Dr. Julie Gerberding’s controversial tenure as director of the Atlanta-based Centers for Disease Control and Prevention could end as early as January, as a new Obama administration puts its stamp on federal agencies, several public health experts said.

During Gerberding’s six years at the CDC, critics lambasted her for sacrificing science for politics — for carrying the Bush agenda on global warming and other issues into the world of scientific research.

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Lauren Victoria Burke/STR

Center for Disease Control Director Julie Gerberding could be out of a job when the Obama administration takes control.

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Her defenders counter that she expanded the mission of the agency to include bioterrorism research, combating AIDS globally and responding to national health threats.

But fans and detractors alike say her leaving would not be a surprise.

Gerberding, an infectious disease expert, was appointed CDC director in 2002 under the Bush administration. She has led the CDC — the country’s premier public health lab — into the post-9/11 world.

But along the way, her reorganization of the center’s staff, her edited testimony before a congressional hearing and the removal of a few respected CDC leaders have created a firestorm of criticism.

“I am very certain that the new administration will look for a new director of the CDC and will not keep Dr. Gerberding in that role,” said Dr. Nils Daulaire, president of the Global Health Council, a Washington-based organization of several thousand health professionals and groups.

President-elect Barack Obama is quickly changing the guard, having announced several new members of the Cabinet in recent days. On Wednesday, Obama chose former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle as secretary of health and human services. The secretary appoints the CDC director.

Obama transition officials declined to comment on the CDC post, though transition team members have visited the CDC, federal officials said.

Even if Gerberding is replaced, her supporters say that may be no reflection on her performance, that new leaders often want to bring in their own players.

And the director’s departure is by no means a foregone conclusion, said Debra Lappin, a health consultant on the advisory board to the CDC director. Gerberding could provide continuity for the new administration, she said.

“Her commitment to science cuts across the aisle,” she said.

Gerberding’s perceived alignment with the Bush administration, however, could work against her remaining in the job, said Russ Toal, a distinguished fellow in health policy at Georgia State University.

The Bush administration “was an extremely political administration that reached down into the lower levels of government,” Toal said.

Gerberding was criticized last year after allegations emerged that she allowed the White House to censor her congressional testimony on climate change. A deleted section included, “Catastrophic weather events such as heat waves and hurricanes are expected to become more frequent, severe and costly.”

Gerberding said at the time that the White House review process was customary, and she said she spoke openly and without constraint.

Dr. David Sencer, who led the CDC from 1966 to 1977, believes Gerberding would find it difficult to adapt to a new administration.

He has raised objections about the direction of the agency.

“Sometimes CDC was putting politics ahead of science,” he said.

Sencer was among five former CDC directors who wrote to Gerberding in 2006 to express concern that her reorganization of the agency prompted morale problems and an exodus of key leaders and scientists.

Gerberding responded that some morale issues were expected during the reorganization, and she stressed that the agency continued to perform well through the transition.

In July of this year, Gerberding came under

fire from business leaders, labor unions and lawmakers who alleged that she played politics by refusing to reappoint the respected leader of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health.

Gerberding responded that the agency was taking a new direction to enhance occupational health.

Gerberding, 53, lives in Atlanta with her husband, David Rose, who is a software engineer.

She is also a clinical professor of medicine at Emory University.

Asked whether she would like to remain in the CDC post, Gerberding issued a statement Thursday saying, “CDC is at the forefront when it comes to protecting our nation’s health, and I want to do everything in my power, in whatever capacity, to champion the agency’s cause.”

Her supporters hope she will remain in the position.

“I personally think she’s been a can-do person. … She did difficult things at difficult times,” said U.S. Sen. Johnny Isakson (R-Ga.).

Isakson praised her leadership during the anthrax attacks, the agency’s commitment to battling AIDS and its progress on building new labs.

Still, Isakson said, he would not be surprised if the Obama administration replaced her.