Dr. Susan Monarez has been abruptly fired from her role as Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), lasting less than a month in the position.
Multiple outlets including CNN, The Washington Post, and The Hill confirmed her ouster, with the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) issuing a brief statement on Tuesday.
“Dr. Susan Monarez is no longer director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. We thank her for her dedicated service to the American people,” the HHS announcement read.
The statement added that Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. “has full confidence in his team at CDC who will continue to be vigilant in protecting Americans against infectious diseases.”
According to The Washington Post, Monarez’s departure was tied to internal disputes over vaccine policy and Kennedy’s push for changes at the agency. The Biden years had left the CDC politically bruised, and under President Trump’s second administration, efforts have been made to overhaul leadership and direction at the agency.
Monarez, a longtime government scientist, was confirmed by the Senate on July 29 and officially sworn in just two days later, on July 31. Her firing makes her one of the shortest-serving CDC directors in modern history.
Before her appointment, Monarez had briefly served as Acting Director of the CDC at the start of Trump’s second term. She also worked as deputy director at the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H), and earlier in her career conducted postdoctoral training in microbiology and immunology at Stanford University.
When President Trump nominated her in March, he hailed her as a reformer who would restore public trust in the CDC. On Truth Social, Trump praised her credentials and called her “an incredible mother and dedicated public servant” who would “Make America Healthy Again.”
But internal tensions appear to have derailed that plan. Kennedy, who has taken a hard line on vaccine safety and transparency, reportedly clashed with Monarez on priorities for the CDC. Sources told The Hill that her departure came after “irreconcilable differences” with leadership.
The firing underscores the broader shakeup inside federal health agencies under Trump’s leadership. While Monarez is out, the administration has signaled that reforms will continue, with a focus on accountability, chronic disease prevention, and restoring credibility to an agency that has faced heavy criticism in recent years.
For now, Kennedy and the CDC’s remaining leadership team will oversee the transition as the search begins for yet another new director.