Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Pandemic: CRS Experts

Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Pandemic: CRS Experts

Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Pandemic: CRS Experts

Updated May 19, 2020 (R46209)

On December 31, 2019, the World Health Organization (WHO) was informed of a cluster of pneumonia cases in Wuhan, China. Illnesses have since been linked to a new strain of coronavirus, designated Coronavirus disease 2019, or COVID-19. The disease has spread to many other countries, including the United States. The situation is rapidly changing, and both WHO and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) post frequent updates.¹ CRS products on the outbreak are available under the "Coronavirus Resources" banner at https://www.crs.gov/.

The following table lists names and contact information for CRS experts on policy concerns involving the COVID-19 outbreak. Policy areas identified include

public health, virology, and epidemiology;

international response activities;

domestic response activities; and

legal issues.

Legislative Issue

Name/Title

Phone

Email

Public Health—General

Sarah A. Lister
Specialist in Public Health and Epidemiology

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Kavya Sekar
Analyst in Health Policy

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Public Health—Disease and Epidemiology

Laurie A. Harris
Analyst in Science and Technology Policy

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Sarah A. Lister
Specialist in Public Health and Epidemiology

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

International Response Activities

General, outbreak response, GAVI, the Vaccine Alliance, vaccines and therapeutics

Sara M. Tharakan
Analyst in Global Health and International Development

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

General, World Health Organization (WHO), international authorities

Tiaji Salaam-Blyther
Specialist in Global Health

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

State Department

Cory R. Gill
Analyst in Foreign Affairs

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

General foreign assistance response

Emily M. Morgenstern
Analyst in Foreign Assistance and Foreign Policy

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Peace Corps response

Nick M. Brown
Analyst in Foreign Assistance and Foreign Policy

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Humanitarian issues and displaced populations

Rhoda Margesson
Specialist in International Humanitarian Policy

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Sanctions Policy

Dianne E. Rennack
Specialist in Foreign Policy Legislation

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

National security

Kathleen J. McInnis
Specialist in International Security

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

John W. Rollins
Specialist in Terrorism and National Security

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Biological Weapons Convention

Paul K. Kerr
Specialist in Nonproliferation

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Mary Beth D. Nikitin
Specialist in Nonproliferation

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

China: Political issues and foreign affairs

Susan V. Lawrence
Specialist in Asian Affairs

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

China: Supply chains, economics and trade

Karen M. Sutter
Specialist in Asian Trade and Finance

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Michael D. Sutherland
Analyst in International Trade and Finance

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

International economic effects

Andres B. Schwarzenberg
Analyst in International Trade and Finance

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Multilateral Economic Institutions: World Bank, International Monetary Fund

Martin A. Weiss
Specialist in International Trade and Finance

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Rebecca M. Nelson
Specialist in International Trade and Finance

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Legal and illegal wildlife trade and zoonotic diseases

Pervaze A. Sheikh
Specialist in Natural Resources Policy

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Katarina C. O'Regan
Analyst in Foreign Policy

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Domestic Response Activities

Economics and Employment

Economics: Consumer Finance and Credit Reporting

Cheryl R. Cooper
Analyst in Financial Economics

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Andrew P. Scott
Analyst in Financial Economics

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Economics: Economic effects

Marc Labonte
Specialist in Macroeconomic Policy

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Economics: Tax and spending options

Mark P. Keightley
Specialist in Economics

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Don Marples
Specialist in Public Finance

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Molly F. Sherlock
Specialist in Public Finance

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Economics: Small Business Administration (SBA)

Bruce R. Lindsay
Analyst in American National Government

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Robert Jay Dilger
Senior Specialist in American National Government

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Employment, Labor: Unemployment Insurance (UI), Disaster Unemployment Assistance (DUA)

Katelin P. Isaacs
Specialist in Income Security

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Julie M. Whittaker
Specialist in Income Security

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Employment, Labor: Occupational safety and health, workers' compensation

Scott D. Szymendera
Analyst in Disability Policy

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Employment, Labor:
State Temporary Disability Insurance

Will Morton
Analyst in Disability Policy

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Immigration and Criminal Justice

