As a top federal health official, Dr. Nirav Shah said he witnessed how the transition to the Trump administration resulted in what he described as attacks on the nation’s public health systems.

The former director of the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention was hired by the Biden administration in 2023 to serve as principal deputy director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and stayed on for about six weeks this year to help during the transition to the Trump administration.

In a wide-ranging interview on Friday, during which he announced he is considering a run for Maine governor in 2026 as a Democrat, Shah expressed concerns about the future of public health in the U.S.

Shah, who led the Maine CDC during the coronavirus pandemic, is not alone in criticizing the Trump administration’s approach to public health. Numerous public health experts in the U.S., including in Maine, have decried the dismantling of everything from how the annual flu shot is approved to cuts in prevention programs and vaccine research.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the health and human services secretary, has defended the administration’s choices on numerous occasions.

“Let me be absolutely clear. HHS supports safe, effective vaccines for every American who wants them,” Kennedy said in July, when defending a controversial decision to cut funding for future research of mRNA vaccines. “That’s why we are moving beyond the limitations of mRNA vaccines for respiratory viruses and investing in better solutions.”

Shah said Kennedy has displayed a “general incuriosity on the substance” of major public health issues, such as the measles outbreak that started in Texas. As of Aug. 5, the U.S. CDC has confirmed 1,357 cases of measles in 41 states, although none in Maine.

Shah said Kennedy showed a “reluctance to give a full-throated endorsement of the measles vaccine.”

Dr. Laura Blaisdell, a Portland pediatrician and infectious disease expert, said Kennedy’s decision to cancel $500 million in future research into the mRNA vaccines, the same technology used for the COVID-19 vaccines, is a “naive and dangerous decision.”

“We’re not even five years out from a pandemic that paralyzed every aspect of society, and it wasn’t until we had this vaccine that we were able to move toward normalcy,” Blaisdell said.

Matt Wellington, associate director of the Maine Public Health Association said what’s happened since the Trump administration took over is “overwhelmingly harmful to public health.”

“We are seeing a full-scale teardown of the public health infrastructure,” Wellington said.

Prior to joining the Trump administration, Kennedy was known for being a vaccine critic who promoted false and debunked theories about vaccine safety and efficacy. Shah said Kennedy has surrounded himself with vaccine skeptics at the federal health agency.

Shah criticized Kennedy’s focus on dyes and food additives, saying “MAHA (Make America Healthy Again) is not science. It’s basically just vibes.”

Shah returned to Maine this year. He has said he always intended to return to the state after his federal service ended and is now a visiting professor for Colby College in Waterville.

Wellington said the Trump administration’s cuts to public health and the freeze funding have led to uncertainty among the nonprofit groups that often run prevention programs. They delay hiring because they don’t know if they’ll get federal funding even after grants have been approved.

“The Trump administration is tearing out core parts of public health, freezing funding, and paralyzing decisions that would be made by public health officials across the country,” Wellington said. “This is going to make us less healthy and less safe.”