Biden health officials say they built up US pandemic defenses. Trump promises changes

The Biden administration is releasing a “roadmap” for maintaining government defenses against infectious diseases, just as President-elect Donald Trump pledges to dismantle some of them. The 16-page report recaps steps taken in the last four years against COVID-19, mpox and other diseases. Biden officials are touting the steps they took to halt or prevent disease threats, but some public heath researchers offer a more mixed assessment of the administration’s efforts. Several experts, for example, say not nearly enough has been done to make sure an expanding bird flu pandemic in animals doesn’t turn into a global health catastrophe for people.