'Keep On Keeping On': California Public Health Officials Express Resolve Ahead of 2nd Trump Term

As the country enters another winter respiratory virus season, public officials say that local health departments will be crucial to combating misinformation and the spread of respiratory diseases over the coming years under the incoming Donald Trump administration.

In a press conference on Thursday hosted by the Big Cities Health Coalition — a forum for health officials and leaders operating in major metropolitan areas of more than half a million people — Santa Clara Public Health Department Director Dr. Sara Cody said the “hyperlocal” work of public health would continue regardless of any federal “headwinds.”

President-elect Trump recently announced that he will be nominating Robert F. Kennedy Jr., secretary of the Health and Human Services Department. The nomination has sparked concern among many health experts due to Kennedy’s well-known criticisms of vaccines and other public health measures. 

Appearing alongside public health officials from North Carolina, Tennessee and Ohio, Cody acknowledged the challenge of misinformation during the COVID-19 pandemic from public leaders — including former president Trump — fueling widespread skepticism and public discourse over vaccination. Now, as rates of respiratory illnesses, including COVID, whooping cough and RSV continue to increase, health experts and advocates have expressed concern that the incoming administration and its policies will result in a renewed distrust of public health officials and their recommendations.

In these moments, “our strategy going forward is to keep on keeping on,” said Cody. “When there’s a lot of headwinds federally, we turn to our trusted partners on the ground and our communities to help us ensure that people have the information that they need and the tools that they need to stay healthy.”

The challenge of vaccine skepticism

As of Nov. 7, only 9.6% of Californians are up to date on their COVID-19 vaccinations. While positive cases remain low, the California Department of Public Health reports that numbers are beginning to rise for the virus — and that the same is true for other preventable respiratory viral diseases, including influenza and RSV.

“There’s been a lot of noise throughout the COVID pandemic over the last four years,” said Dr. Raynard Washington, director of public health for Mecklenburg County in North Carolina, during the press conference. “We are going to keep doing our work, and we are all charged with the responsibility of doing the right thing to keep people healthy and safe. I think the same charge is true for our state officials as well as federal officials.”

Washington noted that federal funding for certain vaccination and public health programs has decreased over the last couple of years, especially when it comes to services geared toward adults. He said many local health departments throughout the United States are still working, however, to ensure that everyone has access to some form of vaccination and treatment plan.

Cody said the Santa Clara County Public Health Department is deploying multiple strategies to ensure that local communities are cared for, including a mobile response team that can address concerns as they arise. But she emphasized that federal support is necessary for the public health system to work — all around the country.

“Every American should have an equal chance of living a healthy and productive life,” Cody said. “Local public health is here to do everything in our power, with our teams, to serve every single person in our community who needs us.”

“But that should be the case for every single person who lives in our country,” she said.