August 23, 2022 - As Dr. Anthony Fauci announces departure from NIAID, President Joe Biden and U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein thank him for decades of public service.

Statement from President Joe Biden on the announcement of Dr. Anthony Fauci’s Departure from NIAID

During my time as Vice President, I worked closely with Dr. Anthony Fauci on the United States’ response to Zika and Ebola. I came to know him as a dedicated public servant, and a steady hand with wisdom and insight honed over decades at the forefront of some of our most dangerous and challenging public health crises. When it came time to build a team to lead our COVID-19 response – in fact, in one of my first calls as President-elect – I immediately asked Dr. Fauci to extend his service as my Chief Medical Advisor to deal with the COVID-19 crisis our nation faced.  In that role, I’ve been able to call him at any hour of the day for his advice as we’ve tackled this once-in-a-generation pandemic.  His commitment to the work is unwavering, and he does it with an unparalleled spirit, energy, and scientific integrity. 

Dr. Fauci has served under seven Republican and Democratic Presidents during his career, beginning with Ronald Reagan.  He was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2008 under President George W. Bush.  For almost four decades, he has served as Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, helping our country navigate health crises ranging from HIV/AIDS to COVID-19.  Because of Dr. Fauci’s many contributions to public health, lives here in the United States and around the world have been saved.  As he leaves his position in the U.S. Government, I know the American people and the entire world will continue to benefit from Dr. Fauci’s expertise in whatever he does next. Whether you’ve met him personally or not, he has touched all Americans’ lives with his work. I extend my deepest thanks for his public service. The United States of America is stronger, more resilient, and healthier because of him. 
Source: Office of the White House

Feinstein Statement on Dr. Fauci

Washington—Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) today released the following statement after Dr. Anthony Fauci announced he was stepping down as the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and from his position as President Biden’s chief medical advisor at the end of the year:

“I want to thank Dr. Fauci for his decades of service at the National Institutes of Health. His scientific expertise and significant experience proved invaluable as he helped steer our country through the Covid-19 pandemic.

“Dr. Fauci has been the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases for nearly four decades. During that time, he has advised seven U.S. presidents during multiple public health crises, including the Ebola and Zika virus outbreaks.

“I’m particularly grateful for his leadership during the HIV/AIDS epidemic of the 1980s and 1990s. His early support for funding research on treatments and push to include patient advocates in the process continue to influence clinical trials today.

“As he leaves NIH, I hope Dr. Fauci takes great pride in his legacy of protecting our public health.”
Source: Senator Dianne Feinstein

Statement by Anthony S. Fauci, M.D.

I am announcing today that I will be stepping down from the positions of Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) and Chief of the NIAID Laboratory of Immunoregulation, as well as the position of Chief Medical Advisor to President Joe Biden. I will be leaving these positions in December of this year to pursue the next chapter of my career.

It has been the honor of a lifetime to have led the NIAID, an extraordinary institution, for so many years and through so many scientific and public health challenges. I am very proud of our many accomplishments. I have worked with — and learned from — countless talented and dedicated people in my own laboratory, at NIAID, at NIH and beyond. To them I express my abiding respect and gratitude.

Over the past 38 years as NIAID Director, I have had the enormous privilege of serving under and advising seven Presidents of the United States, beginning with President Ronald Reagan, on newly emerging and re-emerging infectious disease threats including HIV/AIDS, West Nile virus, the anthrax attacks, pandemic influenza, various bird influenza threats, Ebola and Zika, among others, and, of course, most recently the COVID-19 pandemic. I am particularly proud to have served as the Chief Medical Advisor to President Joe Biden since the very first day of his administration.

While I am moving on from my current positions, I am not retiring. After more than 50 years of government service, I plan to pursue the next phase of my career while I still have so much energy and passion for my field. I want to use what I have learned as NIAID Director 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.

Over the coming months, I will continue to put my full effort, passion and commitment into my current responsibilities, as well as help prepare the Institute for a leadership transition. NIH is served by some of the most talented scientists in the world, and I have no doubt that I am leaving this work in very capable hands.

Thanks to the power of science and investments in research and innovation, the world has been able to fight deadly diseases and help save lives around the globe. I am proud to have been part of this important work and look forward to helping to continue to do so in the future.

NIAID conducts and supports research—at NIH, throughout the United States, and worldwide—to study the causes of infectious and immune-mediated diseases, and to develop better means of preventing, diagnosing and treating these illnesses. News releases, fact sheets and other NIAID-related materials are available on the NIAID website.

About the National Institutes of Health (NIH): NIH, the nation's medical research agency, includes 27 Institutes and Centers and is a component of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. NIH is the primary federal agency conducting and supporting basic, clinical, and translational medical research, and is investigating the causes, treatments, and cures for both common and rare diseases. For more information about NIH and its programs, visit www.nih.gov.
Source: NIH