National Nurses United Calls for Firing of Health Secretary Kennedy

National Nurses United Demands Dismissal of Health Secretary Kennedy Amid Turmoil

In response to escalating controversies, National Nurses United (NNU), the largest nurses union in the U.S., has called for the removal of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. by President Donald Trump or for Kennedy to resign from his position.

Mary Turner, RN, President of NNU, expressed strong disapproval of Kennedy's leadership, stating, "Secretary Kennedy’s seven-month tenure at our nation’s highest public health agency has been characterized by one disaster after another, and it has dangerously eroded public trust in the institutions that are so critical for the health and safety of all Americans. It is time for him to go.”

The call for Kennedy's dismissal follows a series of controversial actions, including significant personnel cuts at federal health agencies, substantial reductions in key health research programs, and the promotion of conspiracy theories regarding vaccine safety. These issues reached a tipping point this week.

On Monday, Kennedy demanded the resignation or firing of Susan Monarez, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Subsequently, federal guards escorted three senior CDC officials from the agency's Atlanta office.

The New York Times described the situation at the CDC as "chaos," which NNU attributes to a "disastrous and extremely dangerous decision" by the Federal Drug Administration. The decision in question involves restricting updated Covid-19 vaccinations to individuals aged 65 and older or those with pre-existing health conditions.

NNU highlights the severity of this decision, noting that more than 1.2 million Americans have died from Covid-19. The union argues that vaccines have likely saved tens of thousands of lives across all age groups.

Turner emphasized, “This decision alone, which symbolizes Secretary Kennedy’s hostility to life saving vaccines, that was also evident in the fatal measles outbreak earlier this year, is not only a major risk with the ongoing threat of Covid and further mutations of the virus, it symbolizes why his continued leadership of our public health programs must be ended.”

Scientific and medical experts across the U.S. have voiced concerns about Kennedy's management. Dr. Richard Besser, a former acting director of the agency, commented, “As bad as things have been since January, the firing of thousands of federal health workers, extreme budget cuts, the ongoing assault on our nation’s vaccination system, what we saw yesterday was another level entirely — an extraordinary and systematic dismantling of the very top of our nation’s public health system,” as reported by the New York Times on Thursday.

Attorneys for Monarez, who plans to contest her dismissal, stated, “when CDC Director Susan Monarez refused to rubber-stamp unscientific, reckless directives and fire dedicated health experts, she chose protecting the public over serving a political agenda. For that reason, she has been targeted.”

Demetre Daskalakis, director of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, one of the top CDC officials removed this week, expressed his frustration in his resignation letter: “I am not able to serve in this role any longer because of the ongoing weaponizing of public health.”

These developments are part of a broader pattern of actions by Secretary Kennedy that critics argue undermines science, public health, and the federal workforce tasked with safeguarding the nation from health threats. Allegations include disparaging federal health workers, attempting to revoke collective bargaining rights, dismissing experts from the CDC’s vaccine advisory committee, canceling research into mRNA vaccines, disseminating falsehoods about vaccines, and restricting public input in HHS rule-making.

National Nurses United is the largest and fastest-growing union and professional association of registered nurses in the United States with more than 225,000 members nationwide. NNU affiliates include California Nurses Association/National Nurses Organizing Committee, DC Nurses Association, Michigan Nurses Association, Minnesota Nurses Association, and New York State Nurses Association.

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