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  • California moves to distance itself from CDC on vaccines, considers creating its own agency

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    UPDATES AS THEY COME IN. OTHER NEWS, RIGHT NOW, HEALTH OFFICIALS ARE FOCUSING ON VACCINE DEADLINES. THIS WEEK, A CDC COMMITTEE WILL CONSIDER POSSIBLE CHANGES TO RECOMMENDATIONS TOMORROW. AND NOW THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA IS CONSIDERING DISTANCING ITSELF FROM THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT’S GUIDELINES. THE POTENTIAL CHANGE IN GUIDANCE COMES AS THE RECENTLY FIRED CDC DIRECTOR WARNS THOSE CHANGES MAY NOT BE BASED ON SCIENCE. WE HAVE TEAM COVERAGE FOR YOU OF WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW. ASHLEY ZAVALA HAS THE CHANGE IN STATE VACCINATION GUIDELINES, BUT WE START WITH JACKIE DEFUSCO LIVE ON CAPITOL HILL FOR US WITH A MESSAGE FROM THE FORMER CDC DIRECTOR. YEAH. HEY THERE, ANDREA CURTIS ON CAPITOL HILL TODAY, THE FORMER CDC DIRECTOR, SUSAN MONAREZ, CLAIMED THAT SHE WAS FIRED IN PART FOR ESSENTIALLY REFUSING TO PRE-APPROVE VACCINE RECOMMENDATIONS WITHOUT SEEING THE SCIENTIFIC EVIDENCE FIRST. SHE TOLD SENATORS THAT SHE IS NERVOUS ABOUT WHAT’S TO COME. TAKE A LISTEN. BASED ON WHAT I OBSERVED DURING MY TENURE, THERE IS A REAL RISK THAT RECOMMENDATIONS COULD BE MADE RESTRICTING ACCESS TO VACCINES FOR CHILDREN AND OTHERS IN NEED WITHOUT RIGOROUS SCIENTIFIC REVIEW, WITH NO PERMANENT CDC DIRECTOR IN PLACE, THOSE RECOMMENDATIONS COULD BE ADOPTED. HEALTH SECRETARY ROBERT F KENNEDY JR HAS DENIED THAT HE ORDERED MONAREZ TO RUBBER STAMP VACCINE RECOMMENDATIONS. BUT THE DISPUTE COMES AS THE CDC’S INFLUENTIAL ADVISORY PANEL, WHOSE MEMBERS WERE RECENTLY REPLACED BY KENNEDY, IS SET TO CONVENE TOMORROW TO CONSIDER POSSIBLE CHANGES TO GUIDANCE ON COVID 19, CHICKENPOX AND HEPATITIS B SHOTS. TELLING LAWMAKERS THAT SHE HAS NOT SEEN ANY DATA AT THIS POINT TO SUPPORT CHANGING ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA. FORMER CDC CHIEF MEDICAL OFFICER DEBORAH OURY, WHO RECENTLY RESIGNED, ALSO TESTIFIED TODAY. AND SHE SAID THAT ONE OF KENNEDY’S POLITICAL ADVISERS TOLD HER NOT TO INCLUDE INFORMATION THAT COULD SUPPORT MAINTAINING HEPATITIS B SHOTS FOR NEWBORNS TO PREVENT THE DEADLY DISEASE FROM SPREADING FROM THE MOTHER. YOU’RE SUGGESTING THAT THEY WANTED TO MOVE AWAY FROM THE BIRTH DOSE, BUT THEY WERE AFRAID THAT YOUR DATA WOULD SAY THAT THEY SHOULD RETAIN IT. IT. WHAT DO WE DO NOW? IT’S STILL UNCLEAR AT THIS POINT HOW EXACTLY THE ADVISORY PANEL WILL VOTE LATER THIS WEEK, BUT SOME MEMBERS IN THE PAST HAVE QUESTIONED THE NECESSITY OF THE HEPATITIS B SHOT FOR NEWBORNS, AND HAVE ALSO SUGGESTED THAT THERE SHOULD BE A MORE CONSERVATIVE SET OF VACCINE RECOMMENDATIONS FOR THE COVID 19 SHOT, REGARDLESS OF WHAT THAT PANEL RECOMMENDS. ULTIMATELY, THE ACTING CDC DIRECTOR, JIM O’NEILL, WILL NEED TO SIGN OFF BEFORE THEY BECOME OFFICIAL LIVE ON CAPITOL HILL. I’M JACKIE DEFUSCO, KCRA THREE NEWS. JACKIE, THANK YOU. AND CLOSER TO HOME, CALIFORNIA LEADERS TODAY CONTINUE TO DISTANCE THE STATE FROM THE CDC WITH A SERIES OF ANNOUNCEMENTS. KCRA THREE POLITICAL DIRECTOR ASHLEY ZAVALA EXPLAINS THE ACTION GOVERNOR GAVIN NEWSOM TOOK TODAY. WELL, THIS COMES AS THE STATE CONTINUES TO CLASH WITH THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT OVER VACCINES AND SCIENCE. OVERALL. TODAY, NEWSOM, ALONGSIDE THE GOVERNORS OF OREGON, WASHINGTON AND HAWAII, ROLLED OUT THEIR OWN VACCINE RECOMMENDATIONS FOR THE WINTER. THE GROUP IS ALSO NOW KNOWN AS THE WEST COAST HEALTH ALLIANCE. AS OF A COUPLE OF WEEKS AGO, THE RECOMMENDED SHOTS INCLUDE THE COVID 19 SHOT, FLU AND RSV SHOTS. THE GOVERNOR TODAY ALSO SIGNED A NEW STATE LAW THAT ALLOWS CALIFORNIA TO TAKE VACCINE RECOMMENDATIONS FROM MEDICAL GROUPS OUTSIDE OF THE CDC. THIS COMES AFTER ROBERT F KENNEDY JR FIRED ALL 17 MEMBERS OF THE ADVISORY COMMITTEE ON IMMUNIZATION PRACTICES AND REPLACE THEM WITH VACCINE SKEPTICS. THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION LOOSENED RECOMMENDATIONS AROUND THE COVID 19 VACCINE. ALSO IN A STATEMENT, THE WEST COAST GOVERNOR SAID, OUR STATES ARE UNITED IN PUTTING SCIENCE, SAFETY AND TRANSPARENCY FIRST AND IN PROTECTING FAMILIES WITH CLEAR, CREDIBLE VACCINE GUIDANCE. THE WEST COAST HEALTH ALLIANCE STANDS UNITED IN PROTECTING PUBLIC HEALTH AND ALWAYS PUTTING SAFETY BEFORE POLITICS. MEANWHILE, A SPOKESPERSON FOR THE U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES SAID DEMOCRAT RUN STATES THAT PUSHED UNSCIENTIFIC SCHOOL LOCKDOWNS, TODDLER MASK MANDATES AND DRACONIAN VACCINE PASSPORTS DURING THE COVID ERA COMPLETELY ERODED THE AMERICAN PEOPLE’S TRUST IN PUBLIC HEALTH AGENCIES. ACIP REMAINS THE SCIENTIFIC BODY GUIDING IMMUNIZATION RECOMMENDATIONS IN THIS COUNTRY. AND HHS WILL ENSURE POLICY IS BASED ON RIGOROUS EVIDENCE AND GOLD STANDARD SCIENCE, NOT THE FAILED POLITICS OF THE PANDEMIC. END QUOTE. NOW, SEPARATELY FROM THE GOVERNOR’S ANNOUNCEMENT TODAY, SOME DEMOCRATIC STATE LAWMAKERS AND LABOR GROUPS LAUNCHED AN EFFORT THAT WOULD ESSENTIALLY CREATE CALIFORNIA’S OWN CDC AND FOUNDATION FOUNDATION TO FUND MEDICAL RESEARCH. THIS WOULD FIRST NEED TO PASS AT THE STATE CAPITOL, THOUGH, BEFORE GOING TO VOTERS IN A BALLOT MEASURE IN NOVEMBER OF 2026. SO HOW MUCH MONEY ARE THEY EXPECTING TO SPEND ON THIS PROPOSAL? YEAH, ESSENTIALLY THEY’RE GOING TO ASK CALIFORNIA VOTERS TO APPROVE A MEASURE THAT WOULD INVOLVE BORROWING $23 BILLION IN BONDS. WE WILL HAVE A LOT MORE ON THIS AT FIVE. A LOT OF QUESTIONS AROUND THA

