Crystal Watson

Dr. Crystal Watson is a Senior Scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security and Assistant Professor in the Department of Environmental Health and Engineering. Her research focuses on public health risk assessment, decision making during public health emergencies, public health and healthcare preparedness and response, biodefense, and emerging infectious diseases.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Dr. Watson has been an author or co-author on a series of influential reports that are guiding the US response, including National Coronavirus Response: A Roadmap to Reopening; Public Health Principles for a Phased Reopening During COVID-19: Guidance for Governors; Interim Framework for COVID-19 Vaccine Allocation and Distribution in the United States; Resetting Our Response: Changes Needed in the US Approach to COVID-19; COVID-19 Planning Guide and Self-Assessment for Higher Education; Digital Contact Tracing for Pandemic Response: Ethics and Governance Guidance; and Operational Toolkit for Businesses Considering Reopening or Expanding Operations in COVID-19. She is the lead author on the report titled A National Plan to Enable Comprehensive COVID-19 Case Finding and Contact Tracing in the US which put forth the first call for and plan to expand contact tracing in the US to address COVID-19.