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CDC Deputy Director Jennifer Shuford to Leave After Four Months
Dr. Jennifer Shuford will leave her post as deputy director and chief medical officer of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention next month, a CDC spokesperson told NBC News. Her last day is Nov. 12, less than five months after she started the dual roles in June.
Why is Shuford leaving the CDC?
In a statement provided through the agency, Shuford said she is departing to spend more time with her family. "I am so thankful to President Trump and Secretary Kennedy for giving me the opportunity to help lead CDC," she said. "It has been an amazing experience and I will be forever grateful for it," according to the statement cited by NBC News.
Who takes over as deputy director?
Satish Pillai, who currently leads the CDC's Ebola response, will serve as acting deputy director and chief medical officer while the agency searches for a permanent successor, the spokesperson said. No timeline for naming a permanent replacement was provided.
What is Shuford's background?
President Donald Trump announced Shuford's appointment to CDC leadership in April, and she began the job in June. Before joining the CDC, she served as Texas' chief state epidemiologist during the Covid-19 pandemic and was appointed in 2022 to lead the Texas Department of State Health Services as commissioner. In that role she oversaw the state's response to a measles outbreak centered in West Texas last year that led to more than 750 cases and the deaths of two school-age children, according to NBC News.
How does this fit the pattern of CDC leadership turnover?
Shuford's exit adds to a run of departures at the agency under the Trump administration. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. fired CDC Director Susan Monarez in August 2025, just 29 days into her tenure, leaving the agency without a permanent director for roughly a year until the Senate confirmed Dr. Erica Schwartz in August 2026. In February, principal deputy director Dr. Ralph Abraham stepped down, and in June, Dr. Allison Arwady, director of the agency's National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, announced her own departure. NBC News also reported that four senior officials resigned last year after Monarez's firing, three of whom cited concerns about political interference in the CDC's scientific process.
What to watch
- Whether the CDC names a permanent deputy director and chief medical officer before Shuford's Nov. 12 exit or leaves Pillai in the acting role for an extended period.
- Whether additional senior CDC officials announce departures in the weeks following Shuford's exit.
- How Director Erica Schwartz, confirmed in August, addresses the leadership churn publicly or in congressional testimony.
- Whether Kennedy's office comments further on the reasons behind the string of exits since Monarez's firing in August 2025.
The CDC spokesperson did not say whether Shuford's departure was connected to broader policy or personnel decisions inside the agency, and the statement attributed to Shuford did not elaborate beyond citing family considerations, per NBC News's reporting.
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Questions
When is Jennifer Shuford's last day at the CDC?
Her last day is Nov. 12, 2026, according to a CDC spokesperson cited by NBC News.
Who will serve as acting CDC deputy director after Shuford leaves?
Satish Pillai, who leads the agency's Ebola response, will serve as acting deputy director and chief medical officer while the CDC searches for a permanent successor.
Why did Jennifer Shuford say she is leaving the CDC?
She said in a statement that she is leaving to spend more time with her family, while thanking President Trump and Secretary Kennedy for the opportunity to lead the agency.