CDC’s “Our Global Voices”: Thirty years of a Unique Partnership to End Polio — GPEI
John F. Vertefeuille, incident manager for the CDC Polio Response and branch chief of the Polio Eradication Branch in the Global Immunization Division at CDC’s Center for Global Health, discusses the current state of polio eradication efforts and highlights the Global Polio Eradication Initiative’s (GPEI) role in ending the disease. Vertefeuille writes, “As we celebrate World Polio Day and the 30th Anniversary of GPEI, remember that just because we’ve seen a 99 percent decline in annual polio cases doesn’t signal success. It represents a successful milestone that encourages us to finish strong and race through that last mile. Now is not the time to relax, but to accelerate our pursuit of a polio-free world” (10/19).