CDC Director Announces Changes After Agency’s Performance During Pandemic ‘Did Not Reliably Meet Expectations’

The director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Aug. 17 announced that the agency would be revamped, after a review found it did not adequately respond to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Dr. Rochelle Walensky, the director, informed the approximately 13,000 CDC employees of the planned changes, which include reorganizing the agency in an attempt to make quicker decisions, be more accountable, and improve communication.

The changes are spurred by a review that started in April, which found the agency’s “traditional scientific and communication processes were not adequate to effectively respond to a crisis the size and scope of the COVID-19 pandemic,” the CDC told The Epoch Times in an emailed statement.

A copy of the review has not been made public.

“For 75 years, CDC and public health have been preparing for COVID-19, and in our big moment, our performance did not reliably meet expectations,” Walensky, a Biden appointee, said in a statement.