A ‘hostile takeover’: ousted CDC official raises alarm over RFK Jr approach to infectious disease

Debra Houry speaks after testifying on eight months under Kennedy, who critics say shuns science and spreads falsehoods

Robert F Kennedy Jr, the secretary of the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), has avoided meetings with top health officials, even as deadly outbreaks unfolded, and pushed to make unprecedented changes to the childhood immunization schedule, according to a recently ousted leader of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Debra Houry, the CDC's former chief medical officer, spoke with the Guardian after testifying before a Senate committee about her eight months serving under Kennedy, offering insight into a health secretary who has been criticized as shunning expertise in favor of spreading misinformation, denigrating science, and dismantling institutions crucial for Americans' health.