RFK Jr.’s War on Public Health Has Hollowed Out the CDC

The quiet dismantling of America’s public health infrastructure should alarm everyone. Recent reporting reveals that the CDC has “temporarily” halted testing for rabies and dangerous pox viruses, including smallpox and mpox.

But not due to lack of need, but lack of staff. The consequences are staggering. By July, the CDC’s rabies team will reportedly be reduced to a single qualified expert. The pox team may have none.

DOGE’s “cost cutting” resulted in mass layoffs, hiring freezes, and resignations that have hollowed out the agency’s scientific core. These were not abstract cuts; they directly weaken our ability to detect and respond to deadly outbreaks.

Public health experts warn that this erosion comes at the worst possible time. In a world of constant global travel, diseases spread faster than ever. Without robust testing and rapid data sharing, small outbreaks can spiral into national crises.

As one expert bluntly put it: in calm times, we might scrape by—but in an emergency, “God help us.”

This is the real cost of sidelining science and expertise. When the next health threat emerges, it will be measured in lives lost that didn’t have to be.