C.D.C.’s Pandemic Team Will Surrender Some Responsibilities

The director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced on Friday that the team that coordinated the national response to the Covid-19 pandemic would return some functions to other departments.

According to a letter sent to employees on Friday by the agency, the so-called incident management structure, which was brought together to respond to the public health emergency, is not being dissolved.

The agency's public standing and reputation have suffered in recent years, and the move signals the beginning of changes. According to a recent survey, 60 percent of Americans say they are confused by changes in official recommendations.

The letter from Dr. Walensky was short on details. The initial data collection phase is complete, and the director will identify themes, prioritize next steps, and find new ways to adapt, according to a statement from the review director.

A federal official who has held several senior positions within the Department of Health and Human will evaluate the C.D.C., which has faced an onslaught of criticism over its recent handling of the Pandemic. The review began on April 11.

The review is looking at modernizing ways in which the agency develops scientific research and deploys it, as well as what other strategic improvements can be made to better serve public health.

The reviewers have conducted more than 100 interviews and held nearly 50 one-on-one conversations with public health leaders inside and outside the agency.

The C.D.C. has been praised for its scientific approach to improving public health. Many scientists from around the world were trained by the agency and have used its methods.

The C.D.C.'s infrastructure was neglected for a long time. Agency scientists stumbled early in the Pandemic with the flawed design of a diagnostic test, and went on to make some recommendations about masking, isolation and quark that critics said were based on insufficient evidence.

Health equity will be a priority for the agency in the future according to Dr. Walensky. The United States has stark racial and ethnic health differences. Black, Hispanic and American Indian/Alaska Native adults were hospitalized with Covid and died at higher rates than white Americans.

The root of the inequalities are many, and include difficulties in gaining access to care, distrust in the medical system, higher rates of existing health problems, and socio-economic circumstances that increased the odds of exposure to the virus.

It is time to take a step back and strategically position C.D.C. to facilitate and support the future of public health with a keen focus on health equity, according to Dr. Walensky.