Indian-origin Jay Bhattacharya takes charge as CDC chief

 

 

 

P.P. Cherian

Washington: Indian-origin Jay Bhattacharya has been appointed as the acting director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the leading public health agency in the United States. He is currently the head of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and will handle both positions simultaneously.

Born in Kolkata, Bhattacharya was a professor at Stanford University. He holds degrees in medicine and economics.

He was noted for his strong criticism of lockdown policies during the Covid era. His way of questioning the official positions of the time caught the attention of the Trump administration.

The appointment comes in the wake of the departure of former director Susan Monares following a disagreement with Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

Another Indian-origin Dr. Vinay Prasad currently holds the top position at the FDA.

With a budget of about $9.7 billion, the CDC is the agency that develops global prevention strategies for everything from infectious diseases to lifestyle diseases.