Scientists mobilize to save health databases as Trump administration wipes some information

By Asiye Latife Yilmaz

ISTANBUL (AA) – US scientists and researchers are working to preserve federal health databases, fighting back against the Trump administration's removal of some public health and demographic information.

Key data on vaccines, veterans’ care, and research has been taken down since President Donald Trump took office last month, disrupting access for doctors and researchers. Some government websites have lost entire sections, while others are only missing a few pages.

Niema Moshiri and Angela Rasmussen are among many researchers in the US and worldwide racing to capture data from US federal websites before it is altered or lost, according to an article in the journal Nature.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) website says it is "being modified to comply with President Trump's Executive Orders."

Moshiri says he has backups on his hard drive of the CDC website, and its data sets, along with the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) and other government sites. Some he downloaded himself, while others were shared online by others.

Cynthia Cox, a health systems researcher in Washington, DC, and her team of data analysts said they worked late into the night downloading survey data sets they had not yet saved but might need.

Stating that these surveys are essential for tracking public health issues, from obesity to breast cancer screening, Cox said: "Without these surveys, we as a nation would not be able to respond to significant public health issues."

Some of the webpages were removed to eliminate references to diversity, equity, and inclusiveness (DEI) initiatives in government, as well as efforts to fight the climate change crisis, both of which Trump has heavily criticized, while other pages have reportedly been eliminated for containing terms seemingly relevant to both subjects.