Former top vaccine official sues Trump administration over her firing

Source: CBS News

Updated on: December 16, 2025 / 11:16 PM EST


A former top official at the National Institutes of Health sued the Trump administration Tuesday, alleging she was illegally fired by Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. after she blew the whistle on internal clashes over vaccine research at the agency.

Dr. Jeanne Marrazzo ran the NIH division responsible for vaccine research until late March, when she was placed on indefinite leave. In a formal whistleblower complaint, she said she was sidelined because she pushed back against NIH officials appointed by President Trump who questioned the importance of childhood flu vaccines and canceled long-running clinical trials.

She was terminated in October after she went public with her concerns in an exclusive interview with CBS News, which she claims was a further act of retaliation.

"I spoke up because the decisions by HHS leadership have put the public's health at risk and wasted billions of dollars — actions that will have devastating consequences for Americans' safety and wellbeing for decades to come," Marrazzo said in a statement on Tuesday, noting that she is seeking her job back and also aims to protect the rights afforded to federal employees who blow the whistle. "I was fired for calling this out, but I will not stay silent," she said.

Read more: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/former-top-vaccine-official-jeanne-marrazzo-sues-trump-administration-firing/