Not all coronavirus health guidelines published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention during the Trump administration were based on the best scientific evidence or were even authorized primarily by agency staff, according to a review ordered by the new director. of the CDC.
The review was intended to ensure that COVID-19’s current and primary CDC guidelines contain the most up-to-date information and are “evidence-based and policy-free,” according to a summary presented to CDC Director Rochelle Walensky, dated March 10th.
“I am focused on advancing CDC with science, transparency and clarity at the forefront,” Walensky said in a statement Monday. “It is imperative that the American people trust the CDC. If they do not, preventable diseases and injuries can occur and, tragically, lives can be lost.
Alex Wong through Getty Images President Donald Trump was then speaking at a news conference in February 2020. A review of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that not all coronavirus guidelines issued by the department during the Trump administration were primarily authorized. by agency staff.
The review concluded that some of the CDC guidelines were not primarily authorized by federal health agency staff, which offered considerations rather than direct recommendations based on existing evidence, and that some of the information was obsolete or lacking. an evolving scientific understanding.
The review specified three documents that were deceptively presented as CDC documents on its website.
One of the papers, “The Importance of Reopening America’s Schools This Fall,” was posted on the CDC’s website in July and quietly withdrawn in October. His removal followed reports that White House officials had relentlessly pressured the CDC to minimize the risk of returning children to school.
“The reopening of schools creates opportunities to invest in the education, well-being and future of one of America’s top assets, our children, while taking all necessary precautions to protect students, teachers, staff and all their families, ”the article read. Its author is not listed.
Chip Somodevilla via Getty Images CDC Director Rochelle Walensky, who was appointed by President Joe Biden, ordered a review of the agency’s coronavirus health guidelines that had been published during the Trump administration.
Another paper, “Overview of SARS-VOC-2 Testing,” was published in August and replaced in September. A third document, “Opening up America Again,” was published in April through a link posted on the CDC site and withdrawn in February during the CDC review.
Earlier it was reported that White House officials from the Trump administration had pressured the CDC to modify the COVID-19 information so that it would reflect well then-President Donald Trump. Trump staff efforts to delay or completely stop the release of CDC reports were also reported.
Olivia Troye, who served as an adviser to Vice President Mike Pence for two years before resigning last August, said Pence’s chief of staff, Marc Short, asked her to pressure the CDC to produce more reports. showing a decrease in COVID -19 cases among young people.
After his resignation, he told The New York Times that he regretted being an “accomplice” in those efforts.
“You are impacting people’s lives for any political agenda. You are changing votes for lives and I have a serious problem with that, ”he said.
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