Jan 9, 2009 6:40 pm US/Eastern
Report: CDC Director Resigns
Transition Team Apparently Requested Resignation Letters From Several High-Level Officials
ATLANTA (AP) ―
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The CDC investigates disease outbreaks, researches the cause and prevalence of health problems, and promotes illness prevention efforts. (File)
CBS News
The head of the federal government's public health agency is stepping down, according an e-mail sent Friday night to federal employees.
Dr. Julie Gerberding has resigned as director of the Atlanta-based U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and will be replaced on an interim basis by a deputy as of Jan. 20, the day President-elect Barack Obama is inaugurated.
The e-mail obtained by The Associated Press that discloses the news was sent Friday night to employees of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, which the CDC is part of.
Although an HHS housecleaning has been expected with the new administration, Gerberding's fate was somewhat unclear. The first woman to head the agency, Gerberding led the CDC through a post-Sept. 11 world of bioterrorist fears and was considered an effective communicator with legislators and the public.
In a November e-mail to staff, Gerberding said she expected she might be leaving her job after the Bush administration left office. But colleagues said she quietly had held out hope she would be allowed to stay on in the job.
Speculation that she might remain was fueled by Obama's selection of Tom Daschle to as HHS Secretary. Daschle, the former Senate Democratic leader, is from South Dakota-like Gerberding. Last month, she issued a statement to the press praising Daschle and his "tradition of finding practical solutions to very tough problems."
But Friday's e-mail confirms she will indeed be leaving office, a CDC spokesman said.
"As part of the transition process, the Administration requested resignation letters from a number of senior-level officials, including Dr. Julie Gerberding. This week, the Administration accepted Dr. Gerberding's resignation, effective January 20," CDC spokesman Glen Nowak said in a prepared statement.
Nowak said Gerberding was traveling in Africa on CDC business and unavailable for comment.
The CDC investigates disease outbreaks, researches the cause and prevalence of health problems, and promotes illness prevention efforts.
Gerberding was appointed head of the CDC and its sister agency, the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, in July 2002. The two have a budget of about $8.8 billion and more than 14,000 full-time, part-time and contract employees.
Gerberding receives a total compensation of $202,200.
The memo announcing Gerberding's resignation was signed by Rich McKeown, chief of staff for outgoing U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Mike Leavitt. It said William Gimson, the CDC's chief operating officer, will step in as interim director as of the 20th.
Daschle has not announced a choice for a new CDC director.
(© 2009 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
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