Overview
- HHS confirmed Ralph Abraham’s appointment as CDC principal deputy director effective Nov. 23 after Inside Medicine spotted his listing, and the agency did not announce the hire.
- With the director’s post vacant and Jim O’Neill serving in an acting capacity, the role positions Abraham to wield significant operational authority at the agency.
- As Louisiana surgeon general, Abraham ordered the health department to stop promoting mass vaccination and has described COVID-19 vaccines as dangerous.
- Reporting by NPR and KFF Health News found the Louisiana health department delayed public alerts during a whooping cough outbreak that included two infant deaths.
- The post does not require Senate confirmation, aligning CDC leadership with Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s vaccine-skeptic agenda and drawing concern from public-health experts and CDC employees.