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Saskia Popescu

@saskiapopescu.bsky.social

12K followers 360 following 530 posts

Infectious disease epidemiologist & global heath security strategist | GHSN CEO |UMB Asst Prof working in pandemic prep, biosurveillance, One Health, AMR, BW & biosecurity. ELBI & CFR ☣️ Biopreparedness & biothreat guru - movie aficionado. Views=my own

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Saskia Popescu @saskiapopescu.bsky.social · Nov 28

Hello lovely folks! I’m an infectious disease epi & infection preventionist who focuses on global health security. From healthcare biopreparedness to the film industry COVID response, & now back to biosecurity policy and academia, I’m your person for outbreaks, movies trivia, & pandemic prep. ☣️👋🏻

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Saskia Popescu @saskiapopescu.bsky.social · 2d

Very important article and worth the read - Opinion | 6 U.S. surgeons general: RFK Jr. threatens the health of Americans - The Washington Post

Opinion | Six surgeons general: It’s our duty to warn the nation about RFK Jr.

We took an oath to declare dangers when we found them. We’re doing that again today.

www.washingtonpost.com

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Saskia Popescu @saskiapopescu.bsky.social · 2d

thebulletin.org/2025/10/how-...

How AI can—and cannot—improve verification of the Biological Weapons Convention

If President Donald Trump moves forward with his plan to use AI to verify compliance with the international bioweapons treaty, he'll face several technical and political challenges.

thebulletin.org

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Saskia Popescu @saskiapopescu.bsky.social · 3d

The NIH ordered me to stop my ‘dangerous’ gain-of-function research. It isn’t dangerous at all www.statnews.com/2025/10/06/g... via @statnews.com

The NIH ordered me to stop my ‘dangerous’ gain-of-function research. It isn’t dangerous at all

Safe gain-of-function research is necessary to identify new treatments for diseases like for tuberculosis — but the NIH has imposed unfounded stops.

www.statnews.com

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Saskia Popescu @saskiapopescu.bsky.social · 7d

Made to order bioweapon? AI-designed toxins slip through safety checks used by companies selling genes | Science | AAAS www.science.org/content/arti...

Made to order bioweapon? AI-designed toxins slip through safety checks used by companies selling genes

Researchers expose flaws in safeguards intended to block rogue actors from making bioweapons

www.science.org

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Saskia Popescu @saskiapopescu.bsky.social · 7d

Two former top NIH officials say they were forced out in retaliation for objecting to grant terminations www.statnews.com/2025/09/04/n... via @statnews.com

Two former top NIH officials say they were forced out in retaliation for objecting to grant terminations

Whistleblower complaints by two former top NIH officials offer their inside accounts of the Trump administration’s targeting of vaccine science.

www.statnews.com

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Saskia Popescu @saskiapopescu.bsky.social · 13d

Ffs - US measles cases top 1,500 as outbreaks grow in Utah and Arizona

US measles cases surpass 1,500 as outbreaks grow in parts of Utah and Arizona

A total of 1,514 measles cases have been confirmed in the United States as of Sept. 24, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

www.usatoday.com

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Reposted by Saskia Popescu

Tara C. Smith @aetiology.bsky.social · 15d

And remember, the reason he wanted separate vaccines wasn't due to any science, but because *he'd filed a patent application for a single measles vaccine*. It was just grifting.

Jonathan Howard @joho.bsky.social · 15d

Wakefield taking a victory lap.

Dr. Andy Wakefield &
@DrAndyWakefield
Follow
President Trump adopts Wakefield
recommendations on separating MMR and calls for major reforms in the childhood vaccine schedule.

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Saskia Popescu @saskiapopescu.bsky.social · 20d

This whole thread:

Nsikan Akpan @monscience.bsky.social · 20d

CDC’s ACIP members spent their second session COVID vaccines, ending today with four votes on new recommendations.

ACIP didn’t publicly post the text for the recs prior to the vote, and some members hadn’t read the text.

Folks should take note of what happened with votes 1, 3, and 4...

A Zoom meeting screen shows a slide titled “COVID-19 Vaccines – Vote #1.” The text recommends that the CDC improve informed consent processes by adding language accessible to patients and providers, describing at least six risks and uncertainties. On the right, two small video feeds show the ACIP committee in session and Dr. Cody Meissner speaking.

A Zoom meeting slide titled “COVID-19 Vaccines – Vote #2” states that the ACIP committee recommends state and local jurisdictions require a prescription for administering COVID-19 vaccines. Video feeds on the right show the ACIP committee at a conference table and Dr. Cody Meissner listening.

A slide titled “COVID-19 Vaccines – Vote #3” says the committee recommends that healthcare providers discuss risks and benefits of COVID-19 vaccination with patients, considering factors like age, prior infections, immunosuppression, and CDC-identified comorbidities. Informed consent should include benefits, risks, and uncertainties noted in vaccine information statements. On the right, the ACIP committee is seen at a meeting, with Dr. Cody Meissner speaking below.

A slide titled “COVID-19 Vaccines – Vote #4” recommends updating pediatric and adult immunization schedules. Adults 65 and older: vaccination based on individual decision-making. Individuals 6 months to 64 years: vaccination based on individual decision-making, favoring those at increased risk for severe COVID-19. A note clarifies this is also known as shared clinical decision-making. On the right, video feeds show the ACIP meeting and Dr. Cody Meissner.

