Episode 62 – The COVID-19 Pandemic and the Current State of Public Health in the US with Dr Rochelle Walensky (December 2, 2025)

In episode 62 of Going anti-Viral, Dr Rochelle Walensky joins host Dr Michael Saag on World AIDS Day 2025 to discuss her experience as the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) during the COVID-19 pandemic and the current state of public health in the United States. Dr Walensky is a Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School and has published over 300 research articles that have motivated changes to US HIV testing and immigration policy and promoted expanded funding for HIV-related research, treatment, and the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR). Dr Walensky reflects on her experience during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic in Massachusetts where she was the Chief of the Division of Infectious Diseases at Massachusetts General Hospital. Dr Saag and Dr Walensky then discuss her transition to the Director of the CDC and her management of the agency during the pandemic. Dr Walensky and Dr Saag emphasize the dedication of public health professionals and the need for continued support and understanding of the challenges they face. They discuss the risk of proposed budget cuts to the CDC and the impacts this will have on the agency as well as state and local public health departments. Finally, they discuss the future of public health and their shared optimism for public health over the long-term.