Private organizations are planning to launch an alternative to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s weekly publication, sometimes known as the voice of the public health agency.
The Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota and the New England Journal of Medicine are collaborating on the new publication, which will be called Public Health Alerts, according to Dr. Michael Osterholm, director of the center.
He said during a conference on Oct. 19 that the new publication is slated to launch within one month.
The CDC has been publishing the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) since 1961. The report contains studies and other reports about health issues such as infectious diseases.
MMWR is the “official voice” of the CDC, according to a 2011 anniversary edition. Officials review content to make sure that it “comports with CDC policy” and have rejected papers that do not align with CDC messaging.
MMWR has not been published since September, before the government shut down on Oct. 1.
“[Public Health Alerts] will basically serve to be a way to convey the information that once was shared in the MMWR with all of us in a very timely way,” Osterholm told the conference. “We encourage all of you to begin thinking about submission of outbreaks or data you think should be evaluated. So I hope that you’ll help participate in that.”
A New England Journal of Medicine spokesperson told The Epoch Times via email on Oct.22 that it will share more information on the new publication, which it described as “a new, rapid digital alert to disseminate essential data on disease outbreaks and other issues of public health importance,” in the coming weeks. The publication will be freely available in NEJM Evidence, the spokesperson said.
Osterholm, who served on President Joe Biden’s transition COVID-19 advisory board and is a member of the National Academy of Medicine, previously created the Vaccine Integrity Project, which is meant to provide information on vaccines that are typically disseminated by the CDC’s outside vaccine advisory committee.
Osterholm, during his remarks, described vaccines as a miracle and said he felt that the new efforts are necessary because of moves from Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy and other officials within the Department of Health and Human Services, of which the CDC is a division. Those actions include the narrowing of COVID-19 vaccine recommendations and the replacement of CDC vaccine advisers.
When asked when MMWR would resume publishing and about Public Health Alerts, a spokesperson for the department told The Epoch Times in an email that the agency “is restoring the CDC’s focus on infectious disease, investing in innovation, and rebuilding public trust in public health through integrity, transparency, and accountability.”
The spokesperson said, “As part of these reforms, the Department is committed to the MMWR as the nation’s trusted, science-driven source for timely and accurate health information.”