President Joe Biden is expected to name Jeff Zients, who previously served as the nation's COVID-19 response coordinator, as the next White House chief of staff, officials familiar with the decision told The New York Times on Jan. 22.
Mr. Zients will replace Ron Klain, who has served as chief of staff since January 2021. Mr. Klain plans to step down sometime following the president's Feb. 7 State of the Union address, according to The New York Times and CNN.
Mr. Zients, an entrepreneur and management consultant, served as COVID-19 response coordinator in the beginning of President Biden's current term.
As response coordinator, he led the Biden administration's pandemic response team through several large-scale public health efforts, including the vaccination of hundreds of millions of people and the distribution of free at-home rapid tests.
In March, Ashish Jha, MD, was tapped by the Biden administration to replace Mr. Zients as COVID-19 response coordinator. Mr. Zients continued to work with the White House related to staffing matters, according to The New York Times.
Mr. Zients' expected appointment as chief of staff, first reported by The Washington Post, comes as President Biden is expected to kick off his reelection campaign in the coming weeks.