Dr. Anthony Fauci Announces Plans for Retirement

After serving the American public for decades, one of this country’s most prominent scientists plans to retire from government work.

Dr. Anthony Fauci told Politico he plans to retire as director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases at the National Institutes of Health by the end of President Joe Biden’s current term.

Fauci has not begun the process of retiring, nor does he have a specific retirement date in mind.

“I have said that for a long time,” Fauci told the outlet of his plans to leave the administration before Biden’s term ends in January 2025. “By the time we get to the end of Biden’s first term, I will very likely [retire].”

At the National Institutes of Health, Fauci oversees a portfolio of research aimed at preventing, diagnosing, and treating HIV and AIDS, respiratory infections, other infections, and emerging diseases such as Zika and Ebola as director of NIAID.

"Everybody in a position of any influence in my institute, I handpick. So it's something that I've been working on now for four decades. So we have a good system in place," Fauci told CNN Monday. "Obviously, you can't go on forever. I do want to do other things in my career, even though I'm at a rather advanced age. I have the energy and the passion to continue to want to pursue other aspects of my professional career and I'm going to do that some time. I'm not exactly sure when, but I don't see myself being in this job to the point where I can't do anything else after that."

Fauci has provided critical advice to seven presidents on HIV and AIDS issues and helped strengthen public health and medical readiness for emerging infectious diseases, such as pandemic influenza and COVID-19. At the moment, he serves as Biden’s chief medical adviser.

In March, Fauci beat back rumors of his retirement, indicating that he would be around until the end of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, in his Politico interview, Fauci said he did not expect to remain in government until coronavirus is eradicated because, he said, “I think we’re going to be living with this” for years to come.

His research on HIV and AIDS since 1981 has laid the foundation for scientists’ current understanding of the disease and efforts to develop therapies and prevention tools, his online biography states.

While at first criticized for the government's response to the AIDS crisis, Fauci eventually worked with activists to combat HIV. Fauci's work has helped in understanding how HIV destroys a person’s body’s defenses, which has led to the development of treatments for people living with HIV to live long and active lives.

He also helped draft President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, which is a partnership between the United States government and African governments. The partnership has helped assisted several African countries' responses to HIV and treatment for those living with HIV.

Fauci, 81, has served as an adviser to every American president since Ronald Reagan.

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