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Dozens of state and local health officials have left their posts since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic - in part due to burnout as well as ongoing politically charged conflicts over mask use and lock downs. NYC's public health commissioner was replaced last week after months of friction with the police department, while California's public health director resigned on Sunday after technical issues emerged that delayed virus testing results that would have impacted the re-opening of schools and businesses. Ohio's health director resigned in June when armed protesters showed up at her residence; Ohio was the first state to shut down school statewide. Some officials have been terminated due to poor leadership; others have left due to feeling overworked and underpaid in a high stress role. Some officials have reported death threats and intimidation; others have seen their addresses posted on social media and personal property vandalized during this time period. At least 49 public health leaders have quit, retired or been let go since April across 23 states, with 20 occurring since June alone. Since 2010, spending on state public health has dropped 16% per capita, and at least 38,000 state and local public health jobs have disappeared since the 2008 recession, leaving an inadequate workforce to deal with the current crisis.