Home Economy Government McKee joins governors’ public health alliance

McKee joins governors’ public health alliance

By

Katie Castellani

-

10/16/2025

sUE2vWH3-McKee-2-1 — GOV. DANIEL J. McKee was one of dozens of governors to join a nonpartisan alliance meant to protect public health and boost policy coordination across state lines./PBN FILE PHOTO/MICHAEL SALERNO

PROVIDENCE – Gov. Daniel J. McKee joined dozens of Democratic governors Wednesday to create a nonpartisan alliance to protect public health and boost policy coordination across state lines. The Governors Public Health Alliance is expected to allow states to share data, align on public health guidance and act more efficiently in response to health threats,

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PROVIDENCE – Gov. Daniel J. McKee joined dozens of Democratic governors Wednesday to create a nonpartisan alliance to protect public health and boost policy coordination across state lines. The Governors Public Health Alliance is expected to allow states to share data, align on public health guidance and act more efficiently in response to health threats, according to McKee’s office. “Public health is the foundation of everything that makes our states strong: our economy, our schools, our families,” McKee said. “At a time when public health leadership from Washington, D.C. is increasingly unstable, we are committed to stepping up to create clear, coordinated leadership led by facts and science. I’m proud to join this alliance of fellow governors because when we work together, we get results, and that’s exactly what this moment demands.” Along with McKee, the alliance includes Massachusetts’ Gov. Maura Healey and governors of California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the U.S. territory of Guam, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Oregon and Washington. The alliance will serve as a hub for coordination among governors and state public health leaders as well as a cross-state liaison. Also, the alliance offers a way for governors to exchange ideas on best practices, coordinate policies and on issues like access to vaccines, emergency response and health security, according to McKee’s office. The governors’ alliance is supported by the nonpartisan nonprofit Governors Action alliance, or GovAct, which supports governors in protecting freedoms like public health. The new coalition is also advised by public health experts, including former U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention director Dr. Mandy Cohen, former Alaska chief medical officer Dr. Anne Zink and Dr. Raj Panjabi, former White House senior director for global health and biodefense. GovAct’s bipartisan advisory board, made up of former governors and federal officials, will provide counsel to the alliance. “Governors are being asked to do more with less – daily. And yet the challenges keep growing,” said Julia Spiegel, founder and CEO of GovAct. “GovAct is here to help bring capacity, expertise, and know-how so that governors have the tools they need to act decisively, together, to protect the health and well-being of their people.” States in the alliance have already got to work sharing ideas of best practices, getting briefings from public health experts and coordinating on executive actions governors can take, including standing orders or ways to preserve access to COVID-19 vaccines. McKee’s office said the alliance complements the existing public health coalitions, including the Northeast Public Health Collaborative, which Rhode Island and Massachusetts are part of, as well as the West Coast Health Alliance. The Northeast and West Coast groups both formed earlier this year and announced COVID-19 vaccine recommendations that advise broader access to the shot than guidance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, which restricted vaccine eligibility. Historically, states have usually followed the FDA’s and CDC’s guidance on vaccine policy. But many now have formed their own policies since Robert F. Kennedy Jr., known for his anti-vaccine stance, was sworn in as U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary this year. President Donald J. Trump selected Kennedy for the role in 2024 and his nomination was confirmed by the Senate. While Northeast state leaders didn’t specifically mention federal leaders or health policy when announcing the coalition, governors from the West Coast group called out Trump’s management of federal health agencies as the reason for creating the group. “President Trump’s mass firing of CDC doctors and scientists – and his blatant politicization of the agency –is a direct assault on the health and safety of the American people. The CDC has become a political tool that increasingly peddles ideology instead of science, ideology that will lead to severe health consequences,” Governors of California, Washington and Oregon said in a joint statement Sept. 3. Katie Castellani is a PBN staff writer. You may contact her at Castellani@PBN.com.