Biden White House to resume COVID-19 briefings with health officials

The Biden White House announced it will resume regular briefings with public health experts focused on the response to the coronavirus pandemic, reviving an approach that had fizzled out during the Trump administration even as the outbreak worsened.

The White House anticipates holding three briefings each week led by public health officials and members of the administration’s COVID-19 response team, press secretary Jen Psaki said Monday. The first of those briefings will take place on Monday, and will “continue regularly for the foreseeable future,” she said.

The briefings are expected to take place in addition to the daily appearances by Psaki to field questions on other topics. Anthony Fauci, a member of the coronavirus response team and the government’s top expert on infectious diseases, joined Psaki at a briefing last week.

The inclusion of public health officials in the messaging effort around the pandemic marks the latest instance of how the Biden White House is putting distance between its handling of the pandemic and the Trump administration’s response.