PHS Proud Blog — CDC
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Was Started by U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps Officers
On July 1st, 1946, what is now known as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) officially opened in Atlanta, GA. What many may not know is that the CDC was started by medical officers of one of our country's uniformed services: the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps (USPHS). It was birthed from WWII and is considered by some to be the largest institutional legacy from the war.The CDC's original name in 1946 was the "Communicable Disease Center;" however, much before that the CDC was spawned from something called the Malaria Control in War Areas (MCWA) program administered...