In this episode, Steve and Andrew speak with Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) on the most pressing health issues before America.

In this episode, the hosts are joined by Julie Gerberding (Merck) to discuss her Senate hearing testimonies on the hard lessons of the past months of the coronavirus pandemic in America and what needs to happen right now.

Sheryl Gay Stolberg discusses the controversy around hydroxychloroquine, a saga that starkly revealed the collision between science and politics in the midst of the pandemic.

Renee DiResta, a prominent expert who studies malign narratives across social networks, dives into some provocative questions on the different conspiracies surrounding Covid-19.

Steve speaks with Dr. Jean William Pape, a renowned public health professor and practitioner appointed in late April by Haitian President Moïse to co-chair the country’s Covid-19 response commission.

We speak with Professor Salim Abdool Karim (Slim), a preeminent HIV scientist based in Durban to discuss South Africa’s successes and achievements, the acute vulnerabilities of those living with HIV and TB, tough controversies, major constraints, and mistakes that required correction.

Eustace and Carol Theodore describe the uncertain, extended process in discovering Eustace had been infected with Covid-19, after vacationing in England in the first half of March.

In this episode, we are joined by Julien, a wonderfully insightful 13-year-old from Berkeley, California, to talk about his experience of over two months of shelter-in-place.

In this episode, U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen of Maryland joins us to talk about what Congress can do to respond to Covid-19 right now, including ensuring access and affordability for new treatments and a vaccine, and building stimulus packages for every level of government.

Tulane University professor and historian John Barry, author of the New York Times bestseller "The Great Influenza," discusses the lessons gleaned from the 1918 Spanish Flu pandemic that speak to today’s coronavirus pandemic sweeping America and the world.

We are joined by Director of the Africa CDC Dr. John Nkengasong and U.S. Ambassador to the African Union Jessica Lapenn. Africa CDC is advancing a continental plan to address the dire, burgeoning threat Covid-19 poses to Africa.

In this episode, we bring in CSIS alum Alisha Kramer, who is now practicing obstetrics and gynecology in Atlanta hospitals, to discuss how she assists young pregnant women in navigating the new realities of Covid-19.

​In this episode, the conversation takes off from a recent piece published by Steve and Anna Carroll, Global Health Policy Center’s Associate Fellow, that examines President Trump’s decision to suspend U.S. assistance to the World Health Organization.

In this episode, the hosts are joined by Scott Dowell, coronavirus response leader at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, to discuss how successful the global response has been in saving so many lives, as well as Dr. Dowell's thoughts on which response strategy is best.

As this week marks World Immunization Week, Senior Fellow Katherine Bliss talks to two immunization experts, Angela Shen and Lora Shimp, about the difference between universal health care and coverage, and how including immunizations under a larger package of preventative services means more people benefit for a cheaper cost.

In this episode, Steve and Andrew are joined by Congressman Ami Bera (D-CA07) to talk about his work on the CSIS Commission on Strengthening America’s Health Security and his impressions of Covid-19, as both a doctor and an elected representative.

Former Senator Kelly Ayotte, co-chair of the CSIS Commission on Strengthening America’s Health Security, joins Steve and Andrew in explaining how the Commission’s November 2019 core recommendations remain compelling and essential in the midst of the pandemic, if we are to, once and for all, break the cycle of crisis and complacency.

Peter Sands, executive director of The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, joins Steve and Andrew in exploring the chasm separating the world of finance and economists from that of public health, the extraordinary threats the pandemic poses to historical gains in development and global health, and the rapidly evolving role of the Global Fund in racing to support partner countries in their response to the coronavirus.

In this episode, Andrew asks Steve to interpret the guidelines issued by President Trump yesterday in a three-phase process of reopening.

Dr. Christopher Murray joins Steve Morrison and Andrew Schwartz to discuss the “Murray Model,” what a rolling reopening of the economy would look like and what that would do to the Murray Model projections, which states may be ready to reopen, and what hotspots he’s worried about most.

In this episode, Susan Glasser, staff writer at The New Yorker, joins Steve and Andrew to discuss the full range of rapidly evolving issues surrounding President Trump and the White House’s engagement with the coronavirus pandemic and the companion economic crisis.

Steve and Andrew are joined by Congresswoman Susan Brooks (R-IN05) to talk about her work on the CSIS Commission on Strengthening America’s Health Security and her experience working through Covid-19.

Ron Klain, former Ebola response coordinator in the Obama Administration, discusses the deep structural changes that are required post-pandemic for America to resume as a global leader, what future observers might conclude on how we reached this treacherous moment, and what gives Ron confidence and hope.

