As COVID-19 emergency ends, CDC czar Rochelle Walensky resigns from Biden administration

 WASHINGTON — Dr. Rochelle Walensky is stepping down as director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, President Joe Biden announced Friday.

Her departure comes as the federal government is winding down its response to the coronavirus pandemic.

The public health emergency that was declared in January 2020 is ending May 11. The World Health Organization said Friday that COVID-19 no longer qualifies as a global emergency.

In announcing Walensky's departure, Biden said she led a complex organization that was on the frontlines of a once-in-a-generation pandemic — and she did it with honesty and integrity.

"She marshalled our finest scientists and public health experts to turn the tide on the urgent crises we’ve faced," Biden said in a statement.

In her letter to Biden, Walensky expressed “mixed feelings” about the decision, but said the nation is at a moment of transition as emergency declarations come to an end.

According to CDC officials, June 30 is Walensky's last day.

Contributing: Associated Press