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6d ago

Senate Health Panel Delays Vote on CDC Nominee After Key GOP Absence

Cassidy backed Erica Schwartz after HHS revised CDC web language on vaccines and autism, leaving the nomination to be decided at the committee’s next session.

Erica Schwartz testifies during a Senate Health Education Labor and Pensions committee confirmation hearing to be the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Capitol Hill, Wednesday, July 15, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mariam Zuhaib)
Dr. Erica Schwartz has been nominated to lead the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
FILE PHOTO: A sign of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is seen on a podium during the meeting of the members of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. June 25, 2025.  REUTERS/Megan Varner/File Photo/File Photo
FILE - Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., heads to a closed-door Republican policy meeting at the Capitol in Washington, June 16, 2026. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)

Overview

  • The Senate HELP Committee postponed a planned vote Thursday after Sen. Lisa Murkowski missed the session for a family emergency, leaving Republicans short of the one-vote margin needed to advance Erica Schwartz.
  • Committee chair Bill Cassidy said he will support Schwartz after speaking with her, reviewing her hearing transcript, and citing a change to the CDC’s vaccines-and-autism webpage as a sign of good faith.
  • Sen. Bernie Sanders pledged to oppose Schwartz, saying he does not believe she will stand up to HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on vaccine policy, a central concern raised during her confirmation hearing.
  • The delay also pushed back consideration of Sean Kaufman for ASPR to the committee’s July 30 executive session, creating one more scheduled opportunity to vote on both nominations.
  • The outcome matters for the CDC’s independence and public trust because the agency has faced recent leadership turnover, staff losses, and rising vaccine-preventable disease indicators, and a small number of Senate votes will determine whether the agency can restore standard vaccine guidance.