U.S. Pandemic Preparedness Paused and the Pope's First 100 Days
August 8, 2025
Editors' Note
Autumn's approach heralds the migration of millions of birds across North America, and this year, public health experts will be monitoring for a resurgence of H5N1 avian flu.
Yet a string of summertime departures has emptied the White House's Office of Pandemic Preparedness and Response Policy (OPPR), leaving the Trump administration without a senior official for pandemic preparedness, biosecurity, or biodefense. That is the takeaway from Nikki Romanik, former special assistant to the president who also served as deputy director and chief of staff for the congressionally mandated office. She outlines the office's accomplishments and why the White House should restore the OPPR to protect Americans and the world.
Next, TGH features a pair of articles about the precise roles artificial intelligence (AI) could play in bolstering health systems and saving lives. Trinity College undergraduate William J. Bannon IV explores how interpretable AI tools can analyze patient data to predict which people are at high risk of suicide.
Tyler Smith and Dylan Green from Cooper/Smith then share deliberations from a closed-door World Health Assembly roundtable about how AI can apply to global health security by improving health communication, filling information gaps, and optimizing resources.
The newsletter ends by reflecting on Pope Leo XIV, as he nears 100 days of his papacy. Faiths for Safe Water founder Susan K. Barnett asks Catholic leaders and health policy experts how the pope's roots in supporting vulnerable communities could inform his leadership on public health initiatives. Although it is still too soon to make definitive predictions, many experts are optimistic that Pope Leo's ascendance will strengthen health-care systems and disease-eradication efforts.
Until next week!—Nsikan Akpan, Managing Editor, and Caroline Kantis, Associate Editor