    California’s Democratic leaders on Wednesday announced a series of efforts to distance the state from President Donald Trump’s Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as the state and federal government continue to clash over vaccines and science. Gov. Gavin Newsom on Wednesday signed legislation that allows the state to set future immunization guidance on credible, independent medical organizations instead of the CDC. Those organizations could include but are not limited to the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, and the American Academy of Family Physicians. Also on Wednesday, the governor and the California Department of Public Health, along with other West Coast governors, rolled out vaccine recommendations for the upcoming winter, countering advice from the CDC. The recommendations include the COVID-19 shot, flu shot, and RSV vaccine. It comes two weeks after the leaders of California, Oregon, Washington and Hawaii established the West Coast Health Alliance to rebuke the Trump administration’s policies. States typically follow guidance from the CDC, but the Democratic leaders established the alliance after U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. fired all 17 members of the federal panel that advises on immunization practices and replaced them with vaccine skeptics. “Our states are united in putting science, safety, and transparency first — and in protecting families with clear, credible vaccine guidance. The West Coast Health Alliance stands united in protecting public health and always putting safety before politics,” the governors said in a joint statement. Separately from Newsom’s announcement Wednesday, labor groups and some California lawmakers announced an effort to try to establish their own CDC and foundation to fund medical research. The proposal specifically would involve borrowing $23 billion in bonds. The legislation, known as Senate Bill 607, would first need to pass the state Legislature before giving voters the final say on the November ballot in 2026. “In communities across California, families are counting on science to deliver cures, protect our health, and prepare us for the challenges of the future,” said Assemblymember José Luis Solache, D-Lynwood. “Donald Trump’s cuts threaten not just research, but the lives of our loved ones. This measure makes clear that Californians will take control of our future and invest in life-saving research – because our families, our health, and our economy are too important to leave in the hands of Washington politicians playing games with people’s lives.””Democrat-run states that pushed unscientific school lockdowns, toddler mask mandates, and draconian vaccine passports during the COVID era completely eroded the American people’s trust in public health agencies,” a statement from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services read. “ACIP remains the scientific body guiding immunization recommendations in this country, and HHS will ensure policy is based on rigorous evidence and Gold Standard Science, not the failed politics of the pandemic.” See more coverage of top California stories here | Download our app | Subscribe to our morning newsletter | Find us on YouTube here and subscribe to our channel

