Nirav Shah says he's stepping down from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention at the end of the month.
Shah is the former director of the Maine CDC who gained widespread popularity during the COVID pandemic as he guided Mainers through regular briefings.
He left his state post in 2023 to become the principal deputy director of the US CDC.
Shah says he made the decision to leave the federal agency independently. He says he's uncertain what his next career step will be, but he and his family plan to move back to Maine.