By Ahmed Aboulenein
WASHINGTON, July 23 (Reuters) - U.S. Senate health committee Chairman Bill Cassidy signaled on Thursday he would vote in favor of advancing the nomination of Erica Schwartz, President Donald Trump's pick to lead the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Cassidy, a Louisiana Republican and physician whose vote is likely to be the defining one, repeatedly pressed Schwartz last week during a confirmation hearing on whether she would exert full control over the agency and stand
up to Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on vaccines, including removing officials seeking to link vaccines to autism.
Schwartz declined to say whether she would defy Kennedy, frustrating senators, including Cassidy, who are weighing whether the CDC can secure stable, independent leadership after months of upheaval.
Cassidy told Schwartz at the end of the hearing he was disappointed and that she had attempted to dodge his questions.
"After speaking with Dr. Schwartz again after the hearing, reviewing the transcript, and speaking to those who have served with her and know her well, I'm confident that she knows what she's doing and will stand against those who do not," Cassidy said on Thursday in his opening statement at a meeting of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee.
Cassidy then adjourned the panel and said there would be an informal "off the floor" vote later at 11:35 a.m. ET (1535 GMT) because some Republicans could not attend on time due to family commitments or emergencies. If the committee advances the nomination, the full Senate will vote at a later date on whether or not to confirm Schwartz.
Trump nominated Schwartz, his first-term deputy surgeon general, in April after multiple leadership shakeups at the CDC, which has lacked a permanent leader for all but a month of his second term. Susan Monarez, confirmed last year, was fired less than a month after clashing with Kennedy over vaccine policy.
If confirmed, Schwartz would inherit an agency confronting the worst U.S. measles resurgence in three decades, driven by falling childhood immunization rates, an international Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda, and the largest U.S. foodborne illness outbreak in recent years.
(Reporting by Ahmed Aboulenein; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama and Rod Nickel)
