Emails show Trump-era CDC overruled on flu vaccines and public health

Democrats on the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions released emails Thursday showing how CDC officials navigated pressure from Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and his aides over flu vaccines, vaccine recommendations and internal decision-making. The committee obtained the emails from Dr. Debra Houry, the CDC’s former chief medical officer, who resigned after Susan Monarez was fired.

In mid-February 2025, during a severe flu season, CDC communications official Nicole Coffin wrote to colleagues that HHS communications chief Andrew Nixon had “asked that we pull out of circulation all campaign ad buys related to flu or anything encouraging shots or vaccinations.” Coffin wrote that the request “came directly from the Secretary” and that the agency would shift to “informed consent” messaging about risks and benefits. Another CDC official warned that stopping a campaign already in the field could create reputational damage and legal problems tied to contracts and appropriated funding. HHS then paused the “Wild to Mild” flu vaccination campaign while allowing “Get My Flu Shot” to continue.

The emails also showed a broader effort to put political leadership between CDC experts and final policy decisions. On June 9, 2025, HHS removed all 17 members of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, saying the Biden administration’s appointees would otherwise have prevented the Trump administration from choosing a majority until 2028. The overhaul was meant to restore public trust and reflect “gold standard science,” but major physicians and public health groups criticized the move, and former ACIP members warned it weakened the vaccine program. On Aug. 19, 2025, Kennedy chief of staff Matthew Buckham told Monarez that all major CDC decisions needed review by political leadership and that CDC political staff and the secretary’s office should have “eyes on the decisions for approval/changes before they go into effect.”

Less than a week later, on Aug. 27, 2025, Kennedy fired Monarez for failing to pre-approve ACIP recommendations “regardless of the scientific evidence.” The memo also details Kennedy seeking confidential data to look for evidence supporting the long-disproven claim that vaccines cause autism. Monarez and Houry testified before the committee on Sept. 17, 2025, after Houry and other senior CDC leaders resigned. A June 2026 memo from Sanders estimated the Vaccines for Children program prevented about 508 million illnesses in children born from 1994 through 2023.