Jay Butler, MD, FIDSA, is an infectious diseases physician, epidemiologist and public health leader whose collaborative approach during public health emergencies has been instrumental in formulating effective responses during challenging times.
He has held leadership roles in several emergency responses, including during the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s response to bioterrorist anthrax in 2001, the SARS outbreak in 2003 and the COVID-19 pandemic. From April 2019 to January 2023, he served as deputy director for infectious diseases at CDC and then as associate director for infectious diseases in CDC’s Office of Readiness and Response from February 2023 to May 2025.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Dr. Butler coordinated biweekly calls between the IDSA Executive Committee and CDC task force members to ensure IDSA could assist in disseminating CDC’s message in a factual and impactful way to Society members and the public. His interest in the “on-the-ground” insights from IDSA helped shape CDC guidance. He invited CDC experts who were working on new data and proposed guidance to these meetings with IDSA, resulting in a more informed public health response in a time of public distrust and misinformation.
Dr. Butler also worked closely with IDSA during the mpox and H5N1 influenza emergencies, including coordinating biweekly calls.
An experienced public sector executive and public health professional, Dr. Butler has held multiple leadership roles in Alaska, including commissioner for health and social services in 2018, chief medical officer (2014-2019 and 2007-2009), state epidemiologist (2005-2007) and senior director of the Division of Community Health Services for the Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium (2010-2014). From 1998 to 2005, Dr. Butler was director of CDC’s Arctic Investigations in Anchorage. Dr. Butler completed more than 22 years in the Commissioned Corps of the U.S. Public Health Service, from which he retired at the rank of captain in 2012.
He has authored or co-authored over 150 scientific papers, reviews and book chapters and is an adjunct assistant professor of medicine at the Emory University School of Medicine. A weekly hour-long call-in radio show, “Line One, Your Health Connection,” that he co-hosted was carried statewide on the Alaska Public Radio Network. In addition to his focus on infectious diseases, he has made important contributions to public health approaches to reduce harms associated with addiction and to address the health needs of those experiencing homelessness and incarceration.
For his leadership at CDC during multiple public health emergencies, his collaborative approach to emergency response and his efforts to bring the expertise of IDSA and its members into CDC’s decision-making at critical times, the Society is proud to honor Dr. Butler with a 2025 Society Citation Award.