In early March 2020, when the US faced pandemica group of young scientists left Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in Atlanta to secretly meet in a small park.

They themselves were concerned about some shocking events that they could not discuss in the office.

In particular, the scientific team knew from fiFebruary 2020 how about new coronavirus it is also transmitted by people who they didn’t have any symptoms. It took a whole month for CDC leaders to realize that the virus was spread not only by people coughing and sneezing, but also asymptomatic.

We knew that tens of thousands of people would die

“We all knew that tens of thousands of people would die, and we were powerless to stop it,” he said. Dr. Daniel Woznicka, one of the interns. “It was really heartbreaking and hard on a psychological level to do nothing,” he added.

In accordance with The newspaper “New York Timesthe morale of CDC scientists plummeted when its officials Trump administration tried to quell differences over how the White House is handling the pandemic.

However, few officials dared to describe the desperation the science team felt as hospitals were overwhelmed with patients and the death toll rose.

Interview with 11 current and former employees of the serviceincluding trainees, as well as documents that came into their possession The newspaper “New York Times, they portray serving under intense pressure from the country’s political leaders.

Some young employees struggled with guilt, anger, and a growing sense of helplessness as executives interfered with or simply ignored scientific research.

OUR Dr. Woznitska35, left CDC in July 2021 and sought help from Help for Whistleblowersnon-profit legal organization.

He testified before the House Subcommittee on the Pandemic last August and October, describing the differences between what CDC scientists have learned about the coronavirus and what communicative attitude supported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Crying, stress, disappointment

Other scientists who still work for the CDC spoke on condition of anonymity because they feared disclosure of their data would affect their work.

Many said they sought treatment or started taking medication to deal with it. disappointment And anxiety. Some said they cried a lot.

The CDC notes that the early days of the pandemic were marked by “an unprecedented and extremely difficult time for those working in public health.”

“We were deeply concerned about maintaining the morale of our officers and provided several support systems to the personnel,” the CDC stressed.

From her side Dr. Ann Suchat, a former deputy director of the CDC stressed that “it was an extremely difficult time even for the Agency’s veteran scientists. If we were silent about the dangers posed by WITHovid-19 in public health, it was only because the Trump administration silenced government investigators,” she said, noting that most media outlets have slandered the agency.

The first big shock came in February 2020 when she was reprimanded by the Trump administration. doctor Nancy Messonniersenior CDC official for warning Americans to prepare for a pandemic.

Two days later, on February 27, CDC officials were told that all agency communications would be routed through the vice president. Mike Pencewho took over leadership of the coronavirus task force.

“They told us not to wear masks so the public wouldn’t worry”

At the same time, officers from the CDC’s outbreak intelligence service, called the EIS, were sent to airports across the country to screen passengers arriving from China. However, it was decided not to wear masks themselves, so as not to disturb the public.

“It was unbelievable because it defies common sense,” said one officer, who recalled that Chinese passengers on planes were arriving from N95 masks only for evaluation by CDC officials who were not wearing masks.

In any case, EIS staff realized that the airport screening was pointless, as a November report from the CDC concluded that the airport screening found only one case after screening 85,000 travelers.

At the same time, data coming from China and other countries strongly indicated this. the spread of the virus by asymptomatic people, and airport checks seem to prove it.

EIS officers have begun privately advising friends and family to cancel weddings and scheduled holidays, stay at home and wear masks and even goggles when trying to go outside.

Some officers have created social media accounts to speak candidly about emerging evidence of asymptomatic spread of the coronavirus and the best ways to protect people.

In an internal memo dated March 9, the CDC said any employee who was seconded to another location to work with Covid-19 was required to self-isolate at home for 14 days — with or without symptoms.

They threatened us to stop posting on social media.

Three days later, EIS staff were ordered to stop posting Covid-19-related events on social media, according to internal reports obtained by The New York Times. In reality, Dr. Woznichka did not comply at first, but did so after being threatened with dismissal.

A few days later, on March 30, CDC director Dr. Robert Redfield warned in a radio interview about the transmission of the new coronavirus by asymptomatic people. On April 3, at a briefing at the White House, the agency advised Americans to wear masks.

“The delay in alerting the public has deeply distressed me,” said Mr. doctor Wozniacki. “I wish I could take my cell phone and broadcast live what is happening. If I had done this, there would have been more people alive,” he added.

As the months went by, EIS employees worked 16-hour days, seven days a week, in nursing homes, meatpacking plants, airports and cruise ships. tracking.

But many of their reports, including when the virus entered the United States, rules for meatpacking plants and religious services, and risks to children, have been suppressed or altered by the Trump administration.

The Trump administration blocked at least 19 messages.

According to The New York Times, the House Select Subcommittee on the Pandemic concluded that the Trump administration intervened, or at least blocked 19 exhibitions.

Morale among CDC scientists sank even further when a report published in May 2020 calculated that the introduction of social distancing measures a week earlier, in March 2020, would have saved 36,000 lives.

August 2020 Michael Caputothe then Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs at the Department of Health and Human Services, called CDC scientists lazy and treasonous traitors.

In October 2020 more 1000 current and former EIS employees wrote an open letter condemning the Trump administration’s silence on the CDC.

Some interns chose to remain anonymous. Some did not sign at all, fearing that they would somehow be identified.

When their two-year program ended in June 2021, many colleagues left the service. Others stayed, but with a life completely different from the one they imagined. In fact, some have said they have stopped reporting their work publicly.

Source: New York Times.