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Reposted by Saskia Popescu

The Atlantic @theatlantic.com · 20d

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is stepping up his attack on vaccines in America. One group will bear the brunt of the changes more than others, writes Nicholas Florko:

The Kids Hit Hardest by RFK Jr.’s Anti-Vax Crusade

America is on the cusp of a two-tiered vaccine system.

bit.ly

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Saskia Popescu @saskiapopescu.bsky.social · 20d

State Department outlines plans to move from global health aid to self-reliance

thehill.com

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Saskia Popescu @saskiapopescu.bsky.social · 24d

How new technology could make it easier to identify covert bioweapons programs

A recent project asked what the telltale signs of a bioweapons program would be? There are gaps in the information members of the global bioweapons treaty have access to, but new approaches and techno...

thebulletin.org

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Saskia Popescu @saskiapopescu.bsky.social · Sep 10

Hell yes.

Fired CDC director who clashed with RFK Jr. set to testify in Senate

The hearing would give Susan Monarez a high-profile opportunity to respond to Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s claims about her ethics and their conversations about vaccines.

www.washingtonpost.com

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Reposted by Saskia Popescu

Lauren Weber @laurenweberhp.bsky.social · Sep 8

Meet the new vaccine panel advisors RFK Jr. is considering

Two urged removal of mRNA coronavirus vaccines. One said physicians “blindly believed” in them. Another said covid isn’t “scary” noting Jesus touched lepers

W @lenasun.bsky.social @washingtonpost.com www.washingtonpost.com/health/2025/...

RFK Jr. considers critics of coronavirus shots to join key vaccine panel

Two urged removal of mRNA coronavirus vaccines. One said physicians “blindly believed” in them. Another said covid isn’t “scary,” noting Jesus touched lepers.

www.washingtonpost.com

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Saskia Popescu @saskiapopescu.bsky.social · Sep 8

Dr. @angierasmussen.bsky.social breaking down current policies and the anti-vaccine trends/rhetoric within the US that will lead to significant global health ramifications - #19vaccinecongress

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Saskia Popescu @saskiapopescu.bsky.social · Sep 8

Learning from my favorite expert on infodemiology & public health @jessicamalaty.bsky.social at the #19VaccineCongress - discussing risk and creating healthier information ecosystems

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Saskia Popescu @saskiapopescu.bsky.social · Sep 7

Honored to be in Kyoto at the #19thVaccineCongress as an Assistant Editor but more importantly, as a public health practitioner working to strengthen global health security, which relies on the availability and accessibility of vaccines.

Angie Rasmussen @angierasmussen.bsky.social · Sep 6

My first year as co-EIC of Vaccine also means my first year co-chairing the #19VaccineCongress with Florian Krammer & Ivan Hung, w/ local chair Ken Ishii.

Vaccination has saved hundreds of millions of lives worldwide, but it now faces a grave threat from my home country.

19th Vaccine Congress
7-10 September 2025
Kyoto, Japan

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Saskia Popescu @saskiapopescu.bsky.social · Sep 3

As we enter the “fuck around and find out” public health era, it’s important to remember, people will be harmed..people will die. All of this is preventable.

Florida Says It Plans to End All Vaccine Mandates www.nytimes.com/2025/09/03/u...

Florida Says It Plans to End All Vaccine Mandates

www.nytimes.com

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Saskia Popescu @saskiapopescu.bsky.social · Sep 3

Snubbing Kennedy, States Announce Plans to Coordinate on Vaccines www.nytimes.com/2025/09/03/u...

Snubbing Kennedy, States Announce Plans to Coordinate on Vaccines

www.nytimes.com

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Saskia Popescu @saskiapopescu.bsky.social · Sep 2

Not sure who needs to hear this, but you can’t have an effective “biothreat radar system” (pathogen early warning system aka biosurveillance) if you decimate the CDC (capacity for detection, data analysis/dissemination, and response).
Sincerely,
a biosurveillance nerd/epi

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Saskia Popescu @saskiapopescu.bsky.social · Sep 1

We Ran the C.D.C.: Kennedy Is Endangering Every American’s Health 👇🏻

Opinion | We Ran the C.D.C.: Kennedy Is Endangering Every American’s Health

www.nytimes.com

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Saskia Popescu @saskiapopescu.bsky.social · Aug 31

Dismantling the public health system, removing nearly all its components until it’s unable to function, eroding trust in it, and breaking the people w/in it who dedicated their lives to it all, is simply not how you fix things. Chaos is not correction. (5/5)

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Saskia Popescu @saskiapopescu.bsky.social · Aug 31

What’s happening now though, is not how we make the world safer, people healthier, or the US more secure. We will undoubtedly see a rise in vaccine preventable diseases in schools/daycares, increasing outbreaks, & decreasing access to necessary medical resources. (4/5)

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Saskia Popescu @saskiapopescu.bsky.social · Aug 31

I can honestly say public health has work to do. We know this. We spend a lot of time doing after-action reviews and trust me, we know there are opportunities for improvement. But there is so much good - the things prevented you don’t see. The research we all benefit from (3/5)

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Saskia Popescu @saskiapopescu.bsky.social · Aug 31

The reality though, is that it widened so many existing inequities, gave a space for dis/misinformation, and fueled distrust in science/gvt health response. An exhausted, already under-resourced public health/health workforce found itself now struggling to recover (2/5)

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Saskia Popescu @saskiapopescu.bsky.social · Aug 31

US public health, global health sec, & science is facing unprecedented threats & intentional erosion. During COVID-19, I think so many of us felt that this horrific global event would bring us together - a pandemic requiring community partnership & trust in science. (1/5)

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