Dr Arlene King

Dr Arlene King is an internationally recognized expert in public health, immunization, communicable disease prevention and control, pandemic and emergency preparedness.  She is an Adjunct Professor at the Dalla Lana School of Public Health at the University of Toronto, Ontario, Canada and consultant in public health and preventive medicine. 

During the COVID-19 pandemic, she has served as the Executive Medical Director, COVID-19 Immunization Strategy, Public Health Agency of Canada and as a Medical Health Officer, Fraser Regional Health Authority, British Columbia (BC), Canada in support of the regional pandemic emergency response. 

Dr King led Ontario, Canada’s public health sector as the Chief Medical Officer of Health (CMOH) from 2009 to 2014. She also served as the provincial/territorial co-chair of the Pan-Canadian Public Health Network Council and a member of the Council of Chief Medical Officers of Health of Canada. Prior to serving as Ontario’s CMOH, Dr King was the inaugural Director General of the Centre for Immunization and Respiratory Infectious Diseases at the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) and held several other positions with Health Canada/PHAC, including the position of Director General, Pandemic Preparedness.  

She is a member of the World Health Organization (WHO) Global Certification Commission (GCC) for Polio Eradication, Chair of GCC Containment Working Group, member of the WHO African Region Certification Commission for Polio Eradication, Chair of the WHO Americas Regional Certification Commission for the Polio Endgame and member of the Technical Advisory Group of Experts on Immunization for the Americas.  She has served as an Advisor the WHO for many years, including as a member of the International Health Regulation Review Committee following H1N1 influenza pandemic (2009) and in support of pandemic preparedness.