More than 1,000 current and former Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) employees signed a letter this week calling on Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to resign, citing concerns that his leadership is “compromising the health of this nation.”
As Newsmax reported [1], the letter, sent Wednesday to members of Congress, followed a turbulent week at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), which falls under Kennedy’s oversight.
President Donald Trump’s administration announced the dismissal of newly confirmed CDC Director Susan Monarez, a decision that prompted four senior officials at the agency to resign in protest.
Reports indicated Monarez was forced out after refusing to approve new vaccine restrictions.
“Secretary Kennedy continues to endanger the nation’s health,” the letter [2] stated.
Signatories cited several issues, including Kennedy’s role in Monarez’s removal, the exodus of senior CDC leaders, the appointment of “political ideologues” to senior positions, and the rescinding of the Food and Drug Administration’s emergency use authorizations for COVID-19 vaccines.
The controversy follows a separate letter sent last month by more than 750 HHS employees in the aftermath of the August 8 shooting at CDC headquarters in Atlanta.
That earlier letter urged Kennedy to “cease endangering the nation’s health by spreading inaccurate health information, affirm CDC’s scientific integrity, and guarantee the safety of the HHS workforce.”
🚨 BREAKING: It’s being revealed that there is an ORGANIZATION behind the mass pressure campaign to make RFK Jr. resign from the HHS, allied with BERNIE SANDERS and potential Democrat donors.
RFK is taking on Big Pharma and he needs all the support he can get! https://t.co/ye7fsZXgGQ [3]
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) September 3, 2025 [4]
In response at the time, HHS defended Kennedy.
“Secretary Kennedy is standing firmly with CDC employees — both on the ground and across every center — ensuring their safety and well-being remain a top priority,” an agency spokesperson said.
The statement added that “for the first time in its 70-year history, the mission of HHS is truly resonating with the American people — driven by President Trump and Secretary Kennedy’s bold commitment to Make America Healthy Again.”
The new letter, which included some anonymous signatures from individuals concerned about retaliation, emphasized that employees signed in their personal capacities.
“Should he decline to resign, we call upon the president and U.S. Congress to appoint a new Secretary of Health and Human Services, one whose qualifications and experience ensure that health policy is informed by independent and unbiased peer-reviewed science,” the letter read.
HHS Communications Director Andrew Nixon issued a response defending Kennedy’s leadership.
“Secretary Kennedy has been clear: The CDC has been broken for a long time. Restoring it as the world’s most trusted guardian of public health will take sustained reform and more personnel changes,” Nixon said.
He added that Kennedy entered office with a pledge to rely on evidence-based science and that “in just seven months, he and the HHS team have accomplished more than any health secretary in history in the fight to end the chronic disease epidemic and Make America Healthy Again.”
Kennedy has also faced increasing criticism from members of Congress. Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.) called on the White House to fire him after Monarez’s ouster.
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), citing Kennedy’s “longstanding crusade against vaccines and his advocacy of conspiracy theories,” published an opinion piece in the New York Times on Saturday urging his resignation.
Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.), chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, posted on X that the wave of resignations at the CDC would require oversight hearings.
The letter adds to mounting pressure on Kennedy as his tenure at HHS continues to divide opinion within Washington and the broader public health community.