Washington, D.C. (September 17, 2021) – BGR Group, Washington, D.C.’s premier bipartisan lobbying and public relations firm, today announced that Ambassador Deborah L. Birx, M.D., is joining the firm’s Advisory Board. Dr. Birx is a world-renowned infectious disease expert and leader whose long career has focused on clinical and basic immunology, HIV, pandemic preparedness, vaccine research, and global health. Her thirty-year career in public service included senior roles in the U.S. Army, the State Department, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) throughout Democratic and Republican administrations. She will be available to advise BGR clients on issues including international, state, and health policy.
“We are thrilled to welcome Dr. Birx to the BGR team,” BGR Chairman and CEO Bob Wood said. “Dr. Birx has been a widely recognized leader in global health for decades. Her breadth of experience and perspective is unmatched and will be a tremendous asset for BGR and our clients.”
“BGR Group’s bipartisan approach to impacting policy across the administration, Congress, and private sector is well known and important,” Dr. Birx said. “I look forward to joining the BGR Advisory Board and an already outstanding group of experts on the BGR team.”
“Dr. Birx will be an outstanding addition to BGR’s Advisory Board given her long career in public health and recent experience on the frontlines of the COVID-19 pandemic,” BGR Founding Partner Haley Barbour said. “Dr. Birx’s insights honed from years of service across numerous government agencies will provide enormous value to our clients and bipartisan team.”
“During in the pandemic, Dr. Birx provided invaluable advice and guidance to state and local officials across the U.S. as we navigated unprecedented circumstances,” Columbia, SC Mayor and BGR Board of Advisors Member Steve Benjamin said. “I had the pleasure to work with Dr. Birx both as mayor of Columbia, SC and alongside my colleagues from across the country through the U.S. Conference of Mayors and am looking forward to working with her on the Board of Advisors.”
Dr. Birx has spent her career serving the United States first as an Army Colonel and later, running some of the most high-profile and influential programs at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and U.S. Department of State. Most recently, Dr. Birx served as the White House Coronavirus Response Coordinator, where she made recommendations to the Vice President using complex data integration to drive decision-making, as well as worked closely with state officials across the country to provide state-specific advice and guidance. In 2014, Dr. Birx was appointed by President Obama as the Ambassador-at-Large, a Presidential appointment as the Coordinator of the United States Government Activities to Combat HIV/AIDS and U.S. Special Representative for Global Health Diplomacy serving in this position until 19 January 2021.
Dr. Birx began her career with the Department of Defense (DoD) as a military-trained clinician in internal medicine and clinical immunology, focusing on immunodeficiencies and HIV/AIDS vaccine research. Through her professionalism and leadership in the field, she progressed to serve as the Director of the U.S. Military HIV Research Program (USMHRP) at the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research from 1996-2005. Dr. Birx lead one of the most influential HIV vaccine trials in history (known as RV 144 or the Thai trial), which provided the first supporting evidence of any vaccine’s potential effectiveness in preventing HIV infection. During this time, she also rose to the rank of Colonel, bringing together the Navy, Army, and Air Force in a new model of cooperation – increasing the efficiency and effectiveness of the U.S. Military’s HIV/AIDS efforts through inter-and intra-agency collaboration. Then known as Colonel Birx, she was awarded two prestigious U.S. Meritorious Service Medals and the Legion of Merit Award for her groundbreaking research, leadership and management skills during her tenure at the DoD.
From 2005-2014, Dr. Birx served successfully as the Director of CDC’s Division of Global HIV/AIDS (DGHA) in the CDC Center for Global Health, where she utilized her leadership qualities, superior technical skills, and infectious passion to achieve tremendous public health impact. As DGHA Director, she led the implementation of CDC’s PEPFAR programs around the world and managed an annual budget of more than $1.5 billion. Dr. Birx was responsible for the agency’s global HIV/AIDS activities, including providing oversight to more than 1900 staff, and more than 50 country and regional offices in Africa, Asia, Caribbean, and Latin America. Recognized for her distinguished and dedicated commitment to building local capacity and strengthening quality laboratory health services and systems in Africa, in 2011, Dr. Birx received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the African Society for Laboratory Medicine. In 2014, CDC honored her leadership in advancing the agency’s HIV/AIDS response with the highly prestigious William C. Watson, Jr. Medal of Excellence.
In March of this year, Dr. Birx joined the George W. Bush Institute as a Senior Fellow where she works on addressing the health disparities made prevalent by the COVID-19 pandemic.