Steve and Andrew speak with Helen Branswell, a premiere journalist and one of the world’s leading experts on dangerous infectious disease outbreaks, based for the past five years at STAT.

Andrew and Steve talk to Dr. Tom Frieden, President and CEO of Resolve to Save Lives and former CDC Director, about the infections and deaths in New York and the risk to healthcare workers, the need for clear federal guidance, and how we can organize to minimize the harm from this pandemic.

Andrew and Steve talk to Secretary John Wiesman on the testing and hospital capacity in Washington state, the scramble for resources that states are finding themselves in and how Washington is working with the private sector to develop these products, and when social distancing might end.

Steve speaks with Paul Stoffels, Vice Chairman of the Executive Committee and Chief Scientific Officer at Johnson & Johnson, about the unknowns surrounding the COVID-19 virus, the Chinese response, and the role J&J is playing in developing a vaccine.

Steve speaks with Jeremy Farrar, Director of the Wellcome Trust, about his experience with SARS in Vietnam, the number of unknowns surrounding the coronavirus, China's unprecedented response and its impacts, and the role Wellcome is playing.

Andrew and Steve are joined by Jude Blanchette to discuss how the U.S. and China are dealing with the pandemic in their own countries.

Andrew and Steve talk to Fmr. FDA Commissioner Dr. Margaret "Peggy" Hamburg about what’s happened with testing in the U.S., the ‘global arms race’ to develop a vaccine, and how the U.S. and the world can develop, produce, and distribute any potential vaccine in an equitable way.

Steve and Andrew invite CSIS's Kathleen Hicks to discuss how the military can respond to COVID-19, and to what extent that can be done.

Steve and Andrew discuss what’s happening with the U.S. response: the wholesale suspension of work and cultural events, the mixed messages coming from the Administration, and the unknown period we’re currently in as we wait for the worst part of the pandemic.

Steve and Andrew invite Stephanie Segal to discuss the economic shocks COVID-19 is causing, the so-far inadequate policy response, and the possible prolonged economic crisis to come.

Steve and Andrew speak with Heather Conley on the quarantine of 16 million people in northern Italy; how it came about, what it will mean for Italy’s economy and politics, and how Italy’s neighbors are responding.

Steve Morrison speaks with Dr. Julie Gerberding on the current mood in Congress, the transition in the United States from a phase of containment to one of managing the spread COVID-19, and her outstanding concerns and reasons for hope.

CSIS’s Steve Morrison and Andrew Schwartz discuss newly concentrated hotspots and the politicization of COVID-19, and how an adequate response to the outbreak requires more leadership, clarity and trust.

Steve speaks with Dr. Mike Ryan, executive director of the WHO's Health Emergencies Programme about what dynamics are driving this outbreak, why it should be seen as a security risk as well as a health risk, and what the WHO is doing.

Steve speaks with Orin Levine, director of Vaccine Delivery at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation about the investments the Foundation is making into the epidemic response, the urgent need for diagnostics and treatments, and how this infection might play out over the next year.

As knowledge on COVID-19 evolves, Take as Directed will bring you the latest updates in this miniseries Coronavirus Crisis Update.

Rebecca Martin discusses the CDC’s work on training field disease detectives and laboratory workers worldwide, how the CDC works across the world to respond to outbreaks, and the Commission’s recommendation that the US re-invest in Global Health Security Agenda (GHSA).

Ambassador Jimmy Kolker and Carolyn Reynolds discuss trends in global investment in health security, and the Commission's recommendations to invest in pandemic preparedness measures.

Dr. Richard Hatchett discusses CEPI's role in developing technologies to fight against high priority public health threats and emerging infectious diseases.

Janet Fleischman sits down with Melissa Dalton and Fatima Imam to discuss why gender-based violence has become a central feature in crises around the world.

Nellie Bristol discusses vaccine-derived polio with Dr. John Vertefeuille, the polio eradication branch chief at the CDC.

Katherine Bliss highlights some of the most striking moments of CSIS Global Health Policy Center's conference focused on global immunization.

In 2018, more than 200 million people contracted malaria around the world, and nearly half a million died of it. As countries continue to battle malaria within their borders, the international discussion turns to a loftier goal—complete global eradicatio

In the last decade, Russia has increased its global engagement, while at the same time pursuing policies at home that are giving rise to HIV/AIDS and drug-resistant tuberculosis epidemics that are a risk for its own populations, as well as its neighbors.

