By Eniola Amadu
The White House has appointed Jim O’Neill, a deputy to Health Secretary Robert Kennedy Jr., as acting head of the U.S. Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
The move comes amid escalating controversy over the attempted removal of CDC Director Susan Monarez, who insists she remains in office unless dismissed directly by President Donald Trump.
A White House official confirmed O’Neill’s appointment describing it as a temporary step that gives Kennedy a close ally in his push to reshape U.S. vaccine policy.
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Unlike Monarez, O’Neill has no medical or scientific background. A former investment executive, he previously worked as a speechwriter at the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) under George W.
Bush and later for tech investor and conservative donor Peter Thiel.
Monarez, an infectious disease expert confirmed as CDC director only a month ago, was abruptly fired on Wednesday in a statement that provided no explanation.
However, her attorneys argue the dismissal is invalid, noting that only the president can remove a Senate-confirmed appointee.
“As a presidential appointee, Senate-confirmed officer, only the president himself can fire her,” attorney Mark Zaid revealed, adding that Monarez “remains CDC Director.”
The White House countered that Monarez had already signalled plans to resign and accused her of failing to support Trump’s agenda.
Spokesperson Kush Desai said her refusal to step down justified her termination: “Susan Monarez is not aligned with the President’s agenda of Making America Healthy Again.”
The firing has fueled turmoil within the CDC, prompting four senior officials to resign in protest of political interference, funding cuts, and the spread of health misinformation.
Departing leaders include Chief Medical Officer Debra Houry, vaccine safety chief Daniel Jernigan, public health data head Jennifer Layden, and vaccine policy official Demetre Daskalakis.
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Monarez’s lawyers accused Kennedy and HHS of “weaponising public health for political gain,” warning that millions of lives could be endangered.
The director had clashed repeatedly with Kennedy over vaccine restrictions, most recently after his order limiting the use of the COVID-19 vaccine for Americans.
