CDC Plans an ‘Ambitious’ Agency Overhaul

The CDC will undergo an “ambitious” overhaul, Director Rochelle Walensky announced last week. In an email to staff, Walensky said the renewal effort will focus on making the agency more nimble and responsive to needs that arise in health emergencies. The priority will be to gather data that can be used to rapidly dispense public health guidance, rather than craft scientific papers. “For 75 years, CDC and public health have been preparing for Covid-19, and in our big moment, our performance did not reliably meet expectations,” Walensky said in the email, sent to the agency’s 11,000-person staff.  “My goal is a new, public health action-oriented culture at CDC that emphasizes accountability, collaboration, communication, and timeliness.”