susan Monarez as director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the nation’s largest public health agency.
The move came after the Trump administration rescinded former nominee Dave Weldon, after failing to attain enough confirmation votes in the Senate.
Dr. Monarez, however, since President Trump’s inauguration has been the CDC’s acting director, served in multiple agencies within the Department of Health and Human Services and even received Ivy League scientific education.
“Monarez holds a doctorate from the University of Wisconsin, and her postdoctoral training was in microbiology and immunology at Stanford University.
“Prior to being named the CDC’s acting director earlier this year, Monarez was largely known for her government roles in health technology and biosecurity,” according to the Associated Press.
Under the Obama administration and President Trump’s first term, Dr. Monarez served in the Office of Science and Technology Policy as assistant director for National Health Security and International Affairs.
Monarez also served on the National Security Council, as director of Medical Preparedness Policy, where she led directives, operations and presidential strategies toward biomedical innovation to “combat antibiotic-resistant bacteria and MDR/XDR TB, expanding telehealth and remote patient monitoring, establishing safeguards to ensure personal health data privacy, and improving pandemic preparedness,” according to the World Medical Innovation Forum.
Any nominee that might bring a more speedy Senate confirmation is welcome, especially after the nation is feeling the lingering effects of an intense flu season, with Oklahoma City ranking among the top nationally for hospitalizations and infections.
With the flu on its heels, a new round of disease has been rapidly spreading through the eastern portion of the Southwest: measles.
Originating in West Texas, the highly contagious disease spread to New Mexico, which combined have reached 351 cases, as of Friday, Mar. 21.
The Oklahoma State Department of Health recorded four probable measles cases, with new information updated every Tuesday.
Dr. James Kirk, an infectious disease specialist at SSM Health St. Anthony’s Hospital, told Journal Record that under-vaccinated populations are the primary culprit in the recent outbreak.
“‘The population has seen declining rates of vaccination, and it’s weakened our herd immunity,’ Kirk said. ‘When we fall below that threshold, we’re at risk not only for this outbreak but others (polio, mumps and rubella) that surely will follow.’”
As the most contagious vaccine-preventable disease possibly spreads into unvaccinated populations in the Midwest or eastern Southern U.S., a new potential CDC director will be tasked with preventing any further damage to national health.
That task will be done in parallel with HHS Secretary RFK, Jr., who in the past had been skeptical of certain vaccines, but during his confirmation hearing insisted he was not anti-vaccine and rightly emphasized that the U.S. does not have an effective vaccine monitoring system.
However, President Trump already cleared the air that Dr. Monarez’s impressive skills and ability will ensure the CDC and the HHS will be on the same page, oriented around cooperation and teamwork, in a post on social media.
“A CDC spokesperson referred a question about Monarez to the White House. In a social media post, Trump said that Monarez will work closely with Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.“‘As an incredible mother and dedicated public servant, Dr. Monarez understands the importance of protecting our children, our communities, and our future,’ Trump said in the post on Monday afternoon. ‘Americans have lost confidence in the CDC due to political bias and disastrous mismanagement,’” according to the Associated Press.
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