CDC's second-in-command Anne Schuchat to step down
Posted: Fri May 21, 2021 10:14 pm
https://www.politico.com/search?s=&user ... n+schuchat
CDC's second-in-command Anne Schuchat to step down
Anne Schuchat, the CDC’s principal deputy director, was one of multiple government health officials included in emails between The American Federation of Teachers union, who repeatedly lobbied against in-person schooling, and the agency over the school reopening guidelines which were released earlier this year.
Her decision comes after clashes with agency director Rochelle Walensky.
Anne Schuchat is planning to step down from her role as the agency's principal deputy director this summer.
Schuchat's retirement would be the CDC's second high-profile departure in the past month.
The expected exits follow more than a year of intense scrutiny of the CDC and its pandemic decision-making that subjected senior officials to constant pressure from both inside and outside the Trump and Biden administrations.
Schuchat confirmed that she planned to leave later this year to “allow more time for creative passions,“ adding that she had “the greatest respect and confidence in the CDC’s leadership and staff.”
Schuchat has served as the agency's No. 2 official since 2015. She twice did brief stints as the CDC's acting director, and was key to the federal government's response to major infectious disease outbreaks including the H1N1 pandemic, SARS outbreak and the coronavirus crisis.
But she had clashed with CDC Director Rochelle Walensky in recent months, a person familiar with the matter said. Another senior health official said Schuchat was in the running to become the agency’s director under the Biden administration before the position went to someone else
Schuchat was among the career health officials who sounded alarms about the severity of the coronavirus threat throughout 2020.
She was also pulled into internal battles over CDC scientific reports that first began with a report that Shuchat herself had authored.
Caught playing favorites with the teachers unions
CDC's second-in-command Anne Schuchat to step down
Anne Schuchat, the CDC’s principal deputy director, was one of multiple government health officials included in emails between The American Federation of Teachers union, who repeatedly lobbied against in-person schooling, and the agency over the school reopening guidelines which were released earlier this year.
Her decision comes after clashes with agency director Rochelle Walensky.
Anne Schuchat is planning to step down from her role as the agency's principal deputy director this summer.
Schuchat's retirement would be the CDC's second high-profile departure in the past month.
The expected exits follow more than a year of intense scrutiny of the CDC and its pandemic decision-making that subjected senior officials to constant pressure from both inside and outside the Trump and Biden administrations.
Schuchat confirmed that she planned to leave later this year to “allow more time for creative passions,“ adding that she had “the greatest respect and confidence in the CDC’s leadership and staff.”
Schuchat has served as the agency's No. 2 official since 2015. She twice did brief stints as the CDC's acting director, and was key to the federal government's response to major infectious disease outbreaks including the H1N1 pandemic, SARS outbreak and the coronavirus crisis.
But she had clashed with CDC Director Rochelle Walensky in recent months, a person familiar with the matter said. Another senior health official said Schuchat was in the running to become the agency’s director under the Biden administration before the position went to someone else
Schuchat was among the career health officials who sounded alarms about the severity of the coronavirus threat throughout 2020.
She was also pulled into internal battles over CDC scientific reports that first began with a report that Shuchat herself had authored.
Caught playing favorites with the teachers unions