Several federal agencies were affected by the directive

On Tuesday, staff at several agencies like the Department of Health and Human Services, including the Food and Drug Administration, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the National Institutes of Health received the orders just one day after the new administration took office, according to The Washington Post, which first reported the story.

Staffers were surprised by the directive, mainly due to the lack of a timetable for its duration and spoke anonymously with the outlet. They had hoped for a review before the administration enforced the communication freeze.

Some reports were about the highly contagious bird flu virus

The communication pause affects key CDC outputs, including the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, health advisories, website updates, and public health data from the National Center for Health Statistics, which monitors trends like drug overdose deaths, per The Post.

One health official anonymously revealed that the CDC was scheduled to release several MMWRs, including three about the H5N1 avian influenza virus outbreak. The administration has yet to disclose whether the directive will affect foodborne disease outbreaks, new bird flu cases and drug approvals. Despite the freeze, the agencies still track potential threats.

‘Cutting off communications from CDC puts our health at risk’

“Not a day goes by when CDC isn’t tracking a potential threat to our health,“ Dr. Richard Besser, president and CEO of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and former acting director of the CDC, said in a statement obtained by CNN. “Right now they are letting us know about bird flu in cows, birds, and people. Every time there is an outbreak involving a food, they let us know how to avoid getting sick. They let us know where diseases are occurring around the world that could affect our health here or if we travel. Cutting off communications from CDC puts our health at risk and prevents our doctors, nurses, and public health leaders in our communities from doing their jobs. I urge the administration to quickly lift the pause.”

Acting Health Secretary Dr. Dorothy Fink said the directive would remain in place until Feb. 1. In a follow-up memo, she said, per CNN, that a presidential appointee must review all federal agency communications before publication.

“As the new Administration considers its plan for managing the federal policy and public communications processes, it is important that the President’s appointees and designees have the opportunity to review and approve any regulations, guidance documents, and other public documents and communications (including social media),“ Fink said.

What are others saying about the freeze?

Dr. Brian Castrucci, president and CEO of the nonprofit de Beaumont Foundation, said there should be “no concern“ over the communication freeze for federal agencies.

“A temporary pause in the flow of health information should not be cause for concern,“ Castrucci said, per CNN.

“The question is how extensively is that pause enforced? If there is something that requires immediate action, it needs to be communicated because lapsed time means lost lives,“ he added.