The 2020 Lasker Awards and the COVID-19 Pandemic

The 2020 Lasker Awards will not be given this year owing to the global coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.One way to help fill this void is to reflect and celebrate the major advances in infectious disease research that have been honored with Lasker Awards over the last 75 years.Since 1946, when the Lasker Awards were first presented, 29 awards have been bestowed on 5 organizations and 35 individuals who expanded scientific knowledge concerning how viruses and other infectious pathogens cause disease (7 awards), how infections can be treated with drugs (7 awards), and how infections can be prevented with vaccines (15 awards).