Ex-CDC director expected to focus on vaccines in first testimony since firing

Public Health Concerns - The former CDC director is expected to testify that the Health Secretary pressured her to endorse new vaccine recommendations before seeing scientific evidence [1] - The former CDC director refused to rubber-stamp unscientific directives and fire dedicated health experts [2] - The former CDC director was asked to fire long-standing health officials, which she felt uncomfortable doing [4] - The former CDC director was pressured to pre-approve recommendations about vaccines before even seeing the scientific evidence [5] - There are concerns that new recommendations approved by the Health Secretary's handpicked allies could negatively impact the availability of vaccines and insurance coverage [8] Political Implications - The hearing is a huge moment that has a lot of stakes for public health and politically because it will be closely watched to see whether Republicans still have confidence in the Health Secretary [5] - The Health Secretary fired every single person on the board and replaced them with handpicked allies after promising he would leave that board alone [8] - The industry is wondering whether Republicans are still going to be backing the Health Secretary after the hearing [9] Vaccine Advisory Committee Meeting - The AY's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices is set to meet to review and vote on several key vaccines, including COVID and measles [6] - The hearing is set to approve potentially some new recommendations regarding a slew of vaccines from COVID to hepatitis B [7]