President-elect Joe Biden is overhauling the faltering U.S. vaccination initiative he’s about to inherit, appointing new leaders of the effort and retiring its unpopular name days ahead of his inauguration.
Biden will install David Kessler, who served as commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration in the 1990s, to serve as chief science officer of the COVID-19 response. His job will include steering what President Donald Trump’s administration dubbed Operation Warp Speed and replacing Moncef Slaoui, who served as science chief for the vaccine development and distribution initiative.
The Warp Speed program is being rolled into a broader portfolio to be overseen by Kessler. Biden’s team wants to emphasize its new focus on hastening immunizations, people familiar with the matter said, asking not to be identified because there hasn’t been an official announcement.