Report on the Attack on the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and its Implications for Sustainable Development Goals

Incident Summary

• On Friday, August 8, 2025, a shooting occurred at the Atlanta headquarters of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
• The shooter was identified as Patrick Joseph White, reportedly motivated by anti-vaccine sentiments.
• An Atlanta police officer, David Rose, was fatally shot. The perpetrator was also found deceased at the scene.
• While bullets entered CDC buildings, no agency employees were physically injured.
• The attack is viewed by staff not as an isolated event but as a culmination of escalating hostility.

Impact on Sustainable Development Goal 3: Good Health and Well-being

The incident and its surrounding context directly undermine SDG 3, which aims to ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all. The attack on a leading public health institution jeopardizes global and national health security.

• Threats to Health Workers: The physical attack and ongoing threats create a hazardous environment for public health professionals, impacting their mental and physical well-being and their capacity to perform essential duties.
• Erosion of Trust in Health Systems: The shooter’s motivation, linked to vaccine misinformation, highlights a critical challenge to public health. Political rhetoric questioning the CDC’s integrity and the efficacy of vaccines further erodes public trust, which is essential for achieving health outcomes like disease prevention and control.
• Disruption of Health Research: Administrative actions preceding the attack, such as the cancellation of nearly $500 million in federally funded research on mRNA vaccines, directly impede progress on innovative health technologies and pandemic preparedness, key components of SDG 3.

Implications for Sustainable Development Goal 16: Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions

The event represents a significant failure to uphold SDG 16, which focuses on promoting peaceful societies and building effective, accountable, and inclusive institutions.

• Violence Against Public Servants: The shooting is a direct act of violence against a state institution and its personnel. A 2021 survey indicated that nearly one-third of public health workers had faced workplace violence, demonstrating a systemic issue that contravenes the goal of a peaceful society.
• Weakening of Public Institutions: The report details actions that weaken the CDC, a cornerstone of public health infrastructure. These include:
  1. Massive layoffs and proposed budget cuts.
  2. Purging of the scientific advisory committee on vaccine recommendations.
  3. Sustained verbal attacks from high-level political figures, including the Health Secretary and the President, which employees feel have fanned “the flames of hatred.”
• Erosion of Accountability and Safety: The delayed and perceived inadequate response from government leadership following the attack has left employees feeling abandoned. This lack of robust support undermines the institutional accountability and safety necessary for public servants to function effectively.

Further SDG Considerations

• SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth: The attack underscores the precarious and unsafe working conditions for public health professionals. Employees expressed that they did not expect to face risks at their domestic headquarters comparable to those in international conflict zones, highlighting a failure to ensure a safe work environment as stipulated under SDG 8.
• SDG 17: Partnerships for the Goals: The internal conflict between political leadership and the nation’s primary public health agency demonstrates a breakdown in the collaborative partnerships required to achieve sustainable development. Eroding trust between government branches and scientific bodies cripples the coordinated action needed to address global health crises.

Institutional Response and Employee Concerns

The response from leadership was perceived by staff as slow and insufficient, exacerbating feelings of insecurity.

1. CDC Director Susan Monarez issued an initial statement on the night of the attack, followed by a more substantial email the next evening.
2. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. sent an email to staff and posted on social media the morning after the incident.
3. The President had not made a statement regarding the attack at the time of reporting.

CDC employees have voiced significant concerns regarding their safety and the administration’s role in the current climate:

• Staff directly blamed the shooting in part on the “combative attitude” and misinformation spread by political leadership.
• Employees reported feeling abandoned and unsafe, with the agency’s security office advising them to remove CDC parking decals from their vehicles for their own protection.
• Veterans of the agency expressed shock that the level of danger at the Atlanta campus now rivals that of their work in high-risk international locations.

SDGs Addressed in the Article

SDG 3: Good Health and Well-being

• The article’s central theme is the attack on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), a primary public health institution. This directly impacts the goal of ensuring healthy lives. The discussion revolves around vaccines, the COVID-19 pandemic response, and the cancellation of mRNA vaccine research, all of which are critical components of public health and well-being. The shooter’s reported mental health issues also touch upon this goal.

