On August 10, 2025, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in Atlanta became the target of a large-scale armed assault, marking one of the most direct acts of violence against a federal public health agency in history. The gunman fired nearly 200 rounds into six buildings on the CDC’s Roybal campus, shattering 150 blast-resistant windows and leaving behind more than 500 shell casings . Five firearms were recovered from the scene.
Although no CDC employees were killed or physically wounded, the attack claimed the life of Officer David Rose of the DeKalb County Police Department, who was fatally shot while responding to the incident. Rose, a Marine Corps veteran and a recent academy graduate, leaves behind a wife, two children, and a third child on the way .
The shooter, who died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound, had a documented history of suicidal ideation and encounters with police. Records show multiple prior calls to law enforcement, including one made by a crisis line worker and two by his father, who had warned authorities that his son possessed firearms. Investigators from the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) later recovered documents at his home indicating that he blamed the COVID-19 vaccine for depression and suicidal thoughts.
A Tragedy Fueled by Misinformation
The CDC shooting is not an isolated act of violence—it is a stark culmination of years of escalating hostility toward public health professionals, exacerbated by disinformation about vaccines. The attacker’s fixation on the COVID-19 vaccine underscores how persistent anti-vaccine rhetoric can translate into real-world threats.
In recent years, researchers and professional associations have documented a surge in harassment and intimidation directed at public health officials. This has been driven not only by fringe activists but also by high-profile political figures who question the legitimacy of vaccines and cast public health agencies as corrupt or authoritarian .
Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr., appointed by the Trump administration despite his long record of promoting false claims about vaccines, has repeatedly criticized the CDC. In the aftermath of the shooting, Kennedy offered condolences to the family of Officer Rose but dismissed direct questions about how anti-vaccine culture contributed to the violence. Instead, he doubled down on criticisms of the CDC’s pandemic response and claimed the government “was overreaching” and spreading falsehoods .
Kennedy’s history of inflammatory remarks is well-documented. He has likened CDC vaccine programs to “fascism” and “child abuse,” suggested the agency is a “cesspool of corruption,” and falsely claimed links between vaccines and autism . His comments, combined with the administration’s broader pattern of undermining public health expertise, have eroded trust in institutions that are critical to national and global health security.
Dr. Elizabeth Soda, an infectious disease doctor with the CDC’s Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases, called for Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to resign on Sunday.
“I am enraged at Robert F. Kennedy Jr. As health secretary, his lies are costing people their lives. His dangerous rhetoric is making Americans sicker as scientific decision-making is destroyed.”
A Chilling Climate for Public Health
The CDC shooting crystallizes the dangers of a climate where misinformation and hostility toward science flourish. In the past five years, public health has become a lightning rod for discontent — not only over the hardships of the pandemic, but also because of the deliberate spread of anti-vaccine rhetoric. Such rhetoric, repeated across partisan media and amplified online, has increasingly portrayed public health professionals not as protectors, but as enemies of freedom or agents of corruption.
Young professionals entering medicine, epidemiology, or public health administration now do so with the awareness that their career path may bring harassment or worse. For agencies like the CDC, already stretched by budgetary and staffing challenges, this environment undermines recruitment, morale, and ultimately the nation’s preparedness for future crises.
Security Implications for Public Health Institutions
The attack has also raised urgent questions about the physical security of scientific and health institutions. Nearly 100 children were present at a childcare center on the CDC campus when the gunfire erupted . The fact that no CDC staff or civilians were injured is a testament to the facility’s protective measures, but the scale of the attack illustrates the growing risks facing public health workers.
Why This Matters for Public Health and National Security
Gun violence in the United States is already recognized as a public health crisis. But when such violence directly targets the nation’s leading disease-control agency, the implications extend far beyond Atlanta. The attack highlights a dangerous nexus between misinformation, political extremism, and violence that puts not only health professionals but the broader public at risk.
Protecting agencies like the CDC is a matter of national interest. The United States’ ability to respond to pandemics, monitor emerging infectious diseases, and safeguard biomedical research depends on the credibility and safety of its public health workforce. If professionals are intimidated, silenced, or driven away by threats of violence, every community in America becomes more vulnerable. This incident is a warning sign that disinformation, when left unchecked, can erode not just trust but security itself.
A Deafening Silence from the White House
Notably, President Trump has not commented publicly on the shooting . The absence of leadership at the highest level has frustrated CDC employees and observers, many of whom argue that silence in the face of politically motivated violence against public health institutions only emboldens further attacks.
Professional organizations across the country have since urged Americans to stand in solidarity with the public health workforce. In a joint statement, they emphasized: “People choosing public health as a profession are committed to advancing our nation’s health and recognize that good health in every community benefits everyone. Their expertise and commitment deserves all Americans’ unwavering support” .
Moving Forward
Strengthening security at critical health agencies is essential, but so too is addressing the disinformation and political rhetoric that inspire such violence. Confronting false claims about vaccines, supporting the mental health of public health workers, and ensuring political leaders are held accountable for fueling distrust must all be part of a comprehensive response.
Public health professionals dedicate their careers to protecting lives. The least society can do is ensure they are not put in the crosshairs of a misinformation-driven war on science.
Sources and Further Reading:
Politico: The CDC shooting aftermath
Washington Post: A gunman shot at the CDC, killing an officer. Trump hasn’t said a word.
New York Times: What we know about the CDC shooting in Atlanta
AP: CDC shooter believed COVID vaccine made him suicidal, his father tells police
PBS: In CDC attack, man fired 180 shots, breaking 150 windows
BBC: Man who fired hundreds of rounds at CDC HQ was angry at Covid vaccines, authorities say
Georgia Burea of Investigation: GBI investigates officer involved shooting in DeKalb County