Kavita Patel M.D.

Physician/Health Policy Researcher/Contributor @msnbc @nbc /views my own

[U.S. FDA @FDA]

Today, FDA and @CDCgov are providing an update on the multi-state Cyclospora outbreak linked to recalled iceberg lettuce from Taylor Farms de Mexico. https://t.co/Aywa19K21f

Important things to know:
➡️ Cyclosporiasis can be a serious illness. We encourage anyone who suspects they have symptoms of cyclosporiasis to consult their medical care provider.

➡️Due to additional interview data, CDC’s confirmed cases were expanded to include illnesses in people who reported exposure to Taco Bell OR Taylor Farms de Mexico iceberg lettuce.

➡️As a result, additional cases and states are being added to the outbreak. Many of these illnesses began before the Taylor Farms de Mexico iceberg lettuce recall on July 17, 2026.

➡️We expect to continue to see the number of confirmed cases rise, despite the recall, due to the fact that it can take as long as six weeks from the date of consumption for CDC and state officials to determine if a sick person is part of this outbreak.

➡️FDA remains confident that all iceberg lettuce related to this specific Cyclospora outbreak is off the market.

[LenaSun @bylenasun]

UPDATED: Here are the additional six states. Story has been updated below.

[JAMA Network Open @JAMANetworkOpen]

#Overweight or #obesity already in childhood was linked to a higher risk of #childlessness among >60,000 Danish women followed from childhood to mid-adulthood.

https://t.co/gjOSTycNRt

[U.S. FDA @FDA]

FDA has selected 7 companies for the new PreCheck Pilot Program — a first-of-its-kind initiative to strengthen domestic drug manufacturing, boost U.S. supply chain resilience, and help get more affordable medicines to patients faster. #MadeInAmerica

[Dr. Vin Gupta @VinGuptaMD]

Peter Attia makes millions convincing us he’s the longevity guru and to trust all his health advice.

The private Attia was just revealed. Disgusting and abominable behavior.

And to think he’s a @CBSNews medical analyst.

[Kavita Patel M.D. @kavitapmd]

@brontyman I know this hospital well from training at the university hospital nearby - trust me they are aware and there is a huge staff outcry - I am an internist by the way - not that it is relevant here but I wasn’t emotionally tough enough to do pediatrics -

[JAMA Network Open @JAMANetworkOpen]

16% of nursing home residents with traditional Medicare who newly entered a nursing home in 2018 "spent down" to Medicaid eligibility between 2018-2022. Likelihood of spend-down varied across demographic characteristics and length of stay. @gabyab https://t.co/U8fy3rXZqO

[Kavita Patel M.D. @kavitapmd]

What a beautiful tribute - and she feels the exact same about you

[Dr. Vin Gupta @VinGuptaMD]

Reading the testimonials of former NICU nurses that worked with my mom brought me to tears yesterday.

While I feel paralyzed by grief and disbelief, I always knew that patient care and healing was in my blood.

These words are so pure and speak to such gentle and noble intent

[Sen. Lisa Murkowski @lisamurkowski]

While few details have been shared about Russell Vought’s latest layoffs, there is no question this is poorly timed and yet another example of this administration’s punitive actions toward the federal workforce. The termination of federal employees in a shutdown will further hurt hard-working Americans who have dedicated their lives to public service and jeopardize agency missions once we finally re-open the government.

If you are an Alaskan who has been impacted by these orders and want to share your experience, please reach out to my office.

[Kavita Patel M.D. @kavitapmd]

We should do this more often ;)

[Dr. Vin Gupta @VinGuptaMD]

Big thank you to the great Senator @PattyMurray for joining Meidas Health alongside my dear friend and colleague @kavitapmd to shine on a bright light on the terrible impacts of the shutdown on our nations health.

@MeidasTouch

[Washington Post Opinions @PostOpinions]

"China has no scientific edge over the United States," @ScottGottliebMD writes.

"China has only a policy edge, which derives from its deliberate economic strategy." https://t.co/z0KASOESbS

[Jonathan Reiner @JReinerMD]

Florida Surgeon General Dr Joseph Ladapo tells ⁦@jaketapper⁩ that the pertussis vaccine doesn’t work. That’s incorrect. The DTaP vaccine is 98% effective at preventing infection at 1 year and 71% effective at 5 years.

[Dan Diamond @ddiamond]

Still thinking about this mind-boggling exchange regarding the former CDC director today

RFK JR: I told her that she had to resign because I asked her, “are you a trustworthy person?” and she said “no.”

WARREN: What?

[Jerome Adams @JeromeAdamsMD]

I wouldn’t normally acknowledge or amplify garbage like this… but this person was handpicked by @SecKennedy to be on the CDC ACIP- and we just had a shooting at CDC, where someone was killed. There’s no other word for this than disgusting. The question is, will RFK fire HIM?😡

[Dan Diamond @ddiamond]

Breaking: BILL CASSIDY is calling for CDC's vaccine advisers meeting to be postponed.

"If the meeting proceeds, any recommendations made should be rejected as lacking legitimacy given the seriousness of the allegations and the current turmoil in CDC leadership."

[Dan Diamond @ddiamond]

Susan Monarez remains the CDC’s director this morning — on the agency’s website, at least

[Sam Stein @samstein]

Senator Patty Murray calls for RFK Jr.'s firing, commends Monarez

“I had serious doubts about Director Monarez’s willingness to stand up against RFK Jr.’s personal mission to destroy public health in America—I’m glad to say that I was wrong."

[DrDemetre @dr_demetre]

My resignation letter from CDC.

Dear Dr. Houry,

I am writing to formally resign from my position as Director of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), effective August 28, 2025, close of business.   I am happy to stay on for two weeks to provide transition, if requested.

