Anthony Fauci Stepping Down, Not Retiring

Dr. Anthony S. Fauci recently announced that he will be stepping down in December from the positions of Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), Chief of the NIAID Laboratory of Immunoregulation (where he also serves as Chief of the Immunopathogenesis Section), and Chief Medical Advisor to President Joseph Biden.  First appointed NIAID Director in 1984 by President Ronald Reagan, he has advised seven Presidents, dealing with new and re-emerging infectious disease threats including HIV/AIDS, West Nile Virus, Anthrax attacks, Ebola, Zika Virus, and COVID-19.  During the course of his long career, Fauci developed effective therapies for formerly fatal inflammatory and immune-mediated diseases (eg, polyarteritis nodosa), was a key architect of the President’s Emergency for AIDS Relief, and continues to research “the immunopathogenic mechanisms of HIV infection and the scope of the body’s immune responses to HIV.”  He has authored, coauthored, or edited over 1,400 scientific publications, and serves on the editorial boards of many scientific journals.  He has received over 58 honorary doctoral degrees from universities in the United States and abroad, as well as numerous prestigious awards, including the Presidential Medal of Freedom and National Medal of Science.  Fauci is not retiring.  He wants “to continue to advance science and public health and to inspire and mentor the next generation of scientific leaders as they help prepare the world to face future infectious disease threats.”