Rochelle Walensky, who led the CDC during the pandemic, resigns
Dr. Rochelle Walensky is stepping down as director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, citing the nation's progress in coping with COVID-19.
Walensky announced the move on the same day the World Health Organization declared that, for the first time since Jan. 30, 2020, COVID-19 is no longer a global public health emergency.
"I have never been prouder of anything I have done in my professional career," Walensky wrote in a letter to President Biden. "My tenure at CDC will remain forever the most cherished time I have spent doing hard, necessary, and impactful work."
Walensky, 54, will officially leave her office on June 30.
Biden selected Walensky to lead the CDC only a month after winning the 2020 presidential election. At the time, Walensky, an infectious disease physician, was teaching at Harvard Medical School and working at hospitals in Boston.
In response to Walensky's resignation, Biden credited her with saving American lives and praised her honesty and integrity.
"She marshalled our finest scientists and public health experts to turn the tide on the urgent crises we've faced," the president said.
On Thursday, the CDC reported that in 2022, COVID-19 was the fourth-leading cause of death in the U.S., behind heart disease, cancer, and unintentional injuries, according to provisional data. [Copyright 2023 NPR]
