The Trump administration has ordered federal health agencies to cease external communications.
A January 21 memo from Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Acting Secretary Dorothy Fink states that a pause has been placed on announcements, press releases, guidance, and social media posts until the communications are approved.
The memo was delivered to the Food and Drug Administration, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the National Institutes of Health, The Washington Post reported. Reports that are now paused include the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR), public health data releases, and advisories.
The pause is in effect through February 1, according to the Associated Press.
It is unknown when President Donald Trump’s Health and Human Services secretary nominee, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., will have his Senate confirmation hearing.
“I’m told the paperwork might come today, at which point we can schedule the hearings,” Senator Bill Cassidy (R-LA) told the Shreveport Times on January 21.
Upon nominating Kennedy for the role, Trump wrote on Truth Social, “For too long, Americans have been crushed by the industrial food complex and drug companies who have engaged in deception, misinformation, and disinformation when it comes to Public Health. The Safety and Health of all Americans is the most important role of any Administration, and HHS will play a big role in helping ensure that everybody will be protected from harmful chemicals, pollutants, pesticides, pharmaceutical products, and food additives that have contributed to the overwhelming Health Crisis in this Country. Mr. Kennedy will restore these Agencies to the traditions of Gold Standard Scientific Research, and beacons of Transparency, to end the Chronic Disease epidemic, and to Make America Great and Healthy Again!”