The white house removes the candidate for the CDC director
The White House drew the appointment of Dr. Dave Weldon, a Republican and former congress member, return to lead the centers for the control and prevention of illnesses just a few hours before his hearing to confirm the Senate.
Dr. Weldon reached by phone and said he found out about the decision on Wednesday evening and told an official of the White House that “they had no voices to confirm his nomination”.
In a later explanation, which was later published on Thursday, Dr. Weldon, 71, Senator Susan Collins, Republicans from Maine and member of the Senate Health Committee, and Senator Bill Cassidy, Republican of Louisiana and Chairman of the Committee, for the recognition of his nomination.
A spokesman for Mr. Cassidy said that the senator had “pleased” the hearing for confirmation. Ms. Collins' office denied Dr. Weldon's account.
“I didn't say any concerns about the White House. I had some reservations, but I had certainly not reached a final judgment, ”said Ms. Collins on Thursday.
The withdrawal of Dr. Weldon's nomination, which followed a meeting on Tuesday with the Republican Senate aids, is a significant setback for Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the new secretary for health and human services.
Dr. Weldon and Mr. Kennedy have known each other for 25 years and both share deep skepticism compared to the federal regulatory approach to the safety of the vaccine.
Mr. Kennedy also has a measles outbreak in West texas and has criticized the promotion of treatments such as vitamin A and cod liver oil and the description of vaccination as a personal choice with unknown risks.
The decision to withdraw the nomination was first reported by Axios.
It was unclear whether the White House had a backup candidate. The CDC is currently being held by a reigning director, Dr. Susan Monarez, headed, who previously worked as deputy director of a newly formed biomedical research agency.
In an interview on Thursday, Dr. Weldon, he is enthusiastic about the prospect of serving his country again and restoring the public's trust in the CDC
He was also looking forward to working with Mr. Kennedy on the Maha or making America well again, the agenda to limit chronic diseases among the Americans.
“It's a shock, but in a way it is relief,” said Dr. Weldon. “Government jobs demand many of them, and if God does not want me, I agree.”
The Senate Committee for Health Education, Work and Pensions has the hearing of Dr. Weldon canceled, but two other candidates advanced in the entire Senate: Dr. Jayanta Bhattcharya, around the National Institutes of Health and Dr. To guide Martin Makary to lead the Food and Drug Administration.
(The hearing of Dr. Mehmet Oz, the candidate who runs the centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, is planned for Friday.)
The abrupt withdrawal seemed to be due to events that took place on Tuesday when Dr. Weldon met with the employees of the Republican Senate. In the explanation, Dr. Weldon that the helper of Ms. Collins at the meeting, despite his “very pleasant” meeting with her two weeks, were “suddenly very hostile”.
Dr. Weldon said that the helpers have repeatedly accused me of being anti-Vax “. But Ms. Collins' office said that was untrue, and the helpers had Dr. Weldon simply asked how he would react to allegations that he was against vaccination.
According to a person who took part in the session and spoke on the condition of the anonymity to share details
On Wednesday, the day after the meeting, Mr. Kennedy with Ms. Collins, said Dr. Weldon. He said Mr. Kennedy informed him that Ms. Collins had expressed reservations about him.
Dr. Weldon was perhaps the least known men who were nominated for large agencies in the Ministry of Health and Human Services. But he was the one who was most closely oriented with Mr. Kennedy.
The health secretary has Dr. Weldon's criticism of the CDC cited together with his own. Mr. Kennedy is “very angry” about the decision to withdraw nomination, said Dr. Weldon.
“I will get on a plane at 11 a.m. and see home and see patients on Monday,” said Dr. Weldon. “I will earn much more money in my medical practice.”
His hearing should take place in the middle of significant measles outbursts in Texas and New Mexico, who infected more than 250 people and demanded two lives. a flu season that led to a record number of hospital stays; And the potential for a bird flu epidemic.
He repeatedly questioned the security of the measles vaccine and criticized the CDC for not doing enough to prove that vaccines are safe.
“You never did it,” he said in the explanation. He also praised the work of the discredited British doctor Andrew Wakefield, who wrongly suggested that vaccines cause autism.
“We can be able to research and find out why some children have a bad reaction to the measles-mump-rubella vaccine, wrote Dr. Weldon, although dozens of studies that have refuted a link have refuted. “It is clear that Big Pharma did not want me to examine anything about it in the CDC.”
Dr. Weldon worked in the congress for 14 years from 1995 to 2009. During his term, he urged the security office of the vaccine to remove the CDC control and said that the agency had a conflict of interest because it also buys and promotes in the vaccine.
Dr. Weldon is also a convincing opponent of abortion.
His signature performance was the Weldon change, which prevents health authorities from discriminating against hospitals or health insurance plans that decide not to provide or pay abortions.
Like Mr. Kennedy, he had questioned the need to immunize children against hepatitis B, and mainly described it as a sexually transmitted disease that concerns adults.
He also argued that abstinence is the most effective way to contain sexually transmitted infections. The cases have increased in recent years and only showed signs of a possible downturn in 2023.
In an interview with the New York Times at the end of November, Dr. Weldon, he worked “to get the mercury out of childhood from the vaccines”.
The CDC had published a research study that shows that the mercury had not done any damage, “but there were credible allegations that CDC incorrectly manipulated the data to relieve itself,” he said in the explanation.
“If confirmed, I planned to return to the CDC database and to examine this claim quietly,” he said.
Nevertheless, he described himself as a supporter of vaccination. Both adult children are fully immunized, he said in November. As a doctor in the Florida coast, he prescribes thousands of flu doses and other vaccines to his patients.
“I was described as anti-vaccine,” said Dr. Weldon and added: “I give shots. I believe in vaccination. “
