On this sponsored episode of Next Question with Katie Couric, Katie sits down with Dr. Julie L. Gerberding, the executive vice president and chief patient officer of the biopharmaceutical company Merck. As a company with a long legacy of research in infectious disease, Merck has been in the thick of the COVID crisis, mobilizing its scientific expertise to help address the pandemic. Katie and Dr. Gerberding talk about the waning months of this historic pandemic, the lingering concerns about vaccinations and variants, COVID’s lasting impact on public health and how we can better prepare for emerging diseases. Merck is a partner of Katie Couric Media.