The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee yesterday voted to advance a vote on President Donald Trump's nominee to lead the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)—Susan Monarez, PhD—to a full Senate vote, Politico reported.

Monarez was appointed acting director in January, but the CDC has been without a director since late March, when the White House withdrew its original nominee, David Weldon, MD, and named Monarez as the nominee. Weldon was deemed to not have the votes needed to pass Senate confirmation.
Party-line vote amid concerns about Kennedy influence
Her approval came along party lines, 12 to 11. Bill Cassidy, MD, (R-LA), who chairs the committee, said Monarez is committed to improving transparency at the CDC and properly communicating health guidance, which he said is especially important against the backdrop of reemerging health threats such as measles.
However, Democrats raised concerns about Monarez standing by while Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. spreads misinformation about vaccines.
Monarez previously served as deputy director of the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health within HHS and has held several other roles in government, including with the Office of Science and Technology Policy and the National Security Council, both within the executive branch.
Her work has included strategies to combat antimicrobial resistance, and Monarez has led projects to use artificial intelligence and machine learning to improve health outcomes.
So far there is no vote scheduled in the full Senate to finalize Monarez's confirmation.