Hi, Atlanta!

Two scientists who resigned from senior positions at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention came to the Georgia Capitol this week with a plea for officials to put science over politics.

Drs. Deb Houry and Dan Jernigan were among four officials who left the CDC last week as Director Susan Monarez was being ousted — all citing political interference in the agency's scientific mission to protect public health.

“We’re asking that science go first, before the policy development, not starting with an ideology, and then backing into the science,” Jernigan told Democrats in the state legislature who gathered Tuesday to discuss concerns about the CDC. Not doing so could result in a situation where the country is “not ready for the next public health threat.” 

Houry and Jernigan listed several public health concerns that could worsen if the CDC’s work is politicized, including food-borne illnesses, infectious diseases, and chronic diseases. Violence prevention is another worry, given that the CDC campus was targeted in a shooting that killed a local police officer — and about 100 violence prevention workers at the agency have been fired  in mass layoffs.

The two stopped short of calling for Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to resign and said they believe Americans’ trust in the agency’s rigor can be restored.

“There are ways the secretary can make things better by trying to get the right scientists … to get the right resources back and to make sure that he is supporting CDC in its role as a global public health agency,” Jernigan said. 

Acting Director Jim O’Neill is the first non-scientist and non-physician in the post, Houry said, and will need a “strong scientific bench” around him to help guide key decisions. 

Houry said she has spoken to Republican lawmakers, though none from Georgia, and came away hopeful, adding she sees this a public health rather than a partisan issue. 

Georgia legislators including Rep. Saira Draper of Atlanta called on Gov. Brian Kemp and other state Republican leaders to make a public statement in support of the CDC. 

Kemp’s office has not done so and didn’t respond to my request for comment.

Public Health on the Move

• The Blank Foundation and Emory University’s Winship Cancer Institute are launching a mobile prostate cancer screening program. The project aims to reduce cancer disparities among Black men and will provide free screenings. The screenings use a blood test rather than a physical exam. Here’s more info on where the van will be and how to request it for upcoming events. 

• Former CDC scientist Greta Massetti will take over as the chair of Georgia State University’s Department of Population Health Sciences. Massetti formerly served as principal deputy director of the CDC’s National Center for Injury Prevention and Control and is an expert in the epidemiology of violence. 

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