Bill Gates Worries 'We're Making Same Mistakes' Prepping For Next Pandemic — Wants This Done Instead

Microsoft co-founder and philanthropist Bill Gates said on Sunday that fighting disease ought to be akin to fighting fires.

What Happened: Gates said in “The Next Pandemic” newsletter that such outbreaks, like fires, not only pose a threat to a single home but to an entire community. 

"When the World Health Organization first described COVID-19 as a pandemic just over three years ago, it marked the culmination of a collective failure to prepare for pandemics, despite many warnings. And I worry that we’re making ‌‌the same mistakes again," said Gates in his column for the New York Times.

“The world hasn’t done as much to get ready for the next pandemic as I’d hoped. But ‌‌it’s not too late to stop history from repeating itself. The world needs a well-funded system that is ready to spring into action at a moment’s notice when danger emerges. ‌We need a fire department for pandemics.”

Gates said that COVID-19 had demonstrated that the pandemic was a “trillion-dollar” problem and mitigating it shouldn’t depend on volunteers. 

Why It Matters: Gates called for a professional corps from every country and region and said a way needs to be found to compensate them for the time they spend preparing and responding to transnational threats.

The billionaire expressed optimism about a network being built by the World Health Organization called the “Global Health Emergency Corps.”

"We can’t afford to get caught flat-footed again. The world must take action now to make sure COVID-19 becomes the last pandemic,” Gates said.

During the early days of the pandemic, Gates turned the entire focus of The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to fight the pandemic, saying that COVID-19 “doesn’t obey border laws.”

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