Scoop: The new #2 at CDC is a top ivermectin prescriber who ended Louisiana’s vaccine-promotion media campaigns.

https://insidemedicine.substack.com/p/scoop-the-apparent-new-2-at-cdc-is?utm_campaign=morning_rounds&utm_medium=email&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-8J62T8wh2FubYPXa01FQOlum5dfWfZH4sUlg-hehYFXx9I05RQnct73EElaOZZeUDA7W4hSR8xqX5BNuRj7JAmEWd92Q&_hsmi=391707009&utm_content=391707009&utm_source=hs_email Louisiana official is now No. 2 at the CDC Ralph Abraham, Louisiana’s surgeon general, has been named principal deputy director at the CDC, an HHS official confirmed to STAT’s Daniel Payne yesterday. It’s the number two position at the agency under the director — a role that’s seen its own turnover after Susan Monarez was ousted in August. (Jim O’Neil, the deputy secretary for HHS, is currently serving as acting director.) https://www.statnews.com/2025/08/28/cdc-director-fired-behind-the-scenes-look/?utm_campaign=morning_rounds&utm_medium=email&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-_ZcccXXplMis7CIief5G9f1uYRWdEv5iC9q0jZ5vD7oYIM2fQWfYpXcg-e8hlBhupxFMuYtogoZKu2CLGqYAeLW90Ylw&_hsmi=391707009&utm_content=391707009&utm_source=hs_email Here’s what we know about Abraham: He’s a vaccine skeptic. As Louisiana’s surgeon general, Abraham instructed health officials to stop promoting vaccines, including flu shots, in favor of highlighting personal choice and consulting doctors, according to The Washington Post. In February, he wrote an open letter in which he criticized public health agencies for promoting vaccines “with a one-size-fits-all, collectivist mentality whose main objective is maximal compliance.” He’s told USA Today Network that he doesn’t recommend the Covid vaccine to any of his patients, as he personally prefers natural immunity. https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2025/11/25/cdc-new-deputy-vaccine-ralph-abraham/?utm_campaign=morning_rounds&utm_medium=email&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-_qgvLiMNY5E0T8H6xkVlfn0RJou0cbq_bzpkfDoTX2ng_S2rTI1SP6Z0UESZZf1gzXD7GBL1M5WehwRS2L4I-iiqXRMg&_hsmi=391707009&utm_content=391707009&utm_source=hs_email Louisiana surgeon general says COVID shot is dangerous, tells Bill Cassidy to stay in his lane https://www.shreveporttimes.com/story/news/2025/09/10/louisiana-surgeon-general-spars-with-sentor-bill-cassidy-over-covid-vaccine-advice/86074738007/?utm_campaign=morning_rounds&utm_medium=email&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-9fIX7jSDt_i3k6kWa7ZIcJSMwW2SsJelHUJ4op-Wr7zcD34vImhwebIqvwcshgY3bfy9ncxxYmSNfY3eYN4jQzlJOwCg&_hsmi=391707009&utm_content=391707009&utm_source=hs_email He’s less skeptical about ivermectin. This year, Abraham backed a bill to make ivermectin available over the counter in his state, per MedPage Today. https://www.medpagetoday.com/special-reports/features/116436?utm_campaign=morning_rounds&utm_medium=email&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-97lqxiW__YhV6xoT_FPcMLC-EJARFlaW2uZFlSuKJ5mXDcvMcGvAc290nPKuko78PALitC48sY7_vQyizmRr6JsbRhxQ&_hsmi=391707009&utm_content=391707009&utm_source=hs_email People are skeptical of him. Abraham is “an irresponsible choice,” one former government employee told physician Jeremy Faust, per his newsletter Inside Medicine. And a CDC employee told Faust that while Abraham’s views are “probably pretty terrible,” they “heard way worse names floated” for the position. https://insidemedicine.substack.com/p/scoop-the-apparent-new-2-at-cdc-is?utm_campaign=morning_rounds&utm_medium=email&_hsenc=p2ANqtz--yIRfmJNlnkkuuKSE7oJhKOGPZvx6gcucECRgB5F7nAuLkbX5OOOJ8ziA6tjK7yiwzmjNNe_3vhYrJjM8GT4xUf-AdLg&_hsmi=391707009&utm_content=391707009&utm_source=hs_email