Indian-American health policy consultant Seema Verma has announced various initiatives in the United States to contain the Novel Coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) threat after she was appointed as one of the key members of the White House Coronavirus Task Force constituted by US President Donald Trump.
The task force, led by Secretary of Health and Human Services Alex Azar, was formed to lead the Trump administration's response to the deadly virus that emerged in China in December.
US Vice President Mike Pence announced the appointment of Verma, Administrator for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), and Robert Wilkie, Secretary for the Department of Veterans Affairs, to the task force, following which Verma has spearheaded various measures aimed at limiting the spread of the virus which has affected 159 people and killed 11 in the US.
"The White House Coronavirus Task Force has been working every single day to ensure the health, safety & well-being of the American people," US Vice President Mike Pence tweeted.
"Today, we made good progress in combatting the spread of the Coronavirus and added key members, @SeemaCMS and @SecWilkie, to the Task Force," he said.
Specifically, CMS issued a call to action to health care providers across the country to ensure they were implementing their infection control procedures, which they are required to maintain at all times.
“All health care providers must immediately review their procedures to ensure compliance with CMS’ infection control requirements, as well as the guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). We must continue working together to keep American patients and residents safe and healthy and prevent the spread of COVID-19,” Verma said.
The CMS is coordinating the US’ national response to the COVID-19 outbreak through liaisons with CDC in Atlanta, the US government and medical facilities across the country.