Washington DC - Former CDC officials pushed out of their positions by Robert F. Kennedy Jr. sounded the alarm about the health secretary's anti-scientific approach to public health during a Senate hearing Wednesday morning.

Susan Monarez was shockingly fired less than a month into her tenure as CDC director at the end of August, with RFK Jr. accusing her of not being "trustworthy."

In response, five senior scientists working at the agency resigned in protest – among them chief medical officer Dr. Debra Houry.

Both Monarez and Houry appeared in front of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions on Wednesday to reveal more details about the turmoil roiling the CDC since RFK Jr. was confirmed as Health and Human Services secretary.

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"Today should not be about me. Today should be about the future of trust in public health," Monarez said in her opening statement.

She claimed she was ousted for refusing to "rubber stamp" vaccine recommendations without first considering the scientific evidence, as well as declining to "dismiss career officials responsible for vaccine policy without cause."

Monarez said that during an August 25 meeting with RFK Jr., she was asked to resign if she could not commit to both demands in advance.

"I was fired for holding the line on scientific integrity," she told the committee.

The hearing revolved around RFK Jr.'s highly contested decision to purge the CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices of all its members.

The panel, which issues recommendations on vaccine schedules, has since been staffed by figures sharing Kennedy's anti-scientific views on vaccines and will meet again on Thursday.

Houry and Monarez expressed concerns about what recommendations the ACIP may issue, especially given the fact its agenda is now being set by political appointees instead of public health experts. The ex-CDC head also revealed RFK Jr. had frequent discussion with the White House and President Donald Trump over changing the childhood vaccine schedule.

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"Secretary Kennedy censored CDC science, politicized its processes, and stripped leaders of independence," Houry claimed, warning that ignoring established scientific methods and data risks increasing preventable diseases and worsening public health – a worry shared by nine former CDC chiefs.

The US is already dealing with its worst measles outbreak in decades, while vaccine skepticism among parents has skyrocketed.