Bipartisan Commission on Biodefense

About Bipartisan Commission on Biodefense

The Bipartisan Commission on Biodefense at Atlantic Council is a privately funded entity established in 2014 to provide for a comprehensive assessment of the state of U.S. biodefense efforts and to issue recommendations that will foster change. From 2014-2015, the Commission convened four public meetings in Washington, DC on biological threat awareness, prevention and protection, surveillance and detection, and response and recovery. Current and former Members of Congress, former Administration officials, state and local representatives, thought leaders, and other experts provided their perspectives on current biodefense efforts, including strengths, weaknesses, and opportunities. While much good work has been achieved toward biodefense, these meetings have revealed systemic challenges in the enterprise designed to protect Americans from biological events. The Commission continues to advocate for uptake of these recommendations at the highest levels of American government, through additional meetings, reports, and other activities, and is the only such body of bipartisan, former high-level policymakers to do so.

Publisher

Bipartisan Commission on Biodefense

Category

education · government · science

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

7 Apr 2021

Latest episode

6 Aug 2025

Latest episodes

47 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   6 Aug 2025

   Biodefense in Crisis: Danger and Opportunity

   July 22, 2025 - In this meeting, the Bipartisan Commission on Biodefense explores: (1) core requirements for effective national biodefense; (2) Administration biodefense priorities; (3) impacts of department and agency realignment; and (4) strategies for addressing future biological threats. Speakers include: Michael Place, MD (Major General, US Army – Retired) – Former Chief of Staff, Office of the Surgeon General, US Army Command, US Army Erica Pan, MD, MPH – Director and State Public Health Officer, California Department of Public Health Alex Hamberg, VMD, PhD – State Veterinarian, Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture Clint Osborn – Director, District of Columbia Homeland Security and Emergency Management Agency Lori Tremmel Freeman, MBA – Chief Executive Officer, National Association of County and City Health Officials Tina Tan, MD, FIDSA, FPIDS, FAAP – President, Infectious Disease Society of America Ali S. Khan, MD, MPH – Dean, College of Public Health, University of Nebraska Medical Center Richard J. Hatchett, MD – Chief Executive Officer, Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations Matthew Hepburn, MD – Executive Vice President, Research and Development, Panther Life Sciences Leonard J. Marcus, PhD – Co-Director, National Preparedness Leadership Initiative, Harvard University Taylor Sexton, MPH – Executive Director, Medical Countermeasures Coalition David Stiefel, MA – Director, Global Biological Policy and Programs, Nuclear Threat Initiative Joe Buccina, MA, MS– Policy and Research Director, National Security Commission on Emerging Biotechnology Patricia R. Bright, DVM – Former Senior Science Advisor, One Health/Global Health Security, US Geological Survey Learn more here: https://biodefensecommission.org/events/biodefense-in-crisis-danger-and-opportunity/

2. 

   16 May 2025

   Astrobiodefense: Biological Threats and the Next Frontier

   This Commission meeting, Astrobiodefense: Biological Threats and the Next Frontier, was held on May 8, 2025. The focus of this meeting will be to provide the Bipartisan Commission on Biodefense with a better understanding of how to strengthen international astrobiodefense and planetary protection efforts through: (1) current government astrobiodefense efforts; (2) new scientific and technological advances for astrobiodefense; and (3) collaborative efforts and public-private partnerships to improve astrobiodefense. See more information here: https://biodefensecommission.org/events/astrobiodefense-biological-threats-and-the-next-frontier/

3. 

   16 May 2025

   2025 State of Biodefense - Remarks by Dr. Asha M. George

   The Commission's May 8, 2025 meeting began with Executive Director Dr. Asha M. George delivering the first annual State of National Biodefense address. The increasing biological threat and uncertainty surrounding federal biodefense programs and capabilities necessitates a clear-eyed examination of the threat and US efforts to address critical capability gaps. This address will lay out the current realities of national biodefense and the Commission’s vision for a future where the Nation can more effectively prevent, deter, prepare for, detect, respond to, attribute, recover from, and mitigate biological incidents. Read her written testimony here: https://biodefensecommission.org/the-state-of-u-s-biodefense-written-remarks-by-dr-asha-m-george/

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

YouTube views

49,433

Score snapshot 15 Sept 2025

Apple Podcasts (US)

5.0 / 5

4 ratings

Podcast Authority Score: 38 / 100

A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.

Quality

10

Social presence

0

YouTube

76

Engagement

89