Public health leaders' calls to action

Public health, explained: Sign up to receive Healthbeat’s free national newsletter here. Public health is inherently political because it often involves policy decisions, but it shouldn’t be partisan. That was among the key messages during the 2026 State of the Public Health Union webinar Thursday with three former directors of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and a former U.S. surgeon general who served under Republican and Democratic administrations. The 90-minute event, which can be watched on YouTube, is organized annually by the American Journal of Public Health. Here is one takeaway from each of the four speakers. Dr. Tom Frieden, former CDC director (2009-17) Frieden served as CDC director under President Barack Obama. He is now president and CEO of Resolve to Save Lives, a global health organization. “I don’t agree with the statement that we have to get the politics out of public health. I think we need to get the partisanship out of public health. There are decis