President Biden said Thursday that Jeff Zients, who coordinated the White House COVID-19 response since Inauguration Day, will depart and be replaced by Dr. Ashish K. Jha as the pandemic effort pivots from a logistical battle to one in which the virus is managed as another health threat.
Dr. Jha, dean of the Brown University School of Public Health, is a frequently quoted expert on television and maintains a high-profile social media presence, making him a familiar face to many Americans.
“Dr. Jha is one of the leading public health experts in America and a well-known figure to many Americans from his wise and calming public presence. And as we enter a new moment in the pandemic — executing on my National COVID-19 Preparedness Plan and managing the ongoing risks from COVID — Dr. Jha is the perfect person for the job,” Mr. Biden said. “I appreciate both Jeff and Dr. Jha for working closely to ensure a smooth transition, and I look forward to continued progress in the months ahead.”
Mr. Biden hailed Mr. Zients as an unparalleled manager who helped him deploy available weapons against the virus. He previously had served in the White House as the Obamacare website repairman under President Obama.
Mr. Zients’ departure comes as cases average around 30,000 per day, the lowest levels since the pre-delta period in the summer.
“When Jeff took this job, less than 1% of Americans were fully vaccinated; fewer than half our schools were open; and unlike much of the developed world, America lacked any at-home COVID tests,” Mr. Biden said. “Today, almost 80% of adults are fully vaccinated; over 100 million are boosted; virtually every school is open; and hundreds of millions of at-home tests are distributed every month.
“In addition, the U.S. leads the global effort to fight COVID, delivering more free vaccines to other countries than every other nation on Earth,” the president said. “The progress that he and his team have made is stunning and even more important consequential. Lives have been saved.”
Social media critics questioned whether Mr. Zients was the right person for the job, since he doesn’t have a medical background, but media reports and public comments from Dr. Anthony Fauci suggest he is respected as a colleague and manager.
White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Mr. Zients had extended his stay with the White House multiple times, characterizing the move as his decision and not a situation where he was pushed out.
“There’s no one better at delivering results,” Ms. Psaki said. “The thing about Jeff is at every moment, at every opportunity when there is an opportunity — a pile of manure, sometimes — he dives right in to fix the challenge, that is what he does.”
Politico recently suggested Mr. Zients would be a front-runner to replace Ron Klain if he steps aside as Mr. Biden’s chief of staff.
Former Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Scott Gottlieb said Mr. Zients was “the right person in the right place at the right time” and it is the right time for someone like Dr. Jha to pick up the baton.
“He got us through a hard period of Covid by leveraging his deep expertise in using the tools of government to advance health. He took on an impossible task and made a coordinated counterattack possible,” Dr. Gottlieb tweeted. “As COVID enters a phase where it becomes a persistent risk requiring a new public health footing, Dr. Ashish Jha has the broad clinical expertise, and deft touch in addressing public health needs, to galvanize shared action and shape that future.”
Mr. Biden said he will rely on Dr. Jha to guide the transition from social restrictions to efforts to maintain hospital capacity and control the disease.
“Our work in combating COVID is far from done. We must continue the effort to provide more vaccines and boosters. We must get a vaccine approved for the youngest children. We must continue to improve how our schools and workplaces cope with COVID. We must take special care to protect the vulnerable from COVID, even as many restrictions are lifted,” Mr. Biden said. “We need to provide tests, and treatments, and masks. We must fight the virus overseas, prepare for new waves, and new variants — all of which can be coming. And we must work with Congress to fund these vital steps, as time is running out to stay ahead of the virus.”
Dr. Jha said he was honored by the opportunity and said Mr. Biden has “spoken the truth about this virus.”
The physician also hailed Mr. Zients for using the “levers of the U.S. government” to make vaccines and treatments available.
“We are not done. We are very likely to see more surges of infections. We may see more variants. We can’t predict everything with certainty, but we have to prepare to protect the American people whatever Mother Nature throws at us,” Dr. Jha said in a series of tweets. “On a personal note, for a poor immigrant kid who left India not speaking a word of English and found in America a nation willing to embrace me as one of her own I am deeply honored for this chance to serve this country I love and grateful to a president for the opportunity.”
For more information, visit The Washington Times COVID-19 resource page.
• Tom Howell Jr. can be reached at thowell@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.