Joe Biden unveils picks in key positions for HHS and COVID-19 response

Following his election victory, president-elect Joe Biden is already getting to work, focusing on the response to COVID-19 in the country. Biden has already begun naming who would be possible members of his Cabinet for his administration, including his picks for Health and Human Services.

Biden has tapped California attorney general Xavier Becerra to become the Health and Human Services Secretary for his administration. Becerra would then oversee the Biden administration’s COVID-19 response should he be confirmed by the Senate. Alongside Becerra, Biden has also picked Dr. Rochelle Welensky to become the head of the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, as well as naming top infectious disease expert Dr. Anthony Fauci as his Chief Medical Adviser.

Should Becerra be confirmed by the Senate, he would become the first Latino to become the head of Health and Human Services. Becerra was among the Democrats who staunchly defended the Affordable Care Act, both in his tenure as congressman and attorney general.

Former Obama-administration economic adviser Jeff Zients was also named as the White House Coronavirus Coordinator. This also comes as the incoming administration would be tackling a mass vaccination campaign with vaccines that have been making progress in recent months. Former surgeon general Dr. Vivek Murthy will also be returning to his post as among the top health experts in Biden’s COVID-19 task force but with more responsibilities this time around.

National security expert Natalie Quillian will be serving as co-director of the coronavirus response, and Yale public health expert Dr. Marcella Nunez-Smith will head a new group dedicated to reducing disparities made evident during the pandemic.

Biden has yet to reveal his picks as head of the Food and Drug Administration and the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

Even as Biden is already focused on his response to COVID-19 in the country, members of his inauguration committee have been named. The president-elect named five co-chairs in longtime ally Congressman Jim Clyburn, as well as Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer, Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, Congressman Cedric Richmond, and Congresswoman Lisa Blunt Rochester.

They will be responsible for overseeing preparations for a safe inauguration on January 20, 2021, when Biden will be sworn in as president. Biden has said that his inauguration is expected to be similar to the Democratic National Convention, which was largely virtual in light of the pandemic.