The CDC has a new director.
On Wednesday, the Senate confirmed Dr. Erica Schwartz as the new head of the CDC.
Dr. Schwartz was previously nominated by President Trump in April, and in a post where he made the announcement, he described Schwartz as “incredibly talented” and a “star.”
ABC News provided how close the vote was and gave some background details on Schwartz:
The Senate voted on Wednesday to confirm Dr. Erica Schwartz as the next director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Schwartz was confirmed in a 51-44 vote that generally fell along party lines.
She will replace Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), who took over as acting CDC director in February, and she will become the first permanent director in about a year.
Dr. Erica Schwartz faces questions about vaccines at CDC director confirmation hearing
President Donald Trump nominated Schwartz in April, describing her as “incredibly talented.”
Schwartz earned a medical degree from Brown University and served in the U.S. Navy until 2005.
She served in the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, as the Coast Guard Chief Medical Officer and as Deputy Surgeon General from 2019 to early 2021, during the first Trump administration.
✅ CONFIRMED: Dr. Erica Schwartz as Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention pic.twitter.com/6rWzt9iACv
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) August 5, 2026
Here was RFK Jr.’s response to the news:
Congratulations to Dr. Erica Schwartz on your Senate confirmation as the next Director of @CDCgov.
Dr. Schwartz is the most qualified leader ever nominated for this role. She brings decades of experience as a physician, public health leader, and public servant committed to… https://t.co/lL2UF2lCYt
— Secretary Kennedy (@SecKennedy) August 6, 2026
Full text:
Congratulations to Dr. Erica Schwartz on your Senate confirmation as the next Director of
@CDCgov
.Dr. Schwartz is the most qualified leader ever nominated for this role. She brings decades of experience as a physician, public health leader, and public servant committed to protecting the health of the American people.
I look forward to working with Dr. Schwartz to restore public trust, strengthen the CDC’s core mission, and Make America Healthy Again.
Yahoo News reported Senator Bernie Sanders asked Schwartz during her confirmation hearing if she would remove a webpage on the CDC’s website that talks about autism and vaccines.
Read her response below:
Ranking Member Sen. Bernie Sanders, an independent from Vermont., asked Schwartz if she would remove a webpage updated last November on the CDC’s website for autism and vaccines. The webpage states that a link between the two has been ignored despite many studies finding no such link.
Schwartz said she accepted there is “overwhelming evidence” vaccines don’t cause autism but did not commit to removing the webpage.
ADVERTISEMENT“Senator, I have been in situations where I have had to go to my superiors in the military to have conversations, very difficult conversations, about things that may have been concerning to the troops or to the military personnel, and I will do the same with [Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.],” she replied.
Chairman Sen. Bill Cassidy, a Louisiana Republican who grew frustrated with Schwartz on certain topics during the hearing, said later in the month that he spoke with her again and reviewed the transcript of her hearing.
Showdown at CDC as director refuses to leave post amid pressure from Trump administration
He said during a Senate HELP meeting that Schwartz “knows what she is doing and will stand against those who don’t.”
ADVERTISEMENTCassidy added that the Department of Health and Human Services modified the CDC’s autism and vaccines webpage as “a sign of good faith.”
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