Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren wrote a letter to HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. in search of extra details about what she referred to as the administration’s “calamitous” response to the cyclosporiasis outbreak and expressing concern that politics may very well be guilty.
“I write relating to the administration’s calamitous response to the most important outbreak of cyclosporiasis in U.S. historical past, and the extent to which the outbreak and botched response could also be the results of incompetence and corruption. As Secretary of the Division of Well being and Human Providers (HHS), you might be chargeable for overseeing the federal authorities’s response to this outbreak. But, the administration’s dealing with of this disaster has been marred by missteps that increase critical questions on its decision-making,” Warren wrote within the letter.
ABC Information has reached out to HHS for touch upon the letter.
Nationwide, there are actually a minimum of 24,000 circumstances of confirmed or suspected cyclosporiasis throughout 47 states, in response to the Facilities for Illness Management and Prevention. Two folks have died from the parasitic gastrointestinal sickness and a minimum of 740 folks have been hospitalized. Sometimes, there are about 3,000 circumstances in a given yr.
The Meals and Drug Administration has now traced nearly 10,000 circumstances to recalled iceberg lettuce from Taylor Farms throughout 17 states.
In her letter, Warren asserts that Taco Bell, the place a few of the tainted lettuce was traced, “offered earlier and seemingly clearer steerage to shoppers than the Meals and Drug Administration (FDA), CDC, and different federal meals security businesses.”
Sen. Elizabeth Warren speaks to U.S. Commerce Consultant Jamieson Greer as he seems at a Senate Finance Committee listening to, July 22, 2026.
Andrew Harnik/Getty Photos
Warren additionally famous that Taylor Farms made donations to political organizations aligned with President Trump final yr.
Federal Election Fee information present Taylor Recent Meals, Inc., the mum or dad firm of Taylor Farms, made a $1 million donation in March 2025 to MAGA Inc., a PAC aligned with Trump.
The letter additionally raises considerations that the White Home might have labored with Taylor Farms to delay warnings to the general public concerning the tainted meals provide. The letter factors to a Wall Road Journal report that Taylor Farms lobbyists engaged with the White Home to ask for extra time and extra proof earlier than federal businesses implicated the corporate within the outbreak.
A supply aware of the state of affairs instructed ABC Information the FDA contacted Taylor Farms on July 14 to request a name; the corporate indicated it wasn’t accessible till July 15. The supply mentioned Taylor Farms didn’t meet the established 24-hour timeline from the FDA to find out whether or not it will take voluntary motion. ABC Information has reached out to Taylor Farms for remark.
Taylor Farms introduced the voluntary recall of iceberg lettuce throughout a number of states on July 17. The corporate additionally mentioned it suspended manufacturing from that distributor.
Taylor Recent Meals, when requested by ABC Information for touch upon Warren’s letter, mentioned it “acts within the curiosity of science and shopper well being, not politics.”
“We categorically reject strategies that we tried to obtain or acquired favorable regulatory therapy as a consequence of political contributions or different improper affect. Any such allegations are false,” mentioned a spokesperson for Taylor Recent Meals.
“Taylor Recent Meals is a pioneer and business chief in traceability. We absolutely help and endorse the Meals Traceability Rule and have already applied traceback protocols throughout our operations forward of the compliance deadline,” the spokesperson added.
ABC Information has additionally reached out to the White Home for touch upon the letter.
On July 21, ABC’s Elizabeth Schulze requested Kennedy concerning the cyclosporiasis outbreak and whether or not the federal authorities had it beneath management.
“We do have the outbreak beneath management,” Kennedy responded. “Now we have an in depth forensics, epidemiological forensics, and we have recognized the supply of the outbreak. We and the businesses which are concerned have applied a recall.”
