Margaret Chan Quotes

We are more capable of turning around our global health crisis than we think.

'Contagion' should serve as a wake-up call not only about the germs, but perhaps more importantly about the frailty of governance, nationally and worldwide.

History will not judge HIV/AIDS kindly... the harshest words will be reserved for how the world responded, or rather failed to respond, to the epidemic.

Pandemics happen. When they do, they change the world.

We deal with emergencies on a regular basis out here in the Plain States.

The fight against Ebola cannot undermine the fight against poverty.

There is something mighty suspicious about declaring an emergency for something that has yet to show itself to be a grand pandemic.

This is a historic moment in global public health, demonstrating the international will to tackle a threat to health head on.

I want to assure your excellency that I am occupying myself permanently and jointly with my team to achieve a solution as soon as possible to this crisis, the principal objective being the safeguarding of the health and life of those who are inside.

This syndrome, SARS, is now a worldwide health threat... The world needs to work together to find its cause, cure the sick and stop its spread.

American government has usually been pretty good in a crisis and pretty lousy at all other times.

Restricting behavior in a crises is hard to do.

The Ebola epidemic is the worst health emergency there has been in modern times.

The Ebola virus is unlike any health crisis we have ever experienced and needs a response unlike anything we have ever seen.

In addition to not stopping the spread of Ebola, isolating countries will make it harder to respond to Ebola, creating an even greater humanitarian and health care emergency. Importantly, isolating countries won't keep Ebola contained and away from American shores.

The Ebola epidemic was the most frightening outbreak I have witnessed in my lifetime, and I believe it was necessary to react globally as strongly as we did.

The response to coronavirus has shown what can be done when governments put their mind to it.

COVID-19 is a national crisis, and we need a national response to address it.

AIDS today in Africa is claiming more lives than the sum total of all wars, famines and floods and the ravages of such deadly diseases as malaria ... We must act now for the sake of the world.

While we won't be able to help the 10,000 people who died in last year's [Ebola] outbreak, we can do something to save untold numbers of lives in the future if NIH is working at full strength.

First there is the search and rescue phase that is now ending. It is a cruel reality.

The fact that there was no catastrophic pandemic in recent history does not mean there won't be another one. And we are certainly not prepared for the next pandemic.

It’s useful to compare our preparations for epidemics with our preparations for war.

You can't put a price tag on preparation for a pandemic.

It's critically important that people trust you during a public health crisis.