SACRAMENTO — California Governor Gavin Newsom, Oregon Governor Tina Kotek, and Washington Governor Bob Ferguson today announced the creation of the West Coast Health Alliance, a new regional partnership aimed at safeguarding scientific integrity in public health. The move comes in response to what state leaders call the Trump Administration’s “destruction” of the CDC’s credibility and independence.
Thorvardur de Shong
The Alliance will coordinate evidence-based immunization guidelines and provide residents with unified, science-driven recommendations, countering what leaders say is the politicization of vaccine guidance at the federal level.
“President Trump’s mass firing of CDC doctors and scientists — and his blatant politicization of the agency — is a direct assault on the health and safety of the American people. The CDC has become a political tool that increasingly peddles ideology instead of science, ideology that will lead to severe health consequences. California, Oregon, and Washington will not allow the people of our states to be put at risk,” said Governor Newsom.
Public Health Leaders Speak Out
State health officials emphasized that clear, consistent communication is vital to sustaining public trust in vaccines.
- “The dismantling of public health and dismissal of experienced and respected health leaders and advisors, along with the lack of using science, data, and evidence to improve our nation’s health are placing lives at risk,” said Erica Pan, MD, MPH, FIDSA, FAAP, Director and State Public Health Officer, California Department of Public Health. “California stands together with our public health and medical professional colleagues to uphold integrity and support our mission to protect the health of our communities.”
- “Our communities deserve clear and transparent communication about vaccines — communication grounded in science, not ideology,” said Sejal Hathi, MD, MBA, Director of the Oregon Health Authority. “Vaccines are among the most powerful tools in modern medicine; they have indisputably saved millions of lives. But when guidance about their use becomes inconsistent or politicized, it undermines public trust at precisely the moment we need it most. That is why Oregon is committed, alongside California and Washington, to leading with science and delivering evidence-based recommendations that protect health, save lives, and restore confidence in our public health system.”
- “When federal agencies abandon evidence-based recommendations in favor of ideology, we cannot continue down that same path,” said Dennis Worsham, Secretary of Health, Washington State Department of Health. “Washington State will not compromise when it comes to our values: science drives our public health policy. Public health at its core is about prevention — preventing illness, preventing the spread of disease, and preventing early, avoidable deaths. We stand firmly with trusted medical professionals and organizations like the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, as well as fellow West Coast health agencies — whose guidance remains rooted in rigorous research and clinical expertise. Our commitment is to the health and safety of our communities, protecting lives through prevention, and not yielding to unsubstantiated theories that dismiss decades of proven public health practice.” What the Alliance Will Do
The three states will begin aligning immunization recommendations with trusted national medical organizations, ensuring consistency across borders regardless of federal reversals. In the coming weeks, the Alliance will publish shared principles to strengthen vaccine confidence, while affirming the sovereign authority of Tribes over their own vaccine services.
CDC’s Dismantling and Fallout
Since its founding, the CDC has played a central role in safeguarding Americans from disease. But recent actions, including Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s removal of all 17 members of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, have fueled fears that ideology is supplanting science.
Without credible federal guidance, vaccine manufacturers face uncertainty, health providers lack clear direction, and families are left confused about coverage and access.
The West Coast Health Alliance, its governors stressed, is designed to restore trust, strengthen prevention, and ensure public health strategies remain anchored in science, not politics.
