CDC in turmoil after Monarez ousted with ONeill named acting director

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention was left leaderless and in turmoil this week after the White House and the Department of Health and Human Services moved to remove Director Susan Monarez and install HHS deputy Jim ONeill as acting director, touch offing a wave of senior resignations and sparking legal and political challenges. The changes unfolded at the agency's Atlanta headquarters as hundreds of staff gathered in protest and multiple top scientists announced they were leaving rather than carry out what they said were politically driven directives on vaccines.

A White House official confirmed that ONeill, a former investment executive and HHS deputy who does not have a medical or scientific background, has been named to temporarily lead the CDC. ONeill has worked in venture capital and with conservative tech donors, and his appointment was described by critics as giving Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. an ally at the agency he oversees.

HHS announced on Wednesday that Monarez was no longer the CDC director. Monarez's lawyers rejected the ouster as legally deficient, saying only President Donald Trump can remove a Senate confirmed...