Gayle Smith speaks at the State Department in Washington, U.S. April 5, 2021, after U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced her appointment as the new State Department Coordinator for Global COVID Response and Health Security. REUTERS Al Drago Pool
WASHINGTON, Nov 30 Reuters -- The global COVID-19 response coordinator of the Biden administration, Gayle Smith, has left the position after eight months, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Tuesday, just as the world grapples with the new Omicron variant of the coronaviruses.
The detection of a new variant that may be more transmissible than other forms of the virus has resulted in new travel restrictions, including by the United States, and spooked markets. A State Department spokeswoman said Smith had been on temporary leave from her role as chief executive of the ONE Campaign, a global nonprofit focused on poverty and public health, and that she was expected to return to that role for some time.
The department intends to announce a new coordinator soon, a spokeswoman said.
Smith, a former U.S. Agency for International Development USAID coordinator during Barack Obama administration, was appointed in April to lead U.S vaccine diplomacy efforts after President Joe Biden pledged to share vaccine doses with other countries to help limit COVID - 19 spread.
In a statement, Blinken said the role of Smith has been filled by acting coordinator Mary Beth Goodman, a member of the State Department's COVID 19 team.
In Smith's tenure, the United States donated more than 260 million vaccine doses to more than 110 countries, according to Blinken. Biden has pledged to distribute 1.2 billion doses.