SDG 16: Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions

• This goal is addressed through the depiction of violence, justice, and the state of public institutions. The article details a violent attack on a federal building, resulting in deaths. It highlights the escalating hostility and death threats against public health workers, which undermines peace and security. Furthermore, it describes the weakening of a key national institution (the CDC) through political attacks, budget cuts, layoffs, and policy interference, which speaks directly to the need for “effective, accountable and transparent institutions.”

SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth

• The article highlights the violation of safe working conditions for public health employees. The shooting, the history of threats, and the resulting fear among staff (“I didn’t expect to face the same risks at the Atlanta campus as I faced in South Sudan”) directly contradict the principle of a safe and secure working environment, which is a key aspect of decent work. The mention of “massive layoffs” also connects to this goal.

Specific SDG Targets Identified

SDG 3: Good Health and Well-being

1. Target 3.3: By 2030, end the epidemics of AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria and neglected tropical diseases and combat hepatitis, water-borne diseases and other communicable diseases.
   • The article discusses the U.S. pandemic response, COVID-19, and the cancellation of research on mRNA vaccines, which are vital tools for combating communicable diseases. Weakening the CDC compromises its ability to manage and prevent such diseases.
2. Target 3.d: Strengthen the capacity of all countries… for early warning, risk reduction and management of national and global health risks.
   • The article explicitly details the weakening of the CDC, a critical institution for managing health risks. Actions like “massive layoffs,” “proposed halving its budget,” and political interference directly diminish its capacity to protect public health both nationally and globally, as referenced by an employee who worked on outbreaks in “dangerous parts of the world.”

SDG 16: Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions

1. Target 16.1: Significantly reduce all forms of violence and related death rates everywhere.
   • The article is centered on a violent shooting at the CDC headquarters that resulted in the deaths of a police officer and the shooter. It also documents a pattern of violence and threats, citing “death threats” against officials like Anthony Fauci and a survey where nearly a third of public-health workers reported facing workplace violence.
2. Target 16.6: Develop effective, accountable and transparent institutions at all levels.
   • The article portrays the CDC as an institution being systematically weakened and made less effective. It mentions political leaders maligning the agency, accusing it of “data manipulation,” purging advisory committees, and making it a target of public hatred. The “sluggish response” from leadership after the attack also points to a breakdown in accountability.
3. Target 16.7: Ensure responsive, inclusive, participatory and representative decision-making at all levels.
   • The article describes how decision-making is being undermined. The health secretary, an “anti-vaccine activist,” purged the committee that advises the CDC on vaccine recommendations, replacing a participatory, scientific process with politically motivated decisions.

SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth

1. Target 8.8: Protect labour rights and promote safe and secure working environments for all workers.
   • The article provides extensive evidence of an unsafe working environment for CDC employees. This includes the gunfire attack, employees “barricaded in offices,” the need to remove parking decals for safety, and the statistic that “Nearly a third of state, local, and tribal public-health workers reported facing some sort of workplace violence.”

Indicators for Measuring Progress

SDG 3: Good Health and Well-being

• Implied Indicator: Public funding for health risk management. The article mentions the administration “proposed halving its budget” and canceled “nearly $500 million in federally funded research,” which are negative indicators for this target.
• Implied Indicator: Number of public health personnel. The article cites “massive layoffs” at the CDC, indicating a reduction in capacity.

SDG 16: Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions

• Mentioned Indicator: Proportion of the population subjected to physical, psychological or sexual violence. The article provides a specific statistic that serves as a direct indicator: “Nearly a third of state, local, and tribal public-health workers reported facing some sort of workplace violence in a 2021 survey.”
• Implied Indicator: Number of deaths due to intentional homicide. The article reports the death of a police officer and the shooter during the attack.
• Implied Indicator: Public trust in institutions. The article describes how political leaders have “maligned the CDC” and fanned “the flames of hatred,” implying a deliberate effort to erode public trust, a negative indicator of institutional strength.

SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth

• Mentioned Indicator: Frequency of fatal and non-fatal occupational injuries (specifically from violence). The article’s main subject is a violent attack on a workplace, and it cites a survey where nearly one-third of public health workers reported workplace violence, serving as a direct measure of an unsafe environment.
• Implied Indicator: Employee perception of workplace safety. This is implied through descriptions of employees feeling terrified, hiding in offices, and taking measures like removing parking decals from their cars out of fear.

SDGs, Targets, and Indicators Analysis

Source: theatlantic.com