Criminal Justice: Health Care in Jails and Prisons

Nathan James
Analyst in Crime Policy

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Criminal Justice: COVID-19 Related Cybercrime and Fraud

Kristin Finklea
Specialist in Domestic Security

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Immigration: Eligibility for Public Benefits and Public Charge

Abigail F. Kolker
Analyst in Immigration Policy

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Immigration: Health Care Immigration Detention

Audrey Singer
Specialist in Immigration Policy

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Immigration: Border screening, Customs and Border Protection (CBP), Detention and Removal, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)

Audrey Singer
Specialist in Immigration Policy

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Immigration: Foreign Health Care Workers

Jill H. Wilson
Analyst in Immigration Policy

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Immigration: Non-Immigrant Visas

Jill H. Wilson
Analyst in Immigration Policy

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Immigration: Temporary Worker Programs (H2A and H2B)

Andorra Bruno
Specialist in Immigration Policy

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Immigration: Immigrant Visas

William A. Kandel
Analyst in Immigration Policy

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Industry

Agriculture: Markets and USDA Income Support Programs

Randy Schnepf
Specialist in Agricultural Policy

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Agriculture: Livestock, Meat, and Dairy

Joel Greene
Analyst in Agricultural Policy

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Agriculture: USDA, Farm Credits and Loans, Section 32 Commodity Purchases

James Monke
Specialist in Agricultural Policy

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Agriculture: Produce and Specialty Crops

Renee Johnson
Specialist in Agricultural Policy

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Transportation: Aviation

Rachel Y. Tang
Analyst in Transportation and Industry

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Bart Elias
Specialist in Aviation Policy

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Broadband and Digital Divide

Colby Leigh Rachfal
Analyst in Telecommunications Policy

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Federal Communications Commission

Angele A. Gilroy
Specialist in Telecommunications Policy

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Colby Leigh Rachfal
Analyst in Telecommunications Policy

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Critical Infrastructure

Brian E. Humphreys
Analyst in Science and Technology Policy

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Legal

Isolation and Quarantine

Edward C. Liu
Legislative Attorney

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Emergency Authorities

Jennifer K. Elsea
Legislative Attorney

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Health: Vaccines, Treatments, Patent Issues

Kevin J. Hickey
Legislative Attorney

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Immigration: Border Screening, Customs and Border Protection (CBP)

Ben Harrington
Legislative Attorney

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Procurement, Defense Production Act

David H. Carpenter
Legislative Attorney

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Medicare and Medicaid

Health: Medicare and Medicaid Oversight

Cliff Binder
Analyst in Health Care Financing

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Health: Medicare and Medicaid Part B Prescription Drugs

Cliff Binder
Analyst in Health Care Financing

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Health: Medicaid and CHIP Eligibility and Benefits

Evelyne P. Baumrucker
Specialist in Health Care Financing

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Health: Medicaid and CHIP Financing

Alison Mitchell
Specialist in Health Care Financing

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Health: Telehealth Medicare

Jim Hahn
Specialist in Health Care Financing

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Health: Telehealth Medicaid

Evelyne P. Baumrucker
Specialist in Health Care Financing

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Health: Medicare Physician Issues

Jim Hahn
Specialist in Health Care Financing

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Health: Medicare Hospital Payments

Marco A. Villagrana
Analyst in Health Care Financing

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Health: Medicare Ambulance Payments

Marco A. Villagrana
Analyst in Health Care Financing

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Health: Medicare Advantage

Paulette C. Morgan
Specialist in Health Care Financing

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Health: Nursing home and home health agency oversight

Phoenix Voorhies
Analyst in Health Care Financing

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Nutrition Programs and Income Security

Food: Child nutrition programs during school closures, The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP)

Kara Clifford Billings
Analyst in Social Policy

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Food: Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC)

Randy Alison Aussenberg
Specialist in Nutrition Assistance Policy

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Paid and Unpaid Leave

Sarah A. Donovan
Specialist in Labor Policy

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Payments to Social Security and Certain Other Federal Beneficiaries

William R. Morton
Analyst in Income Security

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Paul S. Davies
Specialist in Income Security

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Payments to Veterans

Heather M. Salazar
Analyst in Veterans Policy

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Retirement: Withdrawals, required distributions, and pension funding relief

