“Calls for DOJ Investigation After COVID Recordkeeping Lapses”
A senior official at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is under scrutiny following concerns raised by Senator Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) regarding missing federal records related to COVID-19 vaccine safety.
Dr. Tom Shimabukuro, who leads the CDC’s Immunization Safety Office, has been named in a letter from Sen. Johnson alleging potential mishandling or deletion of official records. The letter, sent Wednesday to Attorney General Pam Bondi, FBI Director Kash Patel, and the acting Inspector General of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Juliet Hodgkins, asserts that HHS officials are unable to locate Dr. Shimabukuro’s email records, which were requested as part of a broader congressional investigation.
“HHS officials recently informed me that Dr. Shimabukuro’s records remain lost and, potentially, removed from HHS’s email system altogether,” Johnson wrote.
The inquiry is part of an ongoing effort by Johnson’s office to obtain information on internal communications and safety assessments related to the development and distribution of COVID-19 vaccines. In November 2023, the senator formally requested that HHS, the CDC, and the Food and Drug Administration preserve all records relating to vaccine safety and efficacy. In January, as chair of the Senate’s Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, Johnson issued a subpoena for related records, which reportedly led to the discovery of discrepancies in Shimabukuro’s email documentation.
It remains unclear which specific records are missing or how they were potentially lost. However, an aide to Johnson indicated that the missing information falls under Shimabukuro’s purview and should exist under federal recordkeeping laws.
Under the Federal Records Act, federal employees are required to preserve any materials made or received in the course of official business. Violations of these requirements can carry serious legal consequences, including charges of contempt of Congress if obstructive conduct is confirmed. Contempt carries potential penalties of up to 12 months in prison and a significant monetary fine.
Johnson has called for an investigation by the FBI, the Department of Justice, and the HHS Inspector General to determine whether Shimabukuro or any other federal official intentionally deleted or destroyed official records. The senator has also asked whether any effort was made to evade Congressional oversight or Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) obligations.
These developments follow related concerns about Dr. David Morens, a senior adviser at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), who previously admitted to limited email retention during the pandemic. In 2023, Johnson revealed communications in which Morens suggested using personal email addresses for official correspondence and inquired with NIH’s FOIA office about avoiding document requests.
“I had always suspected that Dr. Morens was not the sole evader of federal recordkeeping requirements at HHS,” Johnson said in the letter. “The extent to which HHS officials systemically mishandled, deleted, or destroyed their communications, data, and other information relating to the COVID-19 pandemic and the vaccines must be thoroughly investigated.”
The CDC, HHS, and Dr. Shimabukuro have been contacted for comment, but had not responded as of publication.
Source article originally posted here: https://nypost.com/2025/04/10/us-news/govt-doctor-monitoring-bad-covid-19-vaccine-reactions-may-have-deleted-files-sen-ron-johnson/