(LifeSiteNews) — Donald Trump on Thursday nominated pro-vaccine Dr. Erica Schwartz as the new Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) director.
Because of her role in implementing vaccine mandates as the former chief medical officer of the U.S. Coast Guard, Schwartz’s nomination has sparked criticism from vaccine skeptics as well as others who acknowledge the death and injury that resulted from the COVID injections.
“Trump’s pick to head the CDC, Erica Schwartz, would likely be a disaster,” warned Aaron Siri, author of Vaccines, Amen, on X.
Siri highlighted the fact that Schwartz issued vaccine mandates when she was chief medical officer of the U.S. Coast Guard from 2015–2019, including an anthrax vaccine mandate and a smallpox vaccine mandate in 2019.
He also pointed to her support of the COVID jab rollout while she was deputy surgeon general from 2019 to 2021 in Trump’s first administration, although she did not lead the shot deployment.
“This agency does not need another cheerleader for industry; it needs a regulator over industry,” said Siri.
“Her prior promotion, let alone mandates, of nearly a dozen different vaccines leave little hope she will objectively oversee CDC’s vaccine program which has, between 1986 and the 2026, gone from 3 injections to 29 injections, including in utero, by an infant’s first birthday, while chronic childhood disease has gone from under 10% to over 40% of children, most related to immune system dysregulation,” the vaccine critic cautioned.
Toby Rogers of Brownstone Institute ripped Schwartz’s appointment due to her involvement in the mRNA “vaccine” push he said harmed Americans.
“Appointing a Covidian to lead the CDC is such a slap in the face to the medical freedom base that gave Trump the presidency in 2016 and 2024. The White House isn’t even trying to win the midterms at this point,” commented Rogers.
President of Brownstone Institute Jeffrey Tucker proposed questions for the Senate regarding Schwartz’s nomination, asking senators to reflect on the outcomes of the COVID shot rollout.
Simple questions the Senate needs to ask the nominee for CDC director:
What did you think about the Covid response as managed by the CDC?
If you had any objections to Covid policies, what were they and did you express them to anyone?
What is your opinion on mask and vaccine…
— Jeffrey A Tucker (@jeffreytucker) April 18, 2026
Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) Robert F. Kennedy congratulated Schwartz on her nomination on Thursday.
“I look forward to working together to restore trust, accountability, and scientific integrity at the @CDCgov so we can return it to its core mission and Make America Healthy Again.”
Thank you, President Trump, for nominating Dr. Erica Schwartz to serve as CDC Director. I congratulate Dr. Schwartz and the new CDC leadership team. I look forward to working together to restore trust, accountability, and scientific integrity at the @CDCgov so we can return it to… https://t.co/xTN1mUhVOT
— Secretary Kennedy (@SecKennedy) April 16, 2026
Mainstream media outlets and commentators who are otherwise optimistic about Schwartz’s nomination are concerned that she may have to defer to Kennedy’s general caution about vaccines.
Trump’s former CDC director, Susan Monarez, who also endorsed the COVID shots, had been asked by Kennedy to resign, according to The New York Times, after she resisted his vaccination policy. When she refused, he told her “to fire CDC’s top leadership,” according to an official who spoke anonymously “for fear of retribution.”
“Dr. Monarez then called Bill Cassidy, the Republican Chairman of the Senate Health Committee [and a strong supporter of vaccination], who in turn called Kennedy,” the official said. Kennedy was reportedly “furious” and told Monarez she would be fired.
The CDC has since been without a director for almost eight months.