Chair wenstrup the select subcommittee on the coronavirus pandemic will come to order. I want to welcome everyone here today. Without objection, the chair may declare a recess at any time. Pursuant to rule 7d of the committee on oversight and accountability, and at the discretion of chairman comer, mr. Jordan, a member of the full committee may participate in todays hearing for purposes of question. I now recognize myself for the purpose of making an Opening Statement. Today, the select subcommittee is holding a hearing to exam the centers for Disease Control and preventions policies and decisions during the covid19 pandemic. The pandemic sent shock waves through all aspects of american life. School, work, family, sports, and faith. This was a novel virus. There was much we didnt know. And we didnt know how to react. Educated guesses were the best things we could do especially early on. Throughout i maintained hope and what should have and could have united our country but did not instead drove division, unfortunately. I was hopeful that the pandemic could be a Unifying Force for our country and for the world. After all, a common danger unites even the bitterest enemies. Unfortunately, in many ways, our Public Health leadership did not always rise to the occasion. Instead of being a calm and trusted voice of science and reason, the American People often felt let down, often deceived, and left damaged. Director walensky, given how difficult it was to get you here today with the h. H. S. Often negotiating on your behalf, it appears that maybe this administration did not want you to speak regarding these topics. In case you were unaware, nearly 10 weeks ago on april 5, the select subcommittee requested that the c. D. C. Make you available to testify today. May 22, the select subcommittee officially invited you to testify through the negotiation process, the Biden Administration said there was insufficient time for you to prepare. Now, this may even astonish you considering the select subcommittee provided nearly 10 weeks notice. H. H. S. Then rejected two other later dates and provided mr. Moran ill lodge more ill logical thinking. We think you were willing the whole time so i want to thank you personally for being here today. It is, however, curious that the administration tried so hard to hide you from the American People. I suppose someone would want the American People to simply move on. But without review of processes and decisionmaking, its difficult to plan for the future. And there will be a problem, again, in the future. It is the duty of this select subcommittee to ensure that we address failings so were not doomed to repeat them. As well, lets affirm the positive. These are our duties and our obligations. Throughout the pandemic, c. D. C. Published confusing guidance and made divisive and confusing statements and we must talk about these things. Director walensky, you made several of these statements yourself, some that contradicted c. D. C. s official guidance. We have many questions about some of the statements made by several people and directives made and facts that may be contradictory. Beginning with on february 3, 2021, you said, quote, there is increasing data to suggest that schools can safely open reopen and that safe reopening does not suggest that teachers need to be vaccinated, end quote. The next day then White House Press secretary jen psaki said, quote, dr. Walensky spoke about this in her personal capacity, end quote. Thats interesting. You were speaking at a White House Press briefing when you made the statement. The official c. D. C. Logo was behind you. And the transcript is on the white house website. Doesnt sound like personal capacity to me. Seems like the Biden Administration just disagreed with what you were saying. Well ask about that today. On march 29, 2021, dr. Walensky, you also stated, quote, our data from the c. D. C. Today suggests that vaccinated people do not carry the virus, dont get sick, end quote. Three days later, a c. D. C. Spokesman walked this back and said you were speaking broadly and some people who are fully vaccinated might indeed catch covid19. So this raises the question of whether the science supported what you were publicly saying or not. The lack of scientific awareness of the Biden Administration became clear when on july 21, 2021, President Biden made the unequivocal statement, if youre vaccinated, youre not going to be hospitalized. Youre not going to be in the intensive care unit. And you are not going to die. We will ask you about that and are interested in hearing if the data c. D. C. Had at the time supported that statement or if it was made for political or other purposes. At times c. D. C. Seemingly accepted guidance from political organizations instead of relying on the realtime scientific data. At our hearing in april with the American Federation of teachers, president reingarten. A scientist at the c. D. C. Described a. F. T. s level of access as uncommon. Ms. Winegarden testified of having your phone number and received an advanced copy of the full internal draft guidance. And some of her edits were even accepted. This level of access is uncommon. The a. F. T. Even suggested