While the world has seen tremendous improvement in the availability of life-saving vaccines, coverage rates have stagnated over the last decade. The U.S. government, a leading player in global immunization, is working with international organizations as

The population of Africa is expected to double over the next 20 years, which means that many countries are facing either a demographic dividend or potentially a disaster, with critical implications for global health and development. In this episode of Ta

At the end of June, the Board of Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, approved their new “5.0” strategy for 2021-2025, with an ambitious set of priorities for this new phase. In this episode of Take as Directed, Nellie Bristol sits down with Amanda Glassman, Exec

Since its inception in 2017, the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations, or CEPI, has come to be seen as among the most promising innovations in global health security. It works to accelerate the development and introduction of new vaccines agai

In this episode of Take as Directed, J. Stephen Morrison sits down with Jason Stearns, Director of the Congo Research Group at the Center for International Cooperation at New York University. Jason is among America’s premier experts on Congolese politics

In this episode of Take as Directed, J. Stephen Morrison sits down with David Gressly, the UN Emergency Ebola Response Coordinator in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Gressly was appointed in May by the UN Secretary General to lead a more stra

In this episode of Take as Directed, J. Stephen Morrison speaks with Dr. Trevor Mundel, President of the Global Health Division at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. They discuss the arc of Dr. Mundel’s personal career and his remarkable tenure at

In this episode of Take as Directed, host Janet Fleischman sits down with Geeta Rao Gupta, executive director of the 3D Program for Girls and Women, former president of the International Center for Research on Women (ICRW), and former Deputy Executive Di

In this episode of Take as Directed, Sara Allinder is joined by special guest host Haim Malka, Deputy Director and Senior Fellow of the CSIS Middle East Program, to discuss the future of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees i

In this episode of Take as Directed, J. Stephen Morrison speaks with Dr. Heidi Larson, Director of the Vaccine Confidence Project at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. They discuss why vaccine confidence is currently in crisis, and how t

In this episode of Take as Directed, Steve Morrison speaks with Dr. Christopher Murray, Director of the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) of the University of Washington. Dr. Murray walks through IHME’s ongoing Global Burden of Disease a

As the decade of vaccines comes to a close, public health experts are busy developing new strategies for the next era of global immunization. Among those efforts is a second version of the Global Vaccine Action Plan — or GVAP — which will cover the perio

Investing in nutrition is one of the most cost effective health and development programs, yet is often underprioritized in the larger global development agenda. In this episode of Take as Directed, Sara Allinder speaks with Shawn Baker, Director of the N

At the Second International Summit on Human Genome Editing in Hong Kong last fall, Professor He Jiankui made a controversial announcement that he had made heritable genetic changes in human embryos, which resulted in the birth of twin girls. This action

March 24th was World TB Day, a World Health Organization-designated day of advocacy to raise awareness about the devastating health, social, and economic consequences of tuberculosis. In this episode of Take as Directed, host Steve Morrison is joined by

Women’s health services, including maternal health and family planning, are critical to enable women and girls to access economic empowerment opportunities. In this episode of Take as Directed, GHPC Senior Associate Janet Fleischman speaks with Margaret

The anti-vaccination movement has recently come into the spotlight after the resurgence of measles, a vaccine-preventable respiratory illness, has emerged across the United States in the past year. In this episode of Take as Directed, Steve Morrison spea

Improving nutrition is among the most transformative and cost-effective interventions in global health and food security. In this episode of Take as Directed, Sara Allinder speaks with Dr. Robert Mwadime, Chief of Party of the USAID Integrated Community

At this year’s Munich Security Conference, the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo was highlighted as top health security threat of international concern. As of February 17th, there have been 840 cases and 537 deaths in the outbreak, a

In this episode, a former Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff joins us to discuss the story of his son Jonathan, who died from a fentanyl overdose last year. Admiral James "Sandy" Winnefeld is a retired four-star Navy admiral, and has become a voc

The global campaign to eradicate polio is focused on three countries that remain polio-endemic: Afghanistan, Nigeria, and Pakistan. In this episode of Take As Directed, Senior Fellow Nellie Bristol is joined by Senator Ayesha Raza Farooq of Pakistan, cha

February 6th marks the International Day of Zero Tolerance of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM), a United Nations-sponsored awareness day meant to highlight efforts to eradicate FGM. An estimated 200 million women and girls today have undergone some form o

Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance has had unprecedented success helping low income countries purchase and deliver vaccines. This has helped to increase immunization coverage for many underserved populations. But as global immunization rates have stalled over th

Around 47,600 Americans died in 2017 of opioid overdoses. It’s the leading cause of accidental death in the United States, surpassing car accidents. What makes this crisis have such a wide reach and penetrate racial, economic, and geographic lines? Take

