The looming nightmare is what Osterholm calls the Big One — “the disaster, the catastrophe, the cataclysm, that haunts the midnight of every responsible epidemiologist’s soul.” Yes, science delivered astonishing breakthroughs in record time — vaccines, antivirals, diagnostic tools — but Osterholm insists technology alone can’t save us: “Regardless of how much vaccine and medical counter-measure progress has been made when the Big One hits, a robust and effective response will only be possible if public health officials and government leaders work together for a common goal, admitting what we don’t know.” And if the next outbreak is met with the same delay, confusion and politics that marked COVID, the damage will multiply long before science has a chance to catch up.
Author: Eric Spitznagel
Published at: 2025-09-07 22:00:05
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