President Trump on Thursday announced on Truth Social the nomination of Dr. Erica Schwartz as director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, calling her “a STAR” and saying she would help restore “the Gold Standard of Science” at the agency.
“It is my Honor to nominate the incredibly talented Dr. Erica Schwartz, MD, JD, MPH, as my Director of the CDC,” Mr. Trump wrote, adding that the new leadership team “will do a TREMENDOUS job leading the CDC as we continue to MAKE AMERICA HEALTHY AND GREAT AGAIN!”
Mr. Trump also announced three supporting appointments: Sean Slovenski as CDC deputy director and chief operating officer; Dr. Jennifer Shuford, MD, MPH, as deputy director and chief medical officer; and Dr. Sara Brenner, MD, MPH, as senior counselor for public health to Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
Dr. Schwartz, a physician who spent 24 years in the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps and served as a retired Coast Guard rear admiral, holds a medical degree and a law degree from Brown University and the University of Maryland, respectively. She departed government in January 2021 after the incoming Biden administration passed her over for acting surgeon general.
The nomination is Mr. Trump’s third attempt to install a permanent leader at the agency since returning to office. The CDC has been without a permanent director for all but 29 days since January 2025. The administration’s first choice, former Florida congressman Dave Weldon, an ally of Mr. Kennedy who had questioned vaccine safety, was withdrawn in March 2025 after Republican senators signaled he lacked the votes for confirmation.
Officials then turned to Susan Monarez, a career scientist serving as acting director, who was confirmed but dismissed last August following clashes with Mr. Kennedy over vaccine policy. National Institutes of Health Director Jay Bhattacharya has since been overseeing the Atlanta-based agency in an unusual dual role.
Chris Klomp, chief counselor of the Department of Health and Human Services, presented the four names to the White House as a potential leadership team. Mr. Klomp was tapped in February to help stabilize operations across health agencies following a string of controversies and staffing miscues.
Brett Giroir, who served as assistant secretary of health during Mr. Trump’s first term and worked alongside Dr. Schwartz during the COVID-19 response, praised the pick. Mr. Giroir wrote in his book “Memoir of a Pandemic” that Dr. Schwartz volunteered to serve as the ordering physician for drive-through COVID tests nationwide — making her responsible for millions of test orders.
Dr. Schwartz would require Senate confirmation to serve. She steps into the nomination as the agency faces ongoing legal battles over Mr. Kennedy’s changes to national vaccine policy, a mounting measles outbreak, and the task of rebuilding a workforce that has endured mass staff cuts, high-profile departures and a gunman’s attack on the CDC’s Atlanta campus. Polling has suggested vaccine policy could be a liability for Republicans in this year’s midterm elections.
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