Heidi J. Larson

Senior Associate (Non-resident), Global Health Policy Center
Heidi J. Larson

Dr. Heidi J. Larson is an anthropologist and director of The Vaccine Confidence Project™; professor of anthropology, risk, and decision science, Department of Infectious Disease Epidemiology, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine; clinical professor, Institute of Health Metrics and Evaluation, University of Washington; guest professor at the University of Antwerp, Belgium; and a former fellow at the Chatham House Centre on Global Health Security. Dr. Larson previously headed global immunization communication at UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF), chaired Gavi’s Advocacy Task Force, and served on the World Health Organization Strategic Advisory Group of Experts (WHO SAGE) Working Group on Vaccine Hesitancy. The Vaccine Confidence Project™ is a WHO Centre of Excellence on addressing vaccine hesitancy. Dr. Larson’s research focuses on the analysis of social and political factors that can affect uptake of health interventions and influence policies. Her particular interest is on risk and rumor management from clinical trials to delivery and building public trust. She is principal investigator for a global study on acceptance of vaccination during pregnancy; an EU-funded project on the deployment, acceptance, and compliance of Ebola vaccines in Africa; and a global study on public sentiments and emotions around current and potential measures to contain and treat Covid-19. She is author of STUCK: How Vaccine Rumors Start—and Why They Don’t Go Away (Oxford University Press, 2020).

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The CommonHealth

Dr. Heidi Larson, LSHTM: “People are struggling to make sense of it.”

Dr. Heidi Larson, expert on vaccine confidence at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and CSIS Senior Associate, speaks on the external world’s reaction to the changes in the U.S. in vaccine policy, the scientific R&D biomedical enterprise, and public health.

Podcast Episode by J. Stephen Morrison and Heidi J. Larson — August 7, 2025

The CommonHealth

A New Era in Health Security

The CSIS Bipartisan Alliance for Global Health Security presses the administration and Congress to strengthen health security investments to ensure Americans remain protected, U.S. innovation remains competitive, and U.S. programs become more efficient and sustainable.

Brief by J. Stephen Morrison, Michaela Simoneau, Katherine E. Bliss, Enoh T. Ebong, Elizabeth "Beth" Cameron, Paul Friedrichs, Stephanie Psaki, Stewart Simonson, Thomas Cullison, Nikolaj Gilbert, Heidi J. Larson, Raj Panjabi, Carolyn Reynolds, Leonard Rubenstein, and Jeffrey Sturchio — July 11, 2025

The CommonHealth

Dr. Heidi Larson, LSHTM: "Public health cannot rest on its laurels."

The renowned expert on vaccine confidence, Dr. Heidi Larson, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, explains why there has been a precipitous escalation in the past four years, especially among 18-24 year-olds, of vaccine skepticism and resistance.

Podcast Episode by J. Stephen Morrison and Heidi J. Larson — January 23, 2025

The CommonHealth

Why Vaccine Confidence Matters to National Security

The CSIS-LSHTM High-Level Panel on Vaccine Confidence and Misinformation argues that vaccine confidence is essential to mitigating the Covid-19 pandemic and ensuring national security, and recommends bolstering confidence-building efforts in five critical areas.

Report by Katherine E. Bliss, J. Stephen Morrison, and Heidi J. Larson — May 7, 2021

Vaccine Confidence & National Security in the Covid-19 Crisis

This report breaks down the findings of the CSIS-LSHTM High-Level Panel on Vaccine Confidence and Misinformation, with a series of three videos that explore how vaccine hesitancy and misinformation manifest in the United States, and how they impact national security.

Report by Katherine E. Bliss, Heidi J. Larson, and J. Stephen Morrison — May 5, 2021

Trusting a Covid-19 Vaccine: What’s Next?

Please join the CSIS-LSHTM High-Level Panel on Vaccine Confidence and Misinformation for a panel discussion on the federal reforms needed to strengthen confidence in vaccines, including Covid-19 vaccines, in the United States.

Event — April 9, 2021

The Power of Belief: What Polio and Ebola have in common

The myriad of challenges contributing to the persisting spread of Ebola in West Africa – the biggest Ebola outbreak since the viral haemorrhagic fever was discovered in 1976 – echo some of the biggest obstacles which continue to challenge the global efforts to eradicate polio.

Blog Post by Heidi J. Larson — September 4, 2014