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Amid recent political threats to evidence-based health policy, Greg Gonsalves, professor at the School of Public Health, launched Defend Public Health, a national coalition aimed at protecting science-based health programs and institutions. 

Defend public health includes over 3,000 public health professionals, scientists, clinicians, legal experts, students and advocates. According to Gonsalves, the group seeks to respond to growing political interference in public health infrastructure, including proposed cuts to Medicaid, changes to scientific leadership and shifts in federal research priorities. While the coalition is based at Yale, it includes members from across the country and is focused on broad issues ranging from vaccine policy, reproductive healthcare, biomedical research funding to health equity. 

“We’re all doing this on our own time, and the passion and commitment of so many people in the moment gives me hope,” Gonsalves wrote to the News.

Defend Public Health publishes and promotes op-eds and hosts tele-conferences with union leaders and representatives in order to raise awareness about the threats facing public health, among other initiatives. Additionally, they wrote an open letter opposing Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s nomination for Secretary of Health and Human Services.

Gonsalves hopes to work and collaborate with diverse groups, and encourages  students to get involved. This past Sunday, Defend Public Health’s student caucus held their first meeting, involving undergraduate and graduate students from around the country.

“I cannot think of a time in American history when the voice, skill and ingenuity of students was more needed,” Gonsalves said.

Caitlin Ryus, professor of Emergency Medicine at the School of Medicine, became involved with Defend Public Health in November. 

Ryus felt that her background with science research and clinical work would allow her to participate in the organization’s advocacy efforts. 

“We’re seeing public health infrastructure, which was built over decades, being threatened, whether that’s through funding cuts, politicized leadership changes or anti-science rhetoric,” Ryus said.

She believes it is important for experts to communicate clearly with the population about public health.

Clear communication, Ryus told the News, prevents trust from further being eroded and public health information from being misinterpreted.

“I think that’s one of the great things about Defend Public Health,” Ryus said. “They are trying to bring science out of the ivory tower, through op-eds, social media usage, and grassroots partnerships.”

Ryus also believes protecting public health is particularly important right now. During the COVID-19 pandemic, society relied on “well-funded and nimble scientific infrastructure.” Even now, these qualities are important in fighting seasonal viruses and facilitating research on vaccines and infectious disease treatment.

Ryus has been personally impacted by political attacks on science infrastructure. As a researcher, she relied on grants from the NIH, but had her funding cut. 

“One of the grants supporting my work, which was looking at mental health impacts of different types of homeless shelters, was just terminated less than a week ago,” Ryus said. “We were told it no longer aligned with NIH priorities. That sends a troubling message that research is being deprioritized for vulnerable communities.”

Defend Public Health has taken public stances against figures within the Trump administration.

Mindy Jane Roseman, director of International Law Programs and director of the Gruber Program for Global Justice and Women’s Rights at the Yale Law School, signed the open letter from Defend Public Health opposing Trump’s nomination of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. for Secretary of Health and Human Services. 

Roseman’s work focuses on how international human rights norms and laws improve health outcomes, particularly regarding sexual and reproductive health. While funding for her work does not depend on US government support directly, she is still concerned that the Trump administration wants to remove the voices of underrepresented patients from public health policy, including women and non-gender-conforming patients.

“One size does not fit all,” Roseman said. “It’s important to have diverse representation when doing any kind of health research, because each person’s lived experience really matters.”

By signing the open letter, Roseman hoped to demonstrate she is part of a community who is worried about public health policy. The letter was a “basic exercise of first-amendment rights,” she said, and participating in it is a “fundamental act of democracy.”

Roseman said she hoped the students and younger generations would be energized to stand up for what they believe in and to prevent the federal government from taking further destructive measures.

“Is voicing your dissent going to change policy?” Roseman asked. “We’ll see. But there have already been rollbacks and modifications to some Trump administration policies, and it is all because people have spoken up.”

As of April 14, 2025, Defend Public Health has 7.7k followers on Blue Sky.