Watch: CDC announces new disease forecasting center

WASHINGTON, D.C. (WKBT) — The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced Wednesday that it has a new center dedicated to forecasting disease.

The Center for Forecasting and Outbreak Analytics will “bring together next-generation public health data, expert disease modelers, public health emergency responders, and high-quality communications to meet the needs of decision makers,” according to the release.

The center will prioritize equity and accessibility, while serving as a hub for innovation and research on disease modeling.

“This is an amazing opportunity for CDC and public health as we stand up the country’s first government-wide public health forecasting center,” said CDC Director Rochelle P. Walensky, M.D., M.P.H. “We are excited to have the expertise and ability to model and forecast public health concerns and share information in real-time to activate governmental, private sector, and public actions in anticipation of threats both domestically and abroad.”

The center is funded by the American Rescue Plan.

The new leadership team charged with the development and implementation of a plan to establish the center, includes:

·       Dr. Marc Lipsitch, who will serve as Director for Science
·       Dr. Dylan George, who will serve as Director for Operations
·       Dr. Caitlin Rivers, who will serve as Associate Director
·       Dr. Rebecca Kahn, who will serve as Senior Scientist

Watch the White House COVID-19 Response Team Press Briefing on the News 8 Now Facebook page.

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