Dr. Raj Panjabi is the latest global health leader to take charge of a White House National Security Council position that was eliminated by former U.S. President Donald Trump and then reinstated by President Joe Biden.
Panjabi moved to the White House from the U.S. Agency for International Development, where he was the U.S. global malaria coordinator, overseeing the President’s Malaria Initiative. His appointment comes at a pivotal moment for the government’s global response to COVID-19 — and its longer-term approach to pandemic preparedness and global health security.
USAID and other agencies are in the midst of a shift from pushing COVID-19 vaccinations out the door to working with country governments and other partners to overcome the barriers preventing people from getting vaccinated. That means taking a broader view of the health system components that enable countries to respond to disease outbreaks and other health threats.