This decision has not come easily, as I deeply value the work that the CDC does in safeguarding public health and am proud of my contributions to that critical mission. However, after much contemplation and reflection on recent developments and perspectives brought to light by Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., I find that the views he and his staff have shared challenge my ability to continue in my current role at the agency and in the service of the health of the American people. Enough is enough.

While I hold immense respect for the institution and my colleagues, I believe that it is imperative to align my professional responsibilities to my system of ethics and my understanding of the science of infectious disease, immunology, and my promise to serve the American people.  This step is necessary to ensure that I can contribute effectively in a capacity that allows me to remain true to my principles.

I am unable to serve in an environment that treats CDC as a tool to generate policies and materials that do not reflect scientific reality and are designed to hurt rather than to improve the public’s health.  The recent change in the adult and children’s immunization schedule threaten the lives of the youngest Americans and pregnant people.   The data analyses that supported this decision have never been shared with CDC despite my respectful requests to HHS and other leadership.  This lack of meaningful engagement was further compounded by a “frequently asked questions” document written to support the Secretary’s directive that was circulated by HHS without input from CDC subject matter experts and that cited studies that did not support the conclusions that were attributed to these authors.  Having worked in local and national public health for years, I have never experienced such radical non-transparency, nor have I seen such unskilled manipulation of data to achieve a political end rather than the good of the American people.

It is untenable to serve in an organization that is not afforded the opportunity to discuss decisions of scientific and public health importance released under the moniker of CDC.  The lack of communication by HHS and other CDC political leadership that culminates in social media posts announcing major policy changes without prior notice demonstrate a disregard of normal communication channels and common sense.  Having to retrofit analyses and policy actions to match inadequately thought-out announcements in poorly scripted videos or page long X posts should not be how organizations responsible for the health of people should function.  Some examples include the announcement of the change in the COVID-19 recommendations for children and pregnant people, the firing of scientists from ACIP by X post and an op-ed rather than direct communication with these valuable experts, the announcement of new ACIP members by X before onboarding and vetting have completed, and the release of term of reference for an ACIP workgroup that ignored all feedback from career staff at CDC.

The recent term of reference for the COVID vaccine work group created by this ACIP puts people of dubious intent and more dubious scientific rigor in charge of recommending vaccine policy to a director hamstrung and sidelined by an authoritarian leader.   Their desire to please a political base will result in death and disability of vulnerable children and adults.  Their base should be the people they serve not a political voting bloc.

I have always been first to challenge scientific and public health dogma in my career and was excited by the opportunity to do so again.  I was optimistic that there would be an opportunity to brief the Secretary about key topics such as measles, avian influenza, and the highly coordinated approach to the respiratory virus season.  Such briefings would allow exchange of ideas and a shared path to support the vision of “Making America Healthy Again.”  We are seven months into the new administration, and no CDC subject matter expert from my Center has ever briefed the Secretary.  I am not sure who the Secretary is listening to, but it is quite certainly not to us.  Unvetted and conflicted outside organizations seem to be the sources HHS use over the gold standard science of CDC and other reputable sources.  At a hearing, Secretary Kennedy said that Americans should not take medical advice from him.  To the contrary, an appropriately briefed and inquisitive Secretary should be a source of health information for the people he serves. As it stands now, I must agree with him, that he should not be considered a source of accurate information.

The intentional eroding of trust in low-risk vaccines favoring natural infection and unproven remedies will bring us to a pre-vaccine era where only the strong will survive and many if not all will suffer.  I believe in nutrition and exercise.  I believe in making our food supply healthier, and I also believe in using vaccines to prevent death and disability.  Eugenics plays prominently in the rhetoric being generated and is derivative of a legacy that good medicine and science should continue to shun.

The recent shooting at CDC is not why I am resigning.  My grandfather, who I am named after, stood up to fascist forces in Greece and lost his life doing so.  I am resigning to make him and his legacy proud.   I am resigning because of the cowardice of a leader that cannot admit that HIS and his minions’ words over decades created an environment where violence like this can occur.  I reject his and his colleagues’ thoughts and prayers, and advise they direct those to people that they have not actively harmed.

For decades, I have been a trusted voice for the LGBTQ community when it comes to critical health topics.  I must also cite the recklessness of the administration in their efforts to erase transgender populations, cease critical domestic and international HIV programming, and terminate key research to support equity as part of my decision.

Public health is not merely about the health of the individual, but it is about the health of the community, the nation, the world. The nation’s health security is at risk and is in the hands of people focusing on ideological self-interest.

I want to express my heartfelt gratitude for the opportunities for growth, learning, and collaboration that I have been afforded during my time at the CDC. It has been a privilege to work alongside such dedicated professionals who are committed to improving the health and well-being of communities across the nation even when under attack from within both physically and psychologically.

Thank you once again for the support and guidance I have received from you and previous CDC leadership throughout my tenure. I wish the CDC continued success in its vital mission and that HHS reverse its dangerous course to dismantle public health as a practice and as an institution.  If they continue the current path, they risk our personal well-being and the security of the United States.

Sincerely,

Demetre C. Daskalakis MD MPH (he/his/him)

[Sarah Despres @sarahdespres]

Who will be on this task force? Will it do its work in public? Will it used cherry picked data or will it consider all available evidence? The public deserves transparency at a minimum. https://t.co/ivhJQe7gue

[American Academy of Pediatrics @AmerAcadPeds]

The CDC just released the latest data on kindergarten vaccination rates, showing fewer children are immunized. Every parent, policymaker, and public health leader in the country should be coming together to increase access to vaccines.
https://t.co/JjBxWdAWmr