Jennifer Shuford, MD, MPH, deputy director and chief medical officer of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), has resigned approximately 6 months after her appointment was announced, according to an agency email reported by The Guardian. Her last day will be November 12.
Shuford, who was named to the position in April as part of a 4-person senior leadership team appointed by President Donald Trump, cited family reasons for her departure.
“I am leaving to spend more time with my family,” Shuford said in a statement distributed by CDC Director Erica Schwartz, MD, according to The Guardian. “I am so thankful to President Trump and Secretary Kennedy for giving me the opportunity to help lead CDC. It has been an amazing experience, and I will be forever grateful for it.”
In her leadership role, Shuford provided clinical, scientific, and public health guidance across domestic and global health priorities. According to her official CDC biography, she advised the agency's director on clinical and scientific matters and helped guide strategic public health initiatives across CDC centers and offices.
Before joining the CDC, Shuford served as commissioner of the Texas Department of State Health Services, overseeing infectious disease response, epidemiology, health promotion, and emergency preparedness. She previously served as Texas' chief state epidemiologist and practiced as an infectious disease physician in Austin. She joined the Texas health department in 2017 and participated in public health responses involving measles and COVID-19.
Shuford earned her medical degree from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical School, completed an internal medicine residency at Presbyterian Hospital of Dallas and an infectious diseases fellowship at Mayo Clinic, and received a Master of Public Health degree from Harvard University’s School of Public Health. She is board-certified in internal medicine and infectious diseases.
According to The Guardian, Schwartz acknowledged Shuford's leadership during a demanding period for the agency. Satish Pillai, MD, will serve as acting deputy director and chief medical officer while the CDC searches for a permanent successor.
Sources: The Guardian, CDC