U.S. President Joe Biden selected Dr. Walensky to lead the agency in December. Dr. Walensky comes to CDC from Massachusetts General Hospital, where she served as Chief of the Division of Infectious Diseases from 2017 to 2020; and Harvard Medical School, where she served as Professor of Medicine from 2012 to2020. She served on the frontline of the COVID-19 pandemic and conducted research on vaccine delivery and strategies to reach underserved communities.
Dr. Walensky is an influential scholar whose pioneering research has helped advance the national and global response to HIV/AIDS. She is also a well-respected expert on the value of testing and treatment of deadly viruses. She is recognized internationally for her work to improve HIV screening and care in South Africa and nationally recognized for motivating health policy and informing clinical trial design and evaluation in a variety of settings.
She stated:
“It is truly a privilege to join the world’s premier public health agency. For 75 years, CDC has carried out a mission to protect America’s safety, health, and security at home and abroad.
I am proud to join this agency, and I recognize the seriousness of the moment. The toll that the COVID-19 pandemic has had on America is truly heart breaking — for the loss of our loved ones and our beloved ways of life. At Massachusetts General Hospital, I saw first-hand the many difficulties this pandemic brings to our frontline workers and first responders, hospitals and public health systems, communities, and loved ones.
Better, healthier days lie ahead. But to get there, COVID-19 testing, surveillance, and vaccination must accelerate rapidly. We must also confront the longstanding public health challenges of social and racial injustice and inequity that have demanded action for far too long. And we must make up for potentially lost ground in areas like suicide, substance use disorder and overdose, chronic diseases, and global health initiatives.
America and the world are counting on CDC’s science and leadership. Just as it has since the beginning of the pandemic, CDC will continue to focus on what is known — and what more can be learned — about the virus to guide America. As part of that promise, CDC’s Principal Deputy Director Anne Schuchat will begin leading a comprehensive review of all existing guidance related to COVID-19. Wherever needed, this guidance will be updated so that people can make decisions and take action based upon the best available evidence.
I am so proud to join CDC. Our 24/7 mission is truly more critical than ever.”
In other remarks, Walensky also said, “As a protective public health measure, I will extend the current order temporarily halting residential evictions until at least March 31, 2021. The COVID-19 pandemic has presented a historic threat to our nation’s health. It has also triggered a housing affordability crisis that disproportionately affects some communities.
Despite extensive mitigation efforts, COVID-19 continues to spread in America at a concerning pace. We must act to get cases down and keep people in their homes and out of congregate settings — like shelters — where COVID-19 can take an even stronger foothold.”