John J. Topoleski
Specialist in Income Security

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Elizabeth A. Myers
Analyst in Income Security

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Temporary Assistance: Short-term loans for repatriated U.S. citizens

Karen E. Lynch
Specialist in Social Policy

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Other

Federal Manufacturing Research and Development

John F. Sargent, Jr.
Specialist in Science and Technology Policy

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Child care

Karen E. Lynch
Specialist in Social Policy

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

2020 Census

Jennifer D. Williams
Specialist in American National Government

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Effects on Federally Funded Intramural and Extramural R&D

John F. Sargent, Jr.
Specialist in Science and Technology Policy

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Daniel Morgan
Specialist in Science and Technology Policy

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Defense Production Act

Michael H. Cecire
Analyst in Intergovernmental Relations and Economic Development Policy

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Heidi M. Peters
Analyst in U.S. Defense Acquisition Policy

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

School and University Closures and Online Operations

Rebecca R. Skinner
Specialist in Education Policy

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Alexandra Hegji
Analyst in Social Policy

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Cassandria Dortch
Specialist in Education Policy

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Congressional Operations

Ida A. Brudnick
Specialist on the Congress

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

R. Eric Petersen
Specialist in American National Government

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Congressional Procedure

Chris Davis
Analyst on Congress and the Legislative Process

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Elizabeth Rybicki
Specialist on Congress and the Legislative Process

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Judicial Operations

Barry J. McMillion
Analyst in American National Government

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Tax Credits, Paid Sick Leave, and Paid Family and Medical Leave

Molly F. Sherlock
Specialist in Public Finance

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Election Administration and Voting

R. Sam Garrett
Specialist in American National Government

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Emergency Management: Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)

Bruce R. Lindsay
Analyst in American National Government

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Erica A. Lee
Analyst in Emergency Management and Disaster Recovery

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Elizabeth M. Webster
Analyst in Emergency Management and Disaster Recovery

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Diane P. Horn
Analyst in Flood Insurance and Emergency Management

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Emergency Management: Business interruption insurance, pandemic insurance

Diane P. Horn
Analyst in Flood Insurance and Emergency Management

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Baird Webel
Acting Section Research Manager

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Private Health Insurance

Health: Private health insurance, health tax credits

Bernadette Fernandez
Specialist in Health Care Financing

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Health: Private health insurance, covered benefits, exchanges

Vanessa C. Forsberg
Analyst in Health Care Financing

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Health: Private health insurance, surprise medical billing, employer sponsored coverage, including COBRA coverage, health related tax-advantaged accounts (e.g., HSAs, FSAs)

Ryan J. Rosso
Analyst in Health Care Financing

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Health: Private health insurance, surprise medical billing, telehealth

Noah D. Isserman
Analyst in Health Care Financing

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Public Health

Health: Public health, Health and Human Services (HHS), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), funding

Sarah A. Lister
Specialist in Public Health and Epidemiology

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Kavya Sekar
Analyst in Health Policy

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Laurie A. Harris
Analyst in Science and Technology Policy

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Health: Behavioral health

Johnathan H. Duff
Analyst in Health Policy

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Health: Medical countermeasures (tests, vaccines, treatments, patent issues)

Agata Dabrowska
Analyst in Health Policy

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Amanda K. Sarata
Specialist in Health Policy

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Frank Gottron
Specialist in Science and Technology Policy

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Kavya Sekar
Analyst in Health Policy

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Laurie A. Harris
Analyst in Science and Technology Policy

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Health: Biodefense

Frank Gottron
Specialist in Science and Technology Policy

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Health: Drug Enforcement Administration's Regulatory Role

Lisa N. Sacco
Analyst in Illicit Drugs and Crime Policy

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Drinking Water Quality and Supply

Elena H. Humphreys
Analyst in Environmental Policy

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Mary Tiemann
Specialist in Environmental Policy

[phone number scrubbed]

[email address scrubbed]

Author Contact Information

Matthew B. Barry, Section Research Manager ([email address scrubbed], [phone number scrubbed])

Footnotes

1.

WHO, "Coronavirus disease (COVID-2019) situation reports," https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019/situation-reports; and CDC, "Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Situation Summary," https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/summary.html.