White House Launches Pandemic Preparedness Office

The White House established a new office within the Executive Office of the President on Friday, which will be charged with coordinating and developing policies and priorities related to pandemic preparedness and response. The Office of Pandemic Preparedness and Response Policy (OPPR) will take over the duties of the current COVID-19 response team and mpox team at the White House.

Major General (ret) Paul Friedrichs, MD, will serve as the inaugural director of OPPR and principal advisor on pandemic preparedness and response, effective Aug. 7. Major General Friedrichs is currently special assistant to the president and senior director for Global Health Security and Biodefense at the National Security Council (NSC). Before joining NSC, Friedrichs most recently served as the joint staff surgeon and the medical advisor to the Department of Defense COVID-19 Task Force.