House Energy and Commerce Committee Holds Hearing on Rebuilding Public Trust in the CDC
Last week, the U.S. House of Representatives’ Oversight And Investigations Subcommittee
held a hearing titled “Unmasking Challenges CDC Faces In Rebuilding
Public Trust Amid Respiratory Illness Season.”
Mandy Cohen, M.D., M.P.H., the new Director of the Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), addressed lawmakers, emphasizing the
opportunity to regain public trust during the winter cold and flu season. Dr.
Cohen stressed the importance of fully funding the CDC for effective reorganization
and preparedness against various health threats, whether they are from labs, animals
or weapons. A survey in March revealed eroding support for the CDC, with about
a quarter of Americans having little trust in the agency's health recommendations.
House Republicans questioned Dr. Cohen on her stance regarding
school closures, mask mandates and vaccine mandates during the peak of the COVID-19
pandemic. Seeking to avoid such measures in future emergencies, Dr. Cohen refocused
on the CDC’s need to prevent returning to those situations. The mistrust of
the CDC, coupled with concerns about potential pandemics, prompted Republicans
to consider increased control and oversight, with U.S. Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers
(R-Wash.) suggesting a reauthorization process for the agency, whereby certain
responsibilities would be curtailed or highly regulated by congressional oversight.
Committee members, specifically Republican members, peppered
Dr. Cohen with questions about the recently reported uptick in respiratory illness
in China. Members wanted to know if this was the beginning of a possible novel
virus, like COVID-19 was. They also expressed their concerns about China’s lack
of transparency surrounding COVID-19. Dr. Cohen assured the members that the uptick
in respiratory illness was not due to a novel virus and noted that this information
had been collaborated by CDC’s staff in China, the World Health Organization and the European Union.
