Vande Waa named to state Coronavirus Task Force
The task force will discuss developments and make recommendations to Gov. Kay Ivey.
John A. Vande Waa, D.O., Ph.D., professor of internal medicine at the University of South Alabama College of Medicine, is one of four infectious disease specialists serving on Gov. Kay Ivey’s 18-member task force to prevent the spread of the coronavirus in the state.
The task force will discuss developments and precautions on a routine basis and make recommendations to the governor as necessary, Ivey’s office said. State Health Officer Dr. Scott Harris will chair the group, and lead any public announcements and directives, the governor’s office said.
Board-certified in infectious disease, Vande Waa earned a medical degree from Michigan State University College of Osteopathic Medicine and completed both residency and fellowship training at the University of Wisconsin in Madison.
In addition to the governor, other members of the task force include Dr. Jeanne Marrazzo, director of the Division of Infectious Diseases at the UAB School of Medicine, Dr. Don Williamson, president and CEO of the Alabama Hospital Association and a former state health officer; Lt. Gov. Will Ainsworth; Senate President Pro Tem Del Marsh; House Speaker Mac McCutcheon; Senate Majority Leader Greg Reed; House Majority Leader Nathaniel Ledbetter; Senate Minority Leader Bobby Singleton; House Minority Leader Anthony Daniels; Alabama Nursing Home Association President Brandon Farmer; state Superintendent Eric Mackey; state Emergency Management Agency Director Brian Hastings; Alabama Law Enforcement Agency Secretary Hal Taylor; state Department of Commerce Secretary Greg Canfield; and state Department of Human Resources Commissioner Nancy Buckner.