adding a closure trigger to automatically shut schools down. Even though this specific edit was not accepted, the others that were have had some severe consequences. And i believe its appropriate for the a. F. T. To seek c. D. C. Guidance but not to give you or the c. D. C. Medical and scientific advice. Drug use, violence, Mental Health issues, and suicide among our nations children have skyrocketed. While test scores have severely fallen. Some will attempt to undermine the select subcommittees efforts by saying that hindsight is 20 20 or were playing monday morning quarterback. But our role is to investigate the covid19 pandemic. This requires looking back in order to plan ahead. It requires asking questions to evaluate how decisions were made and how they were implemented. And once that is done, we may put forth Solutions Based on facts, not is up positions. I not suppositions. I look forward to an on topic discussion. Honesty is nonnegotiable. Again, i thank you for being here today voluntarily, and i look forward to your testimony. And with that i yield to the Ranking Member, dr. Ruiz, for any Opening Statement he would like to make. Mr. Ruiz thank you, mr. Chairman. And thank you, director walensky, for being here today. As Ranking Member of this select subcommittee, ive often said how important it is that we focus on forwardlooking policy solutions that will leave us better prepared in the event of another deadly novel airborne virus. At the forefront of this work is the nations centers for Disease Control and prevention, which under director walenskys direction, helped guide us out of the darkest days of the covid19 pandemic. Her steadfast leadership mobilized the most successful Vaccination Campaign in our nations history, leading to more than 600 million shots in arms, prevented 18. 5 million hospitalizations, and saved 3. 2 million lives from covid19. Under her leadership, 95 of americas schools that were forced to close during the Previous Administrations failed Pandemic Response safely reopened for inPerson Learning within just one year. And because of her tireless efforts, our nations Public Health workforce was fortified and the c. D. C. Made critical strides to ensure that the American People received accurate, datainformed Public Health guidance that reflected what we knew about an evolving, everchanging pandemic at crucial points in time. I say all this to not only thank dr. Walensky for her service to the nation but also to stress where we were and where we are today because of her leadership. You see, when dr. Walensky began her tenure at the c. D. C. , she inherited a Beleaguered Agency during the pandemics deadliest twomonth stretch on record in the United States. In fact, every day more than 3,000 people in the United States died from covid19. Whats more, dr. Walensky ascended to the role as director not only as the agency was in the midst of battling a deadly novel virus but also as it was suffering from the severe setbacks and damaged morale that resulted from months of political interference by the former president and his administration. Throughout the early months of the pandemic, our nations scientists were sidelined by white house officials and the president s political allies who meddled in c. D. C. s communications, Public Health guidance, and scientific reports. Thats in addition to the president s own downplaying of the coronavirus, which hampered our nations Pandemic Response during one of the deadliest periods in americas history. This political interference and harmful messaging by the former president also manufactured a deep distrust in our nations Public Health institutions. Fundamentally undermining our ability to respond to future threats. That, coupled with the ongoing victimification of Public Health experts with the purpose of advancing a partisan narrative and now were seeing the real and dangerous consequence. In fact, a february, 2022 Pew Research Center report found that fewer than three in 10 adults in the United States now have a great deal of confidence in medical scientists acting in the public interest. As a physician and Public Health expert, this is deeply concerning to me and it should be to us all. Our ability to prevent harm and save lives in the event of another pandemic is intrinsically tied to a strong relationship between our nations Public Health experts and the American People. So where do we go from here . How do we move forward . Now that we are on the other side of this pandemic, thanks to director walensky and the Biden Administrations leadership in delivering vaccines and safely reopening workplaces, schools, and our economy, we have the opportunity to rebuild the trust that has been eroded. We have the chance to right the wrongs of the Previous Administration by identifying and implementing Real Solutions that leave us better prepared in the event of another deadly virus. Solutions like empowering the c. D. C. To promote comprehensive and timely Data Collection and reporting, equipping the c. D. C. With tools and resources necessary to continue rapidly disseminating Accurate Information and guidance to the American Public without political interference, and investing in