Erica Schwartz being considered by Trump administration to lead CDC
FILE-Rear Adm. Erica Schwartz speaks to attendees of her frocking ceremony at Coast Guard Headquarters in Washington, D.C. on Aug. 17, 2015. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Chief Petty Officer Kyle Niemi)
Erica Schwartz, a deputy U.S. surgeon general during President Donald Trump’s first stint in the White House, is in consideration to lead the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a person familiar with the internal discussions told Reuters.
In her role as deputy surgeon general, Schwartz engaged in the federal response to the COVID-19 pandemic and supervised national preparedness and public health coordination efforts.
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The Washington Post reported that the Trump administration is also considering three candidates to serve in senior roles to support Schwartz.
Sean Slovenski, a former Walmart executive, is the planned pick to serve in a chief operating officer position, and Jennifer Shuford, an infectious-disease physician who is Texas’s health commissioner, would serve in a senior medical role, and Sara Brenner, a senior Food and Drug Administration official, would also transition over to the CDC.
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The CDC has endured a myriad of changes in the agency, which began with Trump firing Director Susan Monarez in August 2025, after she raised questions about vaccine policy changes planned by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
Reuters reported that Monarez was replaced by HHS Deputy Secretary Jim O'Neill, who was supplanted in February by Jay Bhattacharya, the director of the U.S. National Institutes of Health.
Who is Erica Schwartz?
The backstory:
Erica Schwartz has a medical degree from Brown University and a law degree from the University of Maryland.
In January 2021, she left government after the incoming Biden administration informed her that she would not be selected to serve as acting U.S. surgeon general, The Washington Post reported.
The Wall Street Journal reported that as a physician, Schwartz spent over 20 years in uniform, starting in the U.S. Navy before joining the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps and the U.S. Coast Guard. While in the Coast Guard, she became rear admiral and served as the branch’s chief medical officer, among other roles.
The Source: Information for this story was provided by Reuters, The Wall Street Journal, and The Washington Post. This story was reported from Washington, D.C.