There has been a lot of talk about the Center for Disease Control’s (CDC) role in the ebola scare. Some of it is accurate, but some is completely misdirected.
First things first…CDC director Dr. Tom Frieden should be fired. The CDC is, by definition, a crisis management organization. His job is to ensure that clear, consistent responses are in place when there is a direct threat to the health of Americans. He has been slow to react, evasive, and inconsistent. But the problem goes much deeper than Frieden.
A recent story in the National Review (www.nationalreview.com/article/390254/cdcs-laughable-pet-projects-brendan-bordelon) shed light on budget realities in the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the CDC. The NIH’s inflation-adjusted budget more than doubled between 1996 and 2005, but many of its expenditures were less than essential. For example, the NIH spent $1.7 million on a Hollywood liaison to ensure the accuracy of medical portrayals on TV shows, over $5 million for a gay-porn website to provide HIV information, and $1 million on a study of sexual proclivities of fruit flies. The CDC recently spent $110 million on its new headquarters, including $10 million in furniture alone.
Republicans have rushed to criticize the President for proposing cuts in the CDC budget. This is true, but not relevant. The problem is not necessarily the size of the budget, but how it is being allocated. Precisely how much money does the CDC need to fulfill its mission? If a higher CDC budget could prevent the spread of ebola, then more spending on anti-poverty, education, and fill-in-the-blank could have the same positive effects. History has shown us that more government spending is rarely the best way to solve a problem, but Democrats—and in this instance Republicans—continue to tell us otherwise.
Leftists often criticize the private sector and those who claim “government should be run like a business.” In the private sector, it is assumed that failed organizations were not run properly in the first place. They are either directed to change course—new leaders, new strategies, new structures, new ideas—or they go under. They only get additional resources if investors can be convinced that doing so would generate a profit. However, failed government entities like the CDC are often excused because of “tight budgets.” Bang-for-the-buck is rarely discussed. This type of thinking explains the current $18 trillion national debt.
The CDC is relevant and should not be dissolved, but it should—like all other government organizations—be run both effectively (doing the right things) and efficiently (getting the most out of limited resources). It has failed in both regards and the answer begins with new leadership.
If you don’t run government like a business, then how do you run it?
I am a physician and you are spot on. It’s the CDC’s job to be prepared for a pandemic and we’ve known about ebola for some time. Frieden means well but isn’t an effective manager. His entire agency has been over-politicized.
the cdc got $6 billion this year. isn’t that enough to get the job done?
There is little accountability in agencies like the CDC, or IRS for that matter. You have to really screw up to get fired. Usually you get a paid leave of absence and top rate legal counsel, paid by the tax payer of course. I don’t know how it can be changed. There are so many with hands in the cookie jar. I was in DC recently and the town is absolutely thriving. A few million $$ here and few million $$ there is not even noticed, but add them all up and you get trillions in debt and people living very well if you are inside the beltway.