US President Donald Trump has appointed his longtime ally and Cleveland pastor Darrell Scott as a tobacco health adviser at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
The appointment comes despite Pastor Scott, senior pastor of New Spirit Revival Center Ministries Inc. in Cleveland Heights, Ohio, having no formal background in public health or tobacco control policy. Scott is also the CEO of WCCD Radio 1000 and previously served on the board of the National Diversity Coalition for Trump.
Announcing the decision on Truth Social, President Trump said: “I am pleased to announce that Pastor Darrell Scott, a longtime friend, respected Faith Leader, and tireless Advocate for America’s Underserved Communities, will be serving my Administration and me as an Advisor for tobacco health issues on the Advisory Committee to the Director (ACD) in the CDC.
“For far too long, tobacco-related disease has taken an enormous toll on American Families, including Communities that have too often been overlooked and underserved. Pastor Scott understands these Communities, and the challenges they face, and he knows how to bring people together to get RESULTS,” Trump added.
“Delivering on a Campaign promise, his work will help ensure that we take a serious look at how we can better protect Americans from dangerous tobacco products, while supporting solutions to reduce harm and SAVE LIVES. Pastor Darrell Scott has been with us from the very beginning. He is a GREAT LEADER with a tremendous heart for the people of our Country.”
While cigarette smoking rates among US adults have fallen to a historic low of 9.9 per cent, tobacco use remains the leading cause of preventable death in the US, accounting for more than 480,000 deaths annually.
The appointment follows recent changes within US public health policy, including the US Department of Health and Human Services dismantling key anti-smoking groups last year and the Food and Drug Administration authorising 11 new nicotine pouch products last month.
Health advocates have expressed growing concern over the administration's trajectory on tobacco policy. Dr. Tom Frieden, former CDC director under President Barack Obama and current president of public health initiative Resolve to Save Lives, warned that public health cuts were a “gift to Big Tobacco".
“The only winner here is the tobacco industry and cancer cells,” Frieden said.
Scott’s role on the advisory committee comes shortly after the US Senate confirmed Dr. Erica Schwartz as the new CDC director, filling a vacancy left after the agency's previous head was dismissed following a dispute over vaccine policy with Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