the c. D. C. So it continue to support its states and local partners in the face of future Public Health threats. It is now that we should work to reinspire confidence in our nations Public Health officials, not continue to vilify, falsify motives and breed distrust in them. It is now that we should continue to assemble a strong Public Health workforce and see through director walenskys vision for the c. D. C. To identify, prevent, and respond to novel viruses and threats more nimbly and it is now we should build on the Biden Administrations progress to bolster whole of government pandemic preparedness so that we can more rapidly respond in a future Public Health crisis. So today, i hope we can make progress on advancing these objectives because if we do, we can and will ensure the nation is better prepared in a future Public Health crisis. And that means future harm will be prevented and more lives will be saved. Thank you and i yield back. Thank you, dr. Ruiz. Our witness today is dr. Rochelle walensky. Dr. Walensky currently serves as director of the centers for Disease Control and prevention. She was previously the chief of division of Infectious Diseases at Massachusetts General Hospital and a professor of medicine at harvard medical school. Dr. Walensky graduated with a bachelor of arts from Washington University in st. Louis, received a doctor of medicine from John Hopkins School of medicine, and a master of Public Health from the Harvard School of Public Health. Thank you for being here today. Pursuant to the committee on oversight and accountability rule 9g, the witness will please stand and raise her right hand. Thank you. Do you solemnly swear or affirm that the testimony you are about to give is the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, so help you god. Thank you. Let the record show that the witness answered in the affirmative. The select subcommittee certainly appreciates you being here today and we look forward to your testimony. Let me remind the witness that we have read your written statement and it will appear in full in the hearing record. Please limit your oral statement to five minutes. As a reminder, please press the button on the microphone in front of you so it is on and the members can hear you. When you begin to speak, the light in front of you will turn green. After four minutes, the light will turn yellow. When the red light comes on your five minutes have expired and we will ask you please wrap up. I now recognize dr. Walensky to give an Opening Statement. Dr. Walekski thank you. Chairman wenstrup, Ranking Member ruiz, and distinguished members of the subcommittee, it is an honor to be here with you today. I came to c. D. C. In january of 2021 as a practicing Infectious Disease doctor and researcher who had been on the front lines of the pandemic treating patients with covid19. I leave later this month with a great sense of accomplishment, that the Public Health emergency has ended and with an unwavering respect and admiration for the dedicated people across c. D. C. Working every day to protect the health of americans. When i started, c. D. C. Faced enormous challenges. For example, the sharing of data was too slow and often relied on fax machines, which greatly hindered federal, state, and local leaders from having timely access to critical Public Health data. As a nation, we have mourned the loss of more than 1. 1 million family members, neighbors, colleagues, and friends from covid19, and we cannot lose sight of the fact that we are still losing people to this disease every single day. But thankfully we are in a much different place today. The end of the Public Health emergency last month marked a tremendous transition for our country and for Public Health. Now we have the tools we need to protect people in our communities from severe infection and death. Thanks to the work of c. D. C. , our partners in state and local government, the private sector and Frontline Health care workers, more than 676 million doses of vaccines have been administered across the u. S. Saving millions of lives. These vaccines built a wall of protection which dramatically decreased the risk of severe disease and death from covid19. When i started at c. D. C. , just 1 3 of School Districts were offering daily inperson instruction. With my three boys at home with me, getting schools opened was a top priority for me. I, like many of you, recognized the Critical Role that schools play in supporting social, physical, behavioral, emotional, and Mental Wellbeing of our children. In fact, one of the first guidance documents released by c. D. C. Just 23 days after i started was the Operational Strategy for k12 schools through phased mitigation on february 12, 2021. This road map to reopen schools and help them remain open was a result of countless workhours by c. D. C. Staff, along with feedback from over 50 organizations and implementing partners. Organizations and individuals whose engagement we needed, whose participation was essential if School Opening was actually going to happen. And it worked. By the fall of 2021, nearly every School District in the United States opened offered daily inperson instruction. Throughout my ten