STAT When reports circulated in February that the White House had selected biosecurity expert Gerald Parker as the head of its Office of Pandemic Preparedness and Response Policy, there was palpable relief among infectious disease experts.
As former commander of the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases, his reported appointment seemed to speak to both the seriousness of his portfolio and a recognition that global cooperation, as well as coordination among government agencies, would be essential in the event of another pandemic.