The CDC, unlike other major agencies, has never received full Congressional authorization. There is no single enabling statute that defines the agency’s overall mission and structure. The lack of authorization has blurred the lines on the agency’s responsibilities to lead on issues related to communicable disease, resulted in rampant mission creep, and has led many to question whether the CDC is able to execute on its intended and primary mission of detecting and combatting public health threats, as evidenced by the CDC’s botched handling of the COVID-19 response.

Nevada County Health and Human Services still uses the CDC recommendation of COVID vaccines for children despite overwhelming evidence showing children are low-risk. I have asked our county health department and Dr. Sherilyn Cooke to update current data regarding the necessity of boosters on the website. There has been zero response.

In Nevada County we experienced these failed policies in the messaging of our local Health Department, and newly hired Public Health Officer, Dr. Sherilyn Cooke, who unquestionably supported CDC’s faulty science and wouldn’t budge when updated science was presented to them. Instead, there was strict adherence to “science” that turned out to be deeply flawed. The CDC’s failures to update recommendations and guidance, given new information was repeated locally, the messaging being only, “get vaccinated, keep boosting.”

After the fact, how many patients died and are still dying because of a wicked policy threat?