Thomas J. Bollyky

Thomas J. Bollyky is director of the Global Health program and senior fellow for global health, economics, and development at the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR). He is also an adjunct professor of law at Georgetown University. Bollyky is also the author of the book Plagues and the Paradox of Progress: Why the World Is Getting Healthier in Worrisome Ways.  

A patient suffering from COVID-19 and diabetes, is pictured inside a capsule as Red Cross paramedics transfer him from a hospital to another in Mexico City, Mexico, on June 8, 2020
Governance

Noncommunicable Diseases Kill Slowly in Normal Times and Quickly in COVID-19 Times

by Thomas J. Bollyky, Serena Tohme, Samantha Kiernan

Why addressing chronic diseases is crucial for future pandemic preparedness

Placard reads "We want vaccines, there is nothing more to talk about"
Governance

Wanted: One Billion Booster Shots

by Samantha Kiernan, Bayan Galal, Thomas J. Bollyky

What the COVID-19 booster shot debate means for global vaccine access

A man stands in front of a burning barricade during a protest against the assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moise in Cap-Haitien, Haiti on July 22, 2021.
Governance

Pandemic Protests: When Unrest and Instability Go Viral

by Samantha Kiernan, Bayan Galal, Serena Tohme, Thomas J. Bollyky

Ensuring health security is essential for maintaining national security

Municipal health workers travel on a boat along the Solimoes river banks to administer the Oxford-AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine in Manacapuru, Amazonas state, Brazil on February 1, 2021.
Governance

The Middle-Income Nation Squeeze

by Samantha Kiernan, Priyanka Sethy, Kailey Shanks, Thomas J. Bollyky

Equity and the global COVID-19 vaccine rollout

A general view of Alemao slums complex during the coronavirus disease outbreak in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on March 22, 2020.
Urbanization

Where the Sidewalk Ends

by Thomas J. Bollyky, Samantha Kiernan

The implications of COVID-19 for urban health

Dr. Ronni Gamzu is vaccinated against coronavirus as Israel kicks off its vaccination campaign, at Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center (Ichilov Hospital) in Tel Aviv, Israel on December 20, 2020.
Governance

Inside Israel's Vaccination Campaign

Interview with former Israeli coronavirus czar Dr. Ronni Gamzu on Israel's pandemic response

Workers wipe down doors at a train station during the coronavirus disease outbreak in Singapore on August 17, 2020.
Governance

Does Healthier Mean Wealthier? Measuring Countries' Economic Performance During the Pandemic

by Thomas J. Bollyky, Sawyer Crosby, Joseph L. Dieleman, Samantha Kiernan

An effective government response to COVID-19 doesn't necessarily correlate with economic gain

Minneapolis City Council Vice President Andrea Jenkins, who gave this interview. The photo shows the council vice president standing in front of a slate-colored brick wall with her hands together looking at the camera. IMAGE from Brooke Ross Photography
Governance

Racism as a Public Health Crisis

Interview with Minneapolis City Council Vice President Andrea Jenkins on the intersection of race, health, and COVID-19

A player checks his cards during the finals of the Russian Masters Poker Cup at the Azov-City, Russia, gambling zone, south of Russia's southern city of Rostov-on-Don, on September 23, 2010. Photo shows a pair of hands holding up the corners of two cards to reveal a pair of aces. A large stack of chips is in the background. REUTERS/Vladimir Konstantinov
Governance

All Bets Are Off for Measuring Pandemic Preparedness

by Sawyer Crosby, Joseph L. Dieleman, Samantha Kiernan, Thomas J. Bollyky

Three standard measures don't predict how countries fare in COVID-19—so how do we better prepare for the next pandemic?

Taoyuan health worker Wang Tsui-lien rides a scooter to deliver care packages and to check on people who have been ordered to be under self-quarantine, in Taoyuan, Taiwan, on March 25, 2020. Photo shows a motorcycle on an abandoned street in an urban setting. REUTERS/Ann Wang
Governance

Taiwan's Response to COVID-19 and the WHO

An interview with Taiwanese Minister of Foreign Affairs Jaushieh Joseph Wu on Taiwan's response to COVID-19 and the WHO

A general view shows buildings in Beirut during Lebanon's countrywide lockdown to combat the spread of coronavirus on April 1, 2020. Picture shows a view of a section of city filling the fame with buildings but very few people apparent on the streets. REUTERS/Mohamed Azakir
Governance

Coronavirus in Lebanon

Interview with Walid Ammar, head of Lebanon's Ministry of Public Health, on testing, funding, and the threat to refugees

The graph shows cumulative confirmed cases of COVID-19 over time for all countries with confirmed cases as of April 6. The x-axis show days since the first travel restrictions were implemented. For all travel restriction imposing countries, data has been indexed to start from their respective day zero of travel restriction implementation. CFR/Samantha Kiernan
Governance

Tracking Coronavirus in Countries With and Without Travel Bans

by Samantha Kiernan, Madeleine DeVita, Thomas J. Bollyky

Travel restrictions have neither stopped the spread of this novel coronavirus nor prevented it from becoming a pandemic