Dear HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr; Senate Health Committee Chair Dr. Bill Cassidy; Senate Health Committee Ranking Member Bernie Sanders; House Health Subcommittee Chair Buddy Carter; House Health Subcommittee Ranking Member Diana DeGette; and CDC Acting Director Dr. Susan Monarez;

We respectfully urge you to protect the future of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Epidemic Intelligence Service (EIS) program and Laboratory Leadership Service (LLS) program, our nation’s disease detectives who are on the front lines of protecting Americans’ health.

As a cornerstone of our nation’s public health infrastructure, the EIS has been on the front lines of investigating and responding to emerging health threats since its inception in 1951. EIS is a globally recognized program that has trained more than 4,000 fellows who have played crucial roles in countless responses including eradicating smallpox, investigating the causes of HIV/AIDS in 1981, providing disaster relief following 9/11 and Hurricane Katrina, responding to the anthrax bioterrorism threat in 2001, investigating e-cigarette/vaping associated lung injury, and serving on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic response in 2020.

The Laboratory Leadership Service (LLS) was founded in 2015 as a sister program to the EIS to provide complementary training to future public health laboratory leaders. The LLS plays a crucial role in strengthening our nation’s public health capacity. LLS fellows provide expertise in laboratory science, ensuring accurate disease detection, outbreak response, and biosafety. Their work complements that of EIS officers by integrating epidemiological investigation with advanced laboratory diagnostics.

Together, EIS and LLS fellows identify, track and respond to outbreaks and other public health emergencies.

In addition to outbreak response, the EIS/LLS program is also at the forefront of investigating chronic diseases. EIS officers design, implement, and evaluate surveillance systems to monitor conditions including diabetes, heart disease, substance abuse and cancer. They investigate patterns and work to identify causes of the diseases in order to inform public health interventions.

EIS & LLS fellows are deployed to respond to public health crises throughout the country and support local and state departments of health. Many EIS & LLS alumni have gone on to hold diverse leadership positions in health including within the CDC (including 4 former CDC Directors), state and city departments of health, private health industries, and nongovernmental organizations. These leaders continue to shape our nation's health policies, emergency response strategies, and multidisciplinary health efforts.

There are currently outbreaks of tuberculosis in the greater Kansas City area, measles in West Texas, and cases of H5N1 influenza (highly pathogenic avian influenza) being diagnosed in multiple states across the nation. Without EIS/LLS officers responding to these and future public health emergencies, these diseases threaten to continue to spread and harm our fellow Americans.

Without the EIS/LLS we risk compromising our ability to detect and control future pandemics and public health crises, which could have devastating consequences for our country. The continuation of these programs is not only essential for our national security, it will ensure that we are better prepared to handle emerging infectious diseases, chronic diseases, bioterrorism threats, and other public health crises.

The funding for this program has already been approved by Congress. We are asking that you protect this funded program to allow EIS/LLS to continue to safeguard American health. 

We ask for your ongoing commitment to protecting the health and well-being of the American people by ensuring the continued work of America’s frontline disease detectives, the CDC EIS/LLS fellowship program.