Bipartisan Commission on Biodefense

Biodefense in Crisis: Danger and Opportunity

Bipartisan Commission on Biodefense

Show Notes

July 22, 2025 - In this meeting, the Bipartisan Commission on Biodefense explores: (1) core requirements for effective national biodefense; (2) Administration biodefense priorities; (3) impacts of department and agency realignment; and (4) strategies for addressing future biological threats.

Speakers include:

Michael Place, MD (Major General, US Army – Retired) – Former Chief of Staff, Office of the Surgeon General, US Army Command, US Army Erica Pan, MD, MPH – Director and State Public Health Officer, California Department of Public Health Alex Hamberg, VMD, PhD – State Veterinarian, Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture Clint Osborn – Director, District of Columbia Homeland Security and Emergency Management Agency Lori Tremmel Freeman, MBA – Chief Executive Officer, National Association of County and City Health Officials Tina Tan, MD, FIDSA, FPIDS, FAAP – President, Infectious Disease Society of America Ali S. Khan, MD, MPH – Dean, College of Public Health, University of Nebraska Medical Center Richard J. Hatchett, MD – Chief Executive Officer, Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations Matthew Hepburn, MD – Executive Vice President, Research and Development, Panther Life Sciences Leonard J. Marcus, PhD – Co-Director, National Preparedness Leadership Initiative, Harvard University Taylor Sexton, MPH – Executive Director, Medical Countermeasures Coalition David Stiefel, MA – Director, Global Biological Policy and Programs, Nuclear Threat Initiative Joe Buccina, MA, MS– Policy and Research Director, National Security Commission on Emerging Biotechnology Patricia R. Bright, DVM – Former Senior Science Advisor, One Health/Global Health Security, US Geological Survey

Learn more here: https://biodefensecommission.org/events/biodefense-in-crisis-danger-and-opportunity/

More from Bipartisan Commission on Biodefense

May 16, 2025

This Commission meeting, Astrobiodefense: Biological Threats and the Next Frontier, was held on May 8, 2025. The focus of this meeting will be to provide the Bipartisan Commission on Biodefense with a better understanding of how to strengthen international astrobiodefense and planetary protection efforts through: (1) current government astrobiodefense efforts; (2) new scientific and technological advances for astrobiodefense; and (3) collaborative efforts and public-private partnerships to improve astrobiodefense. See more information here: https://biodefensecommission.org/events/astrobiodefense-biological-threats-and-the-next-frontier/

May 16, 2025

The Commission's May 8, 2025 meeting began with Executive Director Dr. Asha M. George delivering the first annual State of National Biodefense address. The increasing biological threat and uncertainty surrounding federal biodefense programs and capabilities necessitates a clear-eyed examination of the threat and US efforts to address critical capability gaps. This address will lay out the current realities of national biodefense and the Commission’s vision for a future where the Nation can more effectively prevent, deter, prepare for, detect, respond to, attribute, recover from, and mitigate biological incidents. Read her written testimony here: https://biodefensecommission.org/the-state-of-u-s-biodefense-written-remarks-by-dr-asha-m-george/

Dec 10, 2024

This Commission meeting, Under the Weather: The Nexus of Climate Change and Biodefense, was held on Thursday, December 5, 2024 at 58 East 68th St., New York, NY 10065. The focus of this meeting was to provide the Bipartisan Commission on Biodefense with a better understanding of: 1) the effects of climate change on human health and one health, 2) the future implications of migration and shifting disease patterns, and 3) policy considerations to reduce the inevitable impacts of climate change on biodefense. Learn more here: https://biodefensecommission.org/events/fluency-true-expertise-and-effectiveness-in-the-battle-against-influenza-2/

Oct 16, 2024

The Commission meeting, FLUency: True Expertise and Effectiveness in the Battle Against Influenza, was held on Tuesday, October 8th, in Washington, DC. The focus of this meeting is to provide the Bipartisan Commission on Biodefense with a better understanding of: (1) national leadership to defend food and agriculture against influenza; (2) federal operational requirements for preparedness, coordination, and response; (3) biosurveillance, forecasting, and the need for diagnostic tests; and (4) front-line needs and partnerships in the fight against influenza. Learn more here: https://biodefensecommission.org/events/fluency-true-expertise-and-effectiveness-in-the-battle-against-influenza-2/

Jul 30, 2024

In this meeting, the Bipartisan Commission on Biodefense will explore: (1) how the federal government currently addresses indoor air quality; (2) new scientific and technological advances for indoor air quality; and (3) how enhancing indoor air quality can help prevent the spread of pathogens. Learn more here: https://biodefensecommission.org/events/masters-of-the-air-overcoming-airborne-pathogens-indoors/

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