Anne Schuchat Explained

Anne Schuchat
Office:Principal Deputy Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
President:Barack Obama
Donald Trump
Joe Biden
Term Start:September 2015
Term End:May 2021
Predecessor:Ileana Arias
Successor:Debra Houry (acting)
Office2:Acting Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
President2:Donald Trump
Term Start2:January 31, 2018
Term End2:March 26, 2018
Predecessor2:Brenda Fitzgerald
Successor2:Robert R. Redfield
President3:Donald Trump
Term Start3:January 20, 2017
Term End3:July 7, 2017
Predecessor3:Tom Frieden
Successor3:Brenda Fitzgerald
Education:Swarthmore College (BS)
Dartmouth College (MD)
Allegiance: United States
Branch: U.S. Public Health Service
Rank: Rear admiral
Unit: PHS Commissioned Corps
Commands:Anthrax Emergency Response Team[1]
National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases
Interim Deputy Director for Science and Public Health
Battles:2001 anthrax attacks
SARS outbreak
2009 flu pandemic[2]
Serviceyears:1999–2018

Anne Schuchat (born 1960) is an American medical doctor. She is a former rear admiral and assistant surgeon general in the United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps. She also served as the principal deputy director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).[3] [4] In May 2021, Schuchat stepped down from her post.[5]

Early life and education

Schuchat grew up in a Jewish family in Washington, D.C., the fourth of five children. Her grandfather was a kosher butcher from West Virginia. Schuchat graduated with highest honors from Swarthmore College in 1980 and graduated with honors from Dartmouth Medical School in 1984.[1] [2] [6]

Career

Schuchat served as resident and chief resident in internal medicine at New York University's Manhattan V.A. Hospital before beginning her public health career at CDC as an Epidemic Intelligence Service (EIS) officer in NCID.

Having worked with the CDC on immunization, respiratory, and other infectious diseases since 1988, she served as the Interim Deputy Director for Science and Public Health at the CDC from February 2009 to June 2009. She has also held other posts in the CDC.[7]

During the 2001 anthrax attacks, Schuchat served on CDC's Anthrax Emergency Response Team, which was tasked with investigating the attacks.[1]

From February 2009 to June 2009, Schuchat was the Interim Deputy Director for Science and Public Health Program at the CDC, where she focused on ensuring strong science and programmatic approaches were effectively integrated into planning across the agency. She has emphasized prevention of infectious diseases in children. Her emphasis on perinatal group B streptococcal disease prevention has led to an 80 percent reduction in newborn infections and a 75 percent narrowing of racial disparities among sufferers of this infectious disease. She has been instrumental in pre- and post-licensure evaluations of conjugate vaccines for bacterial meningitis and pneumonia and in accelerating availability of these new vaccines in resource-poor countries through WHO and the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization.[7]

From January 20, 2017 through July 7, 2017, Schuchat served as Acting Director of the CDC (and as acting Administrator for the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry) and again from January 31, 2018 through March 26, 2018, when she was succeeded by Robert R. Redfield as Director.[8] [9] [10]

Schuchat has been active in the CDC's efforts to combat the 2020 Coronavirus outbreak in the United States. In a February 25, 2020 HHS briefing on the "China coronavirus" she famously stated "It’s very important to say that our efforts at containment so far have worked, and the virus is actually contained here in the United States."[11] A May 1, 2020 CDC report authored by Schuchat noted that based on this containment belief federal and local jurisdictions did not recommend restrictions on gatherings, and that several large events consequently held at the end of February played a notable role in the spread of COVID-19 in the United States.[12]

In popular culture

Personal life

Schuchat is married and has no children; she has three brothers and one sister.[14] [15] In May 2005, Schuchat received an honorary doctorate in science from Swarthmore College, from which she graduated in 1980.[1] [6] [7]

Awards and decorations

United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps

1st rowPublic Health Service Meritorious Service MedalPublic Health Service Outstanding Service Medal[16]
2nd rowPublic Health Service Commendation MedalPublic Health Service Achievement MedalPublic Health Service Outstanding Unit Citation[17]
3rd rowPublic Health Service Unit CommendationPublic Health Service Bicentennial Unit Commendation AwardPublic Health Service Foreign Duty Award
4th rowPublic Health Service Crisis Response Service AwardPublic Health Service Regular Corps RibbonCommissioned Officers Association Ribbon

