April 28, 2018
We all know how upset some folks get at the idea that people get food stamps from the government. So let’s get some of the righteous outrage directed at Robert R. Redfield, Trump’s pick to be the new head of the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
According to an NYT article, Dr. Redfield will earn $375,000 a year in this post. According to the article, Redfield is able to get this high pay through a loophole that allows the government to pay more money to people who are uniquely qualified for their position. Redfield’s predecessor earned $197,300. It seems difficult to argue that Redfield is uniquely qualified for this position since he has no experience running a large bureaucracy and limited background in public health.
If people would like some context for this overpayment, the average annual benefit for a food stamp beneficiary is $1,512. This means that the overpayment to Redfield (compared to his predecessor’s pay) is equivalent to 110 years of a typical beneficiary’s food stamps.
Note: An earlier version had incorrectly identified the director of CDC as “Dr. Redford.”
Comments