Biden names Trump-fired surgeon general as a head of his COVID-19 task force

President-elect Joe Biden has already selected the heads of his coronavirus task force, including the surgeon general who was fired soon after President Trump took office.

Vivek Murthy, who was the nation’s top doctor when Biden was vice president under President Barack Obama, will be named as one of the co-chairs along with former Food and Drug Administration Commissioner David Kessler, Biden’s deputy campaign manager, Kate Bedingfield, told NBC’s “Meet the Press” Sunday.

CNN, citing sources, reported Saturday that they would be joined by Yale University’s Dr. Marcella Nunez-Smith.

The rest of the task force — which Biden referred to in his victory speech on Saturday — will be formally confirmed Monday.

“The work starts right away,” Bedingfield said.

“People want the country to move forward,” she continued, adding that the election result proved that “people are hungry for change.”

“He’s going to begin transition work in earnest this week. He’ll be making calls, he’ll be making announcements to the American people, on how he’s going to make good on these campaign promises,” she said.

Murthy — who was born in the UK to Indian immigrants — had been named for a four-year term as surgeon general in 2014 by Obama, before Trump forced Murthy to resign in April 2016.

Kessler was appointed as FDA commissioner by President George H.W. Bush and served in the position through President Bill Clinton’s first term in the White House.

The pair have both already been “advising [Biden] and our campaign since this virus emerged back in March,” Bedingfield said while confirming their new appointments.