Louisiana health official who is critical of COVID vaccines tapped as CDC’s No. 2

 A former Louisiana health official who ordered his state health department to stop promoting mass vaccinations was quietly appointed as the top deputy at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). 

Dr. Ralph Abraham’s appointment was not announced by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), and the agency did not return a request for comment. However, it confirmed his hiring to multiple outlets.  

Abraham’s appointment was first reported by the Substack column Inside Medicine. 

Abraham is listed in an internal directory as the agency’s principal deputy director, but his start date is unclear. An agency email listed for him did not work.  

The CDC has no permanent director. HHS Deputy Secretary Jim O’Neill is serving as acting director. As second in command to an acting director, Abraham would essentially be running the agency.  

HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. fired the Senate-confirmed CDC Director Susan Monarez this summer after she refused to greenlight his controversial recommendations to an influential agency vaccine advisory panel. Monarez was on the job for a month before her ouster. 

Abraham was appointed as Louisiana’s surgeon general in 2024. He drew criticism this past winter for telling health officials to stop the mass promotion of vaccines. That order was issued the same day Kennedy was confirmed as Health and Human Services secretary. 

In a letter explaining his decision and his views on vaccines, Abraham argued that government agencies should not promote “pharmaceutical products” when the manufacturers are “exempt from liability for harms caused by the drug, as is the case for many vaccines.” 

He cited the promotion of vaccine use as one of several “COVID missteps” that necessitate the rebuilding of public trust.  

As a proponent of the medical freedom movement, Abraham said Americans “should recognize that our rights come to us as individuals … and restore medical decision-making to its proper place: between doctors and patients.” 

An NPR investigation found the Louisiana health department under Abraham’s leadership failed to alert physicians about two whooping cough deaths for months, during the worst outbreak in the state in 35 years.  

Abraham is a supporter of President Trump and Kennedy’s warnings for pregnant women to avoid taking Tylenol because of a possible link to autism. 

Abraham served three terms in Congress before retiring in 2020. He practiced as a veterinarian for 10 years before going to medical school.  

Abraham’s position on vaccines has previously put him at odds with Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.), who called on him to issue blanket prescriptions for COVID vaccines.  

 “No, I won’t consider [writing a blanket prescription],” Abraham said in an interview with the Shreveport Times. “We all need to stay in our own lane, and that includes Sen. Cassidy.” 

In the same interview, Abraham said that he “sees COVID vaccine injuries every day.” 

“I’ve known Dr. Abraham for a long time and look forward to having a productive relationship with him,” Cassidy told The Hill in a statement. “I am hopeful that the two of us as doctors can continue to engage in science-based conversations to protect children, including vaccinating children to prevent measles, whooping cough, and hepatitis.” 

https://thehill.com/policy/healthcare/5622691-abraham-appointed-cdc-deputy-director/