White House taps top RFK Jr. deputy as acting CDC director

The White House appointed Jim O’Neill, deputy secretary of Health and Human Services, as the acting head of the CDC after tensions over vaccine policies led to the resignation of several agency leaders. O’Neill's selection may aid HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. in his mission to change federal vaccine policies, following the departure of former director Susan Monarez, who resisted these changes.

O’Neill, who served in the George W. Bush administration as a senior health official before becoming a close ally of investor Peter Thiel, was confirmed by the Senate in June to serve as HHS deputy secretary.

Monarez's firing resulted in the resignation of additional senior officials concerned about Kennedy's agenda. O’Neill will manage the CDC while continuing his role as Kennedy’s deputy. He has criticized the CDC in the past for its pandemic response and is set to guide a meeting next month to discuss revised vaccine recommendations.

O'Neill, who co-founded Peter Thiel's Thiel Fellowship in 2010, was CEO of the Thiel Foundation from 2009 to 2012, and a managing director at Mithril Capital Management in Silicon Valley from 2012 to 2019.