U.S. Presidents and Pandemics

Harvard HSPH

Over the past century, US presidents have been forced to respond to numerous actual or threatened pandemics – from the Great Influenza to Ebola to COVID-19. These responses have varied substantially in their tactics and results, but they have all faced challenges inherent to the role of the presidency. Infectious threats to national security are likely to persist and grow in coming years, and it will be vital to understand how to advise both the president and other leaders.The first half of…