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Craig Spencer MD MPH Profile picture
Craig Spencer MD MPH
@Craig_A_Spencer
ER Doctor | Ebola Survivor | Public Health & Humanitarian Response | Historical Determinants of Public Health @Brown_SPH | Member @CFR_org | Emmy Award Winner🏆
80 subscribers
Sep 22 • 11 tweets • 1 min read
I’m absolutely speechless. Like, wow.

This is the worst ‘health’ press conference I maybe have ever seen

And I watched every one during Covid

How are we doing this again??? How can you be so wrong on so many things in such a short period of time
Aug 6 • 11 tweets • 3 min read
Setting aside the MANY scientific inaccuracies he stated to justify the termination of mRNA research...

And recognizing there's already been a lot said on this really horrible decision...

I want to add something here, namely, that RFK Jr is making a really dangerous gamble 🧵 The termination of $500 million in mRNA contracts is an absolutely bone-headed move.

We will be much less prepared for the next health crisis.

There is absolutely no debating that.

Especially piled on the revocation in May of a big contract to develop a bird flu vaccine.
Jun 26 • 10 tweets • 3 min read
Everyone’s saying cutting GAVI funding means more diseases will come to the U.S.—and that's true.

Others are pointing out a LOT of kids will die—also true!

But everyone’s missing the most important part of this video—this is RKF Jr taking his anti-vaccination crusade global 🧵 For the record, GAVI has been incredible.

Co-founded by the US back in 2000, GAVI has saved MILLIONS of lives around the world

All by making vaccines to kids—to date, they've vaccinated over a billion children.

I go deeper into GAVI here 👇

Jun 10 • 13 tweets • 4 min read
I was seeing patients in the ER when I got a text from a friend

"How bad is this thing about RFK Jr removing ALL 17 experts from a CDC vaccine advisory committee?"

Theres been a lot of hot takes on here already

But heres why this makes me worry, from a clinical perspective 🧵 For background, if you haven't heard yet:

There are 17 members of an advisory committee on immunization practices at the CDC. It's called ACIP.

It's made up of brilliant volunteers who review reams of data and make recommendations on vaccines.

They all got booted today.

hhs.gov/press-room/hhs…
May 30 • 15 tweets • 4 min read
There were disturbing developments this week that will undoubtedly affect your health.

But most people didn't notice, because they weren't so splashy, or may not seem like a big deal.

But I want to talk to you about each of them, why they matter, and why we should be worried: Earlier this week, RFK Jr stood alongside the FDA and NIH directors and announced a change in COVID vaccine recommendations...

On X. And only X.

No reports, no science, no reflection on the discussion or decision-making process behind this.

This is very concerning...
Apr 7 • 28 tweets • 9 min read
Today we learned the sad news another kid died from measles in Texas.

We also learned what RFK Jr. will and will not say

And we got a clearer glimpse of the playbook being used to discredit the proven measures to tackle measles outbreaks

Let me tell you why I'm worried 🧵 Image Let's start with what we know

The death announced today was in an 8 year old girl

The hospital reports she died of 'measles pulmonary failure'

They also report she was unvaccinated

And had no other health conditions

An absolute tragedy. And completely preventable. Image
Mar 26 • 17 tweets • 5 min read
The U.S. has actively dismantled the global disease-detection programs we all—including Americans—rely on to stay safe

Today this administration’s short-sighted global health agenda got even even worse

It’s ending its support for vaccine programs around the world

Why?? 🧵 Image With unnecessary haste, the Trump administration is pulling funding from GAVI.

GAVI is a massive force in global health.

Since starting in 2000, it has saved millions of lives around the world through vaccination

Gift link to @nytimes story by @snolen
nytimes.com/2025/03/26/hea…
Mar 12 • 5 tweets • 1 min read
I just watched the whole RFK Jr—Hannity interview where they discuss measles.

I don't know what to say.

I'm really just speechless.

Listening to health leadership bungle basic facts at best—and tell outright lies about long-settled science at worst—is just SO disappointing. No, the measles vaccine does NOT wane by 4.5% every year!

He's confusing the measles vaccine for the mumps vaccine, which does wane.

No, Vitamin A is NOT a cure-all, even if it CAN help.

The vaccine is BY FAR the safest way to stay safe.
Mar 3 • 7 tweets • 3 min read
The World Health Organization just released an update on the cluster of deaths in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

There's a lot in here, and I'll break it down below.

But the biggest takeaway?

We are SO lucky to have WHO doing this work...

who.int/emergencies/di… This cluster was first detected in early February in the northwestern part of DR Congo.

So far 55 deaths have been reported.

The deaths were quick—many reported in 24 hrs after symptom onset.

Ebola and Marburg testing was negative Image
Feb 26 • 6 tweets • 2 min read
Make a huge mistake. Then make a false claim about how you fixed it.

They did it for PEPFAR.

Now Ebola.

I follow this particular topic VERY closely, so here's what really happened and why this isn't true AT ALL...🧵 On January 29, Uganda reported an Ebola outbreak.

Normally the U.S. would've very quickly sent one of our Ebola experts to help the response.

But this time, we didn't.

Because we couldn't.

Because this administration wouldn't let them go right when this outbreak was declared.
Feb 16 • 8 tweets • 2 min read
There was an ‘Ebola scare’ in NYC.

Or, at least there was on social media.

Viral posts manufactured a lot of things that just weren’t true.

NYC health commissioner already debunking this misinformation.