    SACRAMENTO, Calif. —

    California’s Democratic leaders on Wednesday announced a series of efforts to distance the state from President Donald Trump’s Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as the state and federal government continue to clash over vaccines and science.

    Gov. Gavin Newsom on Wednesday signed legislation that allows the state to set future immunization guidance on credible, independent medical organizations instead of the CDC. Those organizations could include but are not limited to the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, and the American Academy of Family Physicians.

    Also on Wednesday, the governor and the California Department of Public Health, along with other West Coast governors, rolled out vaccine recommendations for the upcoming winter, countering advice from the CDC. The recommendations include the COVID-19 shot, flu shot, and RSV vaccine.

    It comes two weeks after the leaders of California, Oregon, Washington and Hawaii established the West Coast Health Alliance to rebuke the Trump administration’s policies. States typically follow guidance from the CDC, but the Democratic leaders established the alliance after U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. fired all 17 members of the federal panel that advises on immunization practices and replaced them with vaccine skeptics.

    “Our states are united in putting science, safety, and transparency first — and in protecting families with clear, credible vaccine guidance. The West Coast Health Alliance stands united in protecting public health and always putting safety before politics,” the governors said in a joint statement.

    Separately from Newsom’s announcement Wednesday, labor groups and some California lawmakers announced an effort to try to establish their own CDC and foundation to fund medical research. The proposal specifically would involve borrowing $23 billion in bonds.

    The legislation, known as Senate Bill 607, would first need to pass the state Legislature before giving voters the final say on the November ballot in 2026.

    “In communities across California, families are counting on science to deliver cures, protect our health, and prepare us for the challenges of the future,” said Assemblymember José Luis Solache, D-Lynwood. “Donald Trump’s cuts threaten not just research, but the lives of our loved ones. This measure makes clear that Californians will take control of our future and invest in life-saving research – because our families, our health, and our economy are too important to leave in the hands of Washington politicians playing games with people’s lives.”

    “Democrat-run states that pushed unscientific school lockdowns, toddler mask mandates, and draconian vaccine passports during the COVID era completely eroded the American people’s trust in public health agencies,” a statement from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services read. “ACIP remains the scientific body guiding immunization recommendations in this country, and HHS will ensure policy is based on rigorous evidence and Gold Standard Science, not the failed politics of the pandemic.”

    See more coverage of top California stories here | Download our app | Subscribe to our morning newsletter | Find us on YouTube here and subscribe to our channel

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  • LIVE: Former CDC chief Susan Monarez testifies RFK Jr. fired her over vaccine science

