Cassidy cites a family emergency for postponing the vote to next week
The Senate health committee on Thursday delayed a planned vote on whether to advance the nomination of Dr. Erica Schwartz to lead the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, according to the Associated Press.
The committee plans to vote next week on whether to forward Schwartz’s nomination to the full Senate. Committee Chair Bill Cassidy, a Louisiana Republican, said a family emergency was affecting the number of Republicans needed to be present to vote yes, the AP reported.
If approved by the committee and confirmed by the full Senate, the 54-year-old Schwartz would become the 22nd director of the Atlanta-based CDC, which is charged with protecting Americans from preventable health threats.
Schwartz faced scrutiny during her confirmation hearing earlier this month, when senators questioned how she might handle political pressure from U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. if it conflicted with science-based decision making. Cassidy, whose support is crucial to Schwartz’s advancement, was among the senators raising that question.
The committee’s vote was expected to be close.