In the first all-staff meeting since last week’s deadly shooting at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) headquarters in Atlanta, Director Susan Monarez warned employees about the dangers of misinformation and emphasized the need to rebuild public trust.
The virtual meeting, held Tuesday, included remarks from Monarez, Deputy Secretary of Health and Human Services Jim O’Neill, and Jeff Williams, director of the CDC’s Office of Safety, Security and Asset Management. The gathering aimed to reassure employees about workplace safety following the incident, which left one police officer dead.
“Public health should never be under attack,” Monarez said, echoing earlier comments from Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. “We know that misinformation can be dangerous—not only to health, but to those who trust us and those we want to trust. We need to rebuild the trust together.” She stressed that this could be achieved through “rational, evidence-based discourse” delivered with “compassion and understanding.”
Authorities said the suspect, 30-year-old Patrick White, fired nearly 200 rounds at the CDC campus, striking six buildings. Law enforcement recovered five firearms, including rifles and a shotgun. Williams said the attack caused “excessive damage” and that cleanup and repairs would take time.
Nearly 100 children at an on-site childcare center were safely reunited with their parents Friday night. CDC employees have been working remotely since the shooting, but Monarez acknowledged that returning to the Atlanta campus in the coming weeks would feel “different” and “unsettling” for some time.
Officials are still investigating White’s motive, but documents found at his Kennesaw, Georgia, home expressed dissatisfaction with COVID-19 vaccines. Officer David Rose was killed while responding to the gunfire.
Some CDC staff have voiced frustration over Kennedy’s previous comments on vaccines, saying they have contributed to growing hostility toward public health workers.
Dr. Peter Marks, former top vaccine official at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, underscored the challenges of public health communication. “Sometimes it’s black and white, but usually there’s a fair amount of complexity,” he said.
Andrew Nixon, spokesperson for the Department of Health and Human Services, said Monarez and CDC leadership remain focused on supporting staff during this “extraordinarily difficult time” and urged solidarity with public health workers.
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