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    Former Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Susan Monarez testified before senators on Wednesday that Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. fired her after she refused to endorse forthcoming vaccine recommendations without reviewing scientific evidence to support the guidance.Watch a livestream of the hearing in the video player above.Monarez was ousted just 29 days into the job, over disagreement with her boss on vaccine policies.Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy, who chairs the powerful health committee Monarez is appearing before, expressed skepticism over the explanations Kennedy has given over her firing. He carefully praised President Donald Trump for his commitment to promoting health among Americans but made it clear he was befuddled by Monarez’s removal. He noted that senators had just approved Monarez’s confirmation with Kennedy praising her “unimpeachable scientific credentials.”“Like, what happened?” Cassidy said. “Did we fail? Was there something we should have done differently?”Monarez said in her testimony that Kennedy gave her an ultimatum: “Preapprove” new vaccine recommendations from an advisory CDC panel that Kennedy has stocked with some medical experts who doubt vaccine safety or be fired. That panel is expected to vote on new vaccine recommendations later this week. He also demanded Monarez fire high-ranking, career CDC officials without cause, she said.“He said if I was unwilling to do both, I should resign. I responded that I could not preapprove recommendations without reviewing the evidence, and I had no basis for firing,” Monarez told senators. “He said he had already spoken with the White House several times.”The senate hearing will focus on the impact the turmoil at the nation’s leading public health agency, which is responsible for making vaccine recommendations to the public, will have on children’s health. It will also undoubtedly serve as an opportunity for Monarez and former Chief Medical Officer Debra Houry, who was also testifying before the committee, to respond to a number of Kennedy’s contentious claims about their final days at the agency.Kennedy has denied Monarez’s accusations that he ordered “rubber-stamped” vaccine recommendations.He has described Monarez as admitting to him that she is “untrustworthy,” a claim Monarez has denied through her attorney. He did, however, acknowledge during a testy Senate hearing earlier this month that he ordered Monarez to fire several top officials at the CDC.The Senate hearing is taking place just a day before the vaccine panel starts its two-day session in Atlanta to discuss shots against COVID-19, hepatitis B and chickenpox. It’s unclear how the panel might vote on the recommendations, though members have raised doubts about whether hepatitis B shots administered to newborns are necessary and have suggested COVID-19 recommendations should be more restricted.The CDC director must endorse those recommendations before they become official. Health and Human Services Deputy Secretary Jim O’Neill, now serving as the CDC’s acting director, will be responsible for that.Monarez and Houry are expected to face tense questions from Republicans over the CDC’s vaccine recommendations and COVID-19 policies. Democrats, meanwhile, are likely to seek more information on Kennedy’s approach to vaccines.The health committee’s hearing will be overseen by Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, a physician who cast a key vote for Kennedy’s confirmation. He has expressed concern about “serious allegations” at the CDC and has called for oversight, without blaming Kennedy.

    WASHINGTON —

    Former Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Susan Monarez testified before senators on Wednesday that Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. fired her after she refused to endorse forthcoming vaccine recommendations without reviewing scientific evidence to support the guidance.

    Watch a livestream of the hearing in the video player above.

    Monarez was ousted just 29 days into the job, over disagreement with her boss on vaccine policies.

    Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy, who chairs the powerful health committee Monarez is appearing before, expressed skepticism over the explanations Kennedy has given over her firing. He carefully praised President Donald Trump for his commitment to promoting health among Americans but made it clear he was befuddled by Monarez’s removal. He noted that senators had just approved Monarez’s confirmation with Kennedy praising her “unimpeachable scientific credentials.”

    “Like, what happened?” Cassidy said. “Did we fail? Was there something we should have done differently?”

    Monarez said in her testimony that Kennedy gave her an ultimatum: “Preapprove” new vaccine recommendations from an advisory CDC panel that Kennedy has stocked with some medical experts who doubt vaccine safety or be fired. That panel is expected to vote on new vaccine recommendations later this week. He also demanded Monarez fire high-ranking, career CDC officials without cause, she said.

    “He said if I was unwilling to do both, I should resign. I responded that I could not preapprove recommendations without reviewing the evidence, and I had no basis for firing,” Monarez told senators. “He said he had already spoken with the White House several times.”

    The senate hearing will focus on the impact the turmoil at the nation’s leading public health agency, which is responsible for making vaccine recommendations to the public, will have on children’s health. It will also undoubtedly serve as an opportunity for Monarez and former Chief Medical Officer Debra Houry, who was also testifying before the committee, to respond to a number of Kennedy’s contentious claims about their final days at the agency.

    Kennedy has denied Monarez’s accusations that he ordered “rubber-stamped” vaccine recommendations.

    He has described Monarez as admitting to him that she is “untrustworthy,” a claim Monarez has denied through her attorney. He did, however, acknowledge during a testy Senate hearing earlier this month that he ordered Monarez to fire several top officials at the CDC.

    The Senate hearing is taking place just a day before the vaccine panel starts its two-day session in Atlanta to discuss shots against COVID-19, hepatitis B and chickenpox. It’s unclear how the panel might vote on the recommendations, though members have raised doubts about whether hepatitis B shots administered to newborns are necessary and have suggested COVID-19 recommendations should be more restricted.

    The CDC director must endorse those recommendations before they become official. Health and Human Services Deputy Secretary Jim O’Neill, now serving as the CDC’s acting director, will be responsible for that.

    Monarez and Houry are expected to face tense questions from Republicans over the CDC’s vaccine recommendations and COVID-19 policies. Democrats, meanwhile, are likely to seek more information on Kennedy’s approach to vaccines.

    The health committee’s hearing will be overseen by Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, a physician who cast a key vote for Kennedy’s confirmation. He has expressed concern about “serious allegations” at the CDC and has called for oversight, without blaming Kennedy.

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