While global rates of malaria have been declining over the last fifteen years, those unprecedented gains have recently slowed. In this episode of Take as Directed, we are joined by Dr. Philip Welkhoff, an expert in disease modeling who is the current dir

Greater attention and resources to low-income country vaccination programs over the last decade have resulted in tremendous gains in immunization coverage. But coverage rates have now stalled, calling for new approaches to overcoming enduring barriers to

The ongoing Ebola crisis in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, the first Ebola outbreak in a war zone, is posing unprecedented challenges to responders. Much of the difficulty stems from the difficult security situation in the region, yet the part

Women’s health services, including maternal health and family planning, are critical to enable women and girls to access economic empowerment opportunities. In this episode of Take as Directed, GHPC Senior Associate Janet Fleischman speaks with Margaret

In this episode of Take as Directed, we hear from Peter Sands, Executive Director of The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria, about his reflections on his first 7 months in that post, takeaways from the UNGA high-level meeting on tubercu

In part two of our series with Dr. Robert Redfield, Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, he addresses what he calls “the public health crisis of our time” – the ongoing opioid epidemic.  Combating the opioid epidemic has proven to

In this episode of Take as Directed, we are joined by Dr. Robert Redfield, Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Since assuming his position as CDC Director in March of this year, Dr. Redfield has led the effort to enhance the

With the ongoing Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo rapidly escalating to dangerous levels, the global health community must consider how much progress has been made to prevent and efficiently respond to outbreaks since the 2014-2016

Tuberculosis (TB) is a long-standing, urgent threat to global public health, yet it has never been discussed at the highest level of the world stage. That changes this week, as heads of state gather in New York for the UN General Assembly, where they wil

The Ebola outbreak in the Democratic of the Congo poses unprecedented challenges to emergency responders as the first ever case in an active warzone. The response has had remarkable mobilization and promising achievements thus far, with successful vaccin

Tuberculosis (TB) is the number one infectious disease killer. Yet, pediatric TB is often overlooked as an urgent public health threat, especially in lower- and middle-income countries. In this episode of Take as Directed, we hear from Dr. Farhana Amanul

Since committing to support polio eradication on its 100 anniversary, Rotary International has contributed $1.8 billion to the cause, along with thousands of volunteers, advocacy work, and political leadership. Serving as Rotary’s PolioPlus Committee Cha

Last month, top policymakers, scientists, and activists gathered in Amsterdam for the 22nd International AIDS Conference to examine the current state of global HIV/AIDS response, and how that response should be shaped by the global health community in th

In this episode, a former Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff joins us to discuss the story of his son Jonathan, who died from a fentanyl overdose last year. Admiral James "Sandy" Winnefeld is a retired four-star Navy admiral, and has become a voc

Professor Quarraisha Abdool Karim is one of the world’s leading AIDS researchers and has made pioneering contributions to understanding the HIV epidemic in young people, especially among young women. She joined us for a two-part series to explain her lat

Professor Quarraisha Abdool Karim is one of the world’s leading AIDS researchers and has made pioneering contributions to understanding the HIV epidemic in young people, especially among young women. She joined us for a two-part series to explain her lat

In this episode, Elhadj As Sy, Secretary General of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), joins us to discuss the different roles that IFRC plays across the vast array of populations they serve, their current work o

In 2016, the World Health Organization announced that a single full dose of yellow fever vaccine would provide lifelong protection from the virus. However, due to global shortages and complicated production requirements, there has not been sufficient sup

Dr. Christos Stylianides serves as the European Commissioner for Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Management and is the European Union Ebola Coordinator. Christos joins us for this episode to discuss how the current Ebola response has differed from the respon

Providing services equitably requires global health practitioners to have detailed data on the populations they are trying to reach. This episode of Take as Directed, hosted by Senior Fellow Nellie Bristol, highlights new initiatives to collect and analy

The world of global health security has been amassed in headlines over the past few weeks—from the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo, to the elimination of the Global Health Security Directorate within the White House National Security C

Amidst a time of potentially historic talks between the U.S. and North Korea, we take an inside look at the health challenges that North Korea faces and the opportunities for progress that can be made through key diplomatic steps. For this discussion, we

Christopher Murray, director of the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME), is a pioneer in the world of global burden of disease measurement. In April, IHME released their annual report on global health financing and two accompanying article

Despite substantial progress made in expanding access to HIV/AIDS treatment and prevention options, a vaccine for HIV—even an imperfect one—is likely needed to put a durable end to the epidemic. In this episode of Take as Directed, Dr. Mark Feinberg, Pre