Trump administration directs federal health agencies to pause communications

Donald Trump’s administration has ordered federal health agencies to pause external communications, such as releasing regular scientific reports, website updates and health advisories, according to sources within the agencies.

The initial orders were delivered Tuesday to agency staff within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, according to the Washington Post, which first reported the case.

This included officials from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the National Institutes of Health, the Post reported.

The guidance arrived without warning and with little guidance on what exactly it covered, according to sources within the affected agencies who asked not to be identified because they were not authorized to share the information.

In a memo obtained by CNN On Wednesday, Acting Health Secretary Dr. Dorothy Fink provided details, including that the directive would be in effect until February 1.

The memo said:

  • All documents and communications — including regulations, guidance, notices, social media, websites and press releases — must be reviewed and approved by a presidential appointee before they are issued.
  • Employees must not participate in any public speaking engagements without approval.
  • Officials must also coordinate with presidential appointees before issuing official correspondence to members of Congress or governors.
  • Superiors must be notified of any documents or communications that should be exempt because they are required by law or because they are essential for health, safety or other reasons.

A source with information about the directive said that while it is not entirely unprecedented for a new administration to ask for a pause to review information before it is released publicly, the scope of the order appears to be unusual.

United States health agencies, including the CDC, FDA, routinely release information about recalls of food, drug and medical device approvals, as well as updates on evolving public health threats, including natural disasters and infectious diseases.

Many of the agencies have been closely monitoring and reporting new information about the H5N1 bird flu outbreak, which is spreading in the country’s poultry and dairy cattle flocks and among people who work with these animals, for example.

This content was originally published in Trump government directs federal health agencies to pause communications on the CNN Brasil website.

Source: CNN Brasil

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