BUT this event DOES highlight something that is really important… 🧵 Image In ‘normal’ times—that is, before we slashed USAID and CDC—we would’ve had a lot of boots on the ground responding to the Ebola outbreak in Uganda and the Marburg outbreak in Tanzania.

Guess what, now we don’t.

Because with the new Trump admin restrictions, we couldn’t.
Dec 22, 2024 • 6 tweets • 2 min read
It’s being reported that the Trump administration plans to withdraw from the World Health Organization on day one.

This is not a huge surprise.

But it IS an absolutely stupid and self-defeating move.

And I say this as a longtime critic of the WHO…🧵 The first time the Trump administration tried to withdraw from the WHO back in 2020, I wrote for @USATODAY what we needed to do was build up, not tear down, the WHO.

Despite its faults, the WHO plays a huge role as ‘our eyes and ears around the world.’

usatoday.com/story/opinion/…
Dec 19, 2024 • 6 tweets • 2 min read
Hey @elonmusk, that’s not ‘bioweapon labs’

I’m (unfortunately) very uniquely qualified to tell you why this is important. And why you’re very wrong here.

I assure you, with 100% certainty, that cutting this is pure stupidity

(Also, did you read a few more lines to Sec 2315c?) For anyone paying attention (is anyone still actually even here??)…

THIS 👆👆👆 is exactly how overconfidence mixed with a stunning lack of expertise and stubborn unwillingness to listen to people who actually know what they’re talking about will directly put you at risk.
Dec 6, 2024 • 11 tweets • 3 min read
"What's happening with this mystery illness in the Congo"

I've gotten this text dozens of times in the past few days.

Here's what we know. What we don't.

And what really matters 🧵 Image Since the end of October, there have been just under 400 cases of an 'unidentified' illness in the Kwango Province of Southwest DR Congo.

And 79 reported deaths.

Symptoms include "fever, headache, coughing, breathing difficulty, and anemia".

Kids under 5 appear most affected. Image
Nov 12, 2024 • 15 tweets • 4 min read
10 years ago today I walked out of the hospital after surviving Ebola.

Back then I begged the world to strengthen our response to that crisis and prepare for others.

I’ve been reflecting on what we’ve learned over the last decade.

And the role of the U.S. in global health🧵 Image The international response to Ebola in 2014 was way too slow and weak.

Too many people died because we didn’t have the experience, coordination or willpower to address the crisis quickly and head on.

In the aftermath, we focused on lessons learned. We made changes.
Sep 30, 2024 • 15 tweets • 5 min read
As news of the Marburg cases in Rwanda spreads, I want to share some thoughts on where the outbreak stands, what will likely come next, and why this outbreak may (hopefully) end up being unlike other viral hemorrhagic fever outbreaks in the past 🧵 For those just tuning in, Marburg is a viral hemorrhagic fever, very similar to Ebola.

This is the 18th Marburg outbreak since 1967.

Most outbreaks fizzle out fast. This one, despite being just announced days ago, is already among the largest.

May 22, 2024 • 13 tweets • 4 min read
I teach a class on the history of humanitarian response.

We talk about how a field full of dead soldiers in 1859 in Solferino led to the ICRC, Geneva Conventions, & international humanitarian law.

Every year, my students always ask “the ICC seems useless, why do we need it?” 🧵 In the aftermath of World War II, the Nuremberg Trials was the first international war crimes tribunal.

I think we can all agree that prosecuting those responsible for the atrocities of the Holocaust was an important endeavor.

There were calls for a more permanent tribunal…

cfr.org/backgrounder/r…
May 12, 2024 • 12 tweets • 2 min read
I can’t stop thinking of a baby girl I treated, just minutes after grenade shrapnel tore through her brain…🧵 I was in Burundi working as a trauma doctor in 2016.

Civil conflict enveloped the country. I was training local physicians to treat and stabilize life-threatening injuries.

Most of our patients had gunshot wounds

or had been pierced by grenade shrapnel

Sometimes both.
Mar 31, 2024 • 9 tweets • 2 min read
Four years ago today, I walked into the apocalypse.

Crossing the line in the ER felt like entering a whole other world.

Frenetic alarms.

Patients strewn about, struggling to breathe.

Too few staff. Too many deaths.

Covid was everything.

It had completely taken over our ER Covid inundated NYC a week prior.

And many of our staff fell ill.

Especially the nurses.

We had only a fraction of those we needed.

Too few to notice when the oxygen tanks under patients’ beds ran out.

So we did something kinda insane.

Actually unbelievable
Mar 20, 2024 • 52 tweets • 23 min read
How much do you know about food and drug safety?

Where did our current regulations come from?

And what were some of the greatest scandals that forced change?

We covered everything from swill milk, patent medicines, and thalidomide in our class today.

Here's what we covered 🧵 Image We started with smill milk.

This was a massive problem that few—including in public health—have ever heard of.

In New York (and elsewhere) in the mid-19th century, milk was a big part of the daily diet, especially for children.

But people didn't realize how deadly it was.
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Mar 14, 2024 • 44 tweets • 15 min read
Hey my medicine and public health people!

How much do you know about eugenics?

Just old pseudoscience, you say?

Any idea how much it continues to influence us?

Answer: A LOT.

I taught a class on the history of eugenics and public health today. Here's what we covered: 🧵 Image Eugenics is Greek for 'well-born'. But it wasn't coined by the Greeks. It's a late 19th century term made up by Francis Galton. He LOVED data. We will come back to that.

Eugenics had the biggest impact on the approach to mental illness, immigration, and reproductive justice. Image