After firestorm, CDC director says terms like “science-based” are not banned

Enlarge / CDC Director Dr. Brenda Fitzgerald at the agency's headquarters in Atlanta, Georgia, on Tuesday, December 5, 2017. (credit: Getty | Washington Post)

The director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention fired off a series of tweets Sunday to try to quell fierce backlash from a Friday night report that the Trump administration had banned the agency from using certain terms in budget documents, including "science-based" and "diversity."

"I want to assure you there are no banned words at CDC," Director Dr. Brenda Fitzgerald" tweeted at the top of a thread Sunday morning, which is currently pinned.

Instead, several sources have tried to clarify that the language changes were merely suggestions to help make the agency's budget more palatable to some Republicans and ease its passage.

Read 11 remaining paragraphs | Comments