The September 11th attacks and the 2001 anthrax attacks occurred while Katz was studying at Princeton.[1] In response to the anthrax attacks, Katz authored a working paper outlining the threat of biological weapons over time, as well as the public health infrastructure necessary to effectively detect and respond to an attack.[3] The attacks also led to increased interest and funding support for biosecurity, which enabled her to do an internship at the Defense Intelligence Agency in Washington, DC. There, she was given access to documentation on an agent of Soviet-backed toxin warfare known as "yellow rain", which ultimately became the subject of her doctoral dissertation carried out under the mentorship of Burton Singer.[1] Her thesis, entitled Yellow rain revisited: Lessons learned for the investigation of chemical and biological weapons allegations evaluated yellow rain as a case study in chemical and biological weapons allegations, as well as for evaluating the protocols used to mitigate proliferation of such warfare.[4]
Career
Katz began consulting for the United States Department of State in September 2004, working there until 2019.[1] She specialized in issues related to the Biological Weapons Convention, a disarmament treaty signed 1975 to ban biological warfare.[5] Since 2007, Katz has also worked on implementing the International Health Regulations (IHR), which are a legally binding instrument of international law to promote international cooperation and help countries prepare for and respond to public-health emergencies.[6]
During her tenure at the State Department, Katz also became an associate professor at George Washington University from 2006 to 2016. In July 2016, she began an appointment associate professor position at Georgetown University and was promoted to professor in July 2019. There, she also became the director for the newly formed Center for Global Health Science and Security and has overseen the launch of the center's Masters program.[7]
In the wake of the 2019 Ebola virus disease outbreak in Tanzania, Katz also advocated to address gaps in the IHR and convene regular review conferences to discuss the potential for outbreaks, thus bolstering the ability of the World Health Organization to address emerging epidemics proactively.[5][8] In light of the emerging COVID-19 pandemic, Katz has again advocated for stronger international regulations to more effectively address outbreaks.[9][10] In late January 2020, she advocated that the WHO should declare COVID-19 a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC) as a signal to the international community to launch a coordinated public health response.[11] She and megacity expert Robert Muggah also co-authored recommendations for how to evaluate the preparedness of cities to address and mitigate infectious disease outbreaks.[12][13]
Katz joined on a panel discussion with the Atlantic Council to discuss how health attaché can elevate global health diplomacy for a concept floated by Dr Edmond Fernandes - a senior fellow with the Atlantic Council.[19]
Selected publications
"The novel COVID-19 originating in Wuhan, China: challenges for global health governance." JAMA 2020;323(8):709-710. doi:10.1001/jama.2020.1097
"Defining Health Diplomacy: Changing Demands in the Era of Globalization." Milbank Quarterly Sep 2011; 89(3): 503–523. doi:10.1111/j.1468-0009.2011.00637.x
^Katz, Rebecca (2005). Yellow rain revisited: Lessons learned for the investigation of chemical and biological weapons allegations (PhD thesis). Princeton University. ProQuest305421187.