Selected works and publications

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Anne Schuchat, Class of 1980 Honorary Degree Citation . Commencement 2005 . Swarthmore College . Swarthmore College . Swarthmore, Pennsylvania . 2005 . September 8, 2005 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20050908140015/http://www.swarthmore.edu/news/commencement/2005/schuchat2.html . September 8, 2005.
  2. Web site: DMS alum. leads H1N1 response . The Dartmouth . The Dartmouth, Inc. . Relman . Eliza . October 30, 2009 . April 5, 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140407095319/http://thedartmouth.com/2009/10/30/news/dms-alum-leads-h1n1-response . April 7, 2014 . dead .
  3. Web site: Principal Deputy Director of CDC/ATSDR . March 23, 2018 . Centers for Disease Control and Prevention . en-us . April 6, 2018.
  4. News: Edney . Anna . Trump's CDC Director Steps Down After Tobacco Stock Scandal . January 31, 2018 . Bloomberg .
  5. Web site: The CDC's No. 2 Official Says The U.S. Isn't Ready For Another Pandemic. 2021-08-06. NPR.org. en.
  6. Web site: Anne Schuchat, Class of 1980 Commencement Address . Commencement 2005 . Swarthmore College . Swarthmore, Pennsylvania . Schuchat . Anne . May 29, 2005 . September 8, 2005 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20050908084306/http://www.swarthmore.edu/news/commencement/2005/schuchat.html . September 8, 2005 .
  7. Web site: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention . CDC Leaders, Anne Schuchat, MD (RADM, USPHS): Assistant Surgeon General, United States Public Health Service; Director, National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases . Centers for Disease Control and Prevention . March 20, 2013 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160303065856/http://www.cdc.gov/about/leadership/new-leaders/pdd.html . March 3, 2016 . dead . September 8, 2017 .
  8. News: AIDS Researcher Top Candidate to Lead the C.D.C. . Kaplan . Sheila . March 17, 2018 . The New York Times . April 6, 2018 . en-US . 0362-4331.
  9. News: In emotional speech, CDC's new leader vows to uphold science . Sun . Lena H. . March 29, 2018 . Washington Post . April 6, 2018 . en-US . 0190-8286.
  10. News: Hensley . Ellie . CDC appoints acting director . January 19, 2017 . Atlanta Business Chronicle . https://web.archive.org/web/20170801114013/https://www.bizjournals.com/atlanta/news/2017/01/19/cdc-appoints-acting-director.html . August 1, 2017 . live . July 7, 2017 .
  11. Web site: Transcript: U.S. Health Officials on Response to Coronavirus February 25, 2020 . April 16, 2020.
  12. Public Health Response to the Initiation and Spread of Pandemic COVID-19 in the United States, February 24 – April 21, 2020 . 2020 . 10.15585/mmwr.mm6918e2 . May 29, 2020. Schuchat . Anne . CDC COVID-19 Response Team . MMWR. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report . 69 . 18 . 551–556 . 32379733 . 7737947 .
  13. Web site: 'Contagion': CDC Basks In Hollywood's Admiring Take On Disease Detectives . Barclay . Eliza . September 14, 2011 . Shots: NPR's Health Blog . National Public Radio . September 16, 2011 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20110916021507/http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2011/09/14/140464792/cdc-basks-in-contagions-admiring-take-on-disease-detectives . September 16, 2011 .
  14. Web site: Profile: Anne Schuchat . August 2011 . Hadassah . Hadassah . The Women's Zionist Organization of America, Inc. . April 4, 2014 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20140407065745/http://www.hadassahmagazine.org/site/apps/nlnet/content2.aspx?c=twI6LmN7IzF&b=7801745&ct=11195635 . April 7, 2014 .
  15. Web site: Dr. Anne Schuchat – Live . 2010 . Cantor . Danielle . Jewish Woman Magazine . Jewish Women International . Washington, D.C.. April 4, 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150927053201/http://www.jwmag.org/page.aspx?pid=1636#sthash.4oyvPQEv.dpbs . September 27, 2015 . dead .
  16. Web site: CCID boasts numerous winners at 54th Honor Awards Ceremony . Centers for Disease Control and Prevention . September 2006 . The 54th Annual CDC & ATSDR Honor Awards Ceremony was held July 13, 2006, in the Tom Harkin Global Communications Center on the Roybal Campus. To report the awards won by CCID employees, in this summary we are using the then existing, not the proposed, names of the CCID national centers: National Center for Infectious Diseases (NCID), National Immunization Program (NIP), and National Center for HIV, STD, and TB Prevention (NCHSTP). . Coordinating Center for Infectious Diseases . Centers for Disease Control and Prevention . April 5, 2014 . March 12, 2012 . https://web.archive.org/web/20120312101344/http://www2.cdc.gov/spectrum/vol1no4/awards.htm . dead .
  17. Web site: Commissioned Corps Awards Oct–Dec 06 . Commissioned Corps Management Information System . United States Department of Health and Human Services . Commissioned Corps Management Information System . December 2006 . 8 . April 5, 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20100528015201/http://dcp.psc.gov/ccbulletin/PDF_docs/FEBRUARY_Awards.pdf . May 28, 2010 . dead .

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