The Ebola virus disease outbreak that affected West Africa from 2014 to 2016 was the largest and most complex on record since the virus was first discovered in the 1970’s. In August of 2018, the disease appeared again in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and continues to impact the country – escalating to a public health emergency of international concern. The first Global Health Security Seminar of the new academic year featured a seminar and discussion with Ron Klain – the White House Ebola Response Coordinator for the 2014-15 epidemic – where he compared and contrasted the current situation and response to the West African situation.
This event was part of the Global Health Security Seminar Series, co-sponsored by Georgetown’s Center for Global Health Science and Security and the Global Health Initiative.
Ron Klain, J.D., currently acts as the Executive Vice President and General Counsel at Revolution. In addition to his career in law and business, Ron has extensive public service experience, most recently as the White House Ebola Response Coordinator from October 2014 to February 2015. Earlier, he served as Chief of Staff to Vice President Biden and a Senior Aide to President Obama; Chief of Staff for Vice President Al Gore and Attorney General Janet Reno; and Staff Director for the Senate Democratic Leadership Committee. Ron is a graduate of Georgetown University (where he serves as an Adjunct Professor in the Government Department) and holds a JD from Harvard Law School (where he is a Lecturer on Law).