Dr. Anthony Fauci To Leave In December After 5 Decades Of Federal Service

Dr. Anthony Fauci, who serves as chief medical adviser to President Joe Biden, has announced that he will step down in December after more than five decades of service in the federal government.

Dr. Fauci will also resign as the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and chief of the NIAID Laboratory of Immunoregulation.

The 81 year-old immunology expert has served under seven Presidents during his career, beginning with Ronald Reagan. He was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2008 by President George W. Bush for his work on the AIDS relief program PEPFAR.

For almost four decades, he has served as Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, helping the country navigate health crises ranging from HIV/AIDS, Zika, Ebola to Covid-19.

One of the first challenges that Biden had to face as President-elect was to tackle the pandemic. When it came time to build a team to lead the incoming administration’s Covid-19 response, Biden immediately asked Dr. Fauci to extend his service as his Chief Medical Advisor to deal with the health crisis.

“In that role, I’ve been able to call him at any hour of the day for his advice as we’ve tackled this once-in-a-generation pandemic,” Biden said in a statement of gratitude to Dr. Fauci.

“His commitment to the work is unwavering, and he does it with an unparalleled spirit, energy, and scientific integrity,” Biden said.

He described Fauci as “a dedicated public servant, and a steady hand with wisdom and insight honed over decades at the forefront of some of our most dangerous and challenging public health crises”.

“Because of Dr. Fauci’s many contributions to public health, lives here in the United States and around the world have been saved. The United States of America is stronger, more resilient, and healthier because of him,” the statement says.

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