
FAUCI FORTUNE SOARS: Ex-COVID Chief Has Reportedly Earned $12.5 Million Since Leaving Government
Dr. Anthony Fauci has nearly doubled his personal fortune since retiring from the federal government at the end of 2022, earning an estimated $12.5 million through book deals, speaking engagements, academic appointments, awards, royalties, and a record-setting government pension, according to a New York Post analysis.
Financial disclosure records obtained by the government watchdog group Open The Books show that Fauci earned approximately $3.5 million during his first year after leaving public service. The disclosures span 141 pages and detail the former government official’s post-retirement income.
Since then, Fauci’s earnings have continued to climb through a combination of lucrative speaking fees, publishing deals, academic work, financial awards, and what the report describes as a taxpayer-funded retirement package worth roughly $350,000 annually.
Fauci retired from government service in December 2022 after serving as director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) for 38 years. At the time of his departure, he was the highest-paid federal employee in the United States, earning an annual salary of $480,654—roughly $80,000 more than the President.
Public records obtained by Minnesota’s Alpha News revealed that Fauci received $75,000 for a speech delivered at the University of Minnesota in April. Industry estimates place his standard speaking fee between $50,000 and $100,000 per appearance. Since 2024, he has reportedly participated in at least 18 public speaking engagements, generating an estimated minimum of $900,000.
His next scheduled appearance is set for September in Wilton Manors, Florida, where tickets to hear him speak are selling for $160 each.
Reflecting on his post-government life in his 2024 memoir, On Call: A Doctor’s Journey in Public Service, Fauci wrote that he has remained active on the lecture circuit.
“In the year since I stepped down as NIAID director, I have had the opportunity to lecture and engage in fireside chats and moderated discussions throughout the country,” Fauci wrote.
Publishing industry sources previously told The New York Post that Penguin Random House’s Viking imprint paid Fauci approximately $5 million for the memoir.
Explaining why he chose to write the book, Fauci said he wanted to share what he had learned throughout his decades in public service.
“When I decided to step down from my position as director of NIAID, I asked myself what I could do over the next few years while I am still filled with passion and energy and blessed with good health. The answer came to me quickly and clearly: to share my experiences with the world and particularly the younger generation,” he wrote in the tome.
Fauci also said that desire ultimately led him to accept a faculty position at Georgetown University. While the average professor at the university earns roughly $233,000 annually, the report noted that Fauci likely commands a significantly higher salary because of his multiple academic roles and public profile.
The Post estimated that Fauci has earned at least $750,000 through his work at Georgetown. In addition, universities and medical organizations have honored him with several prestigious awards carrying substantial cash prizes, including Columbia University’s $50,000 Calderone Prize and the National Academy of Medicine’s $40,000 Lienhard Prize.
Fauci also continues to receive royalties from a McGraw-Hill medical textbook he has edited since the 1980s. Financial disclosures list those annual payments as somewhere between $100,000 and $1 million, although the exact amount is not specified.
His government pension is estimated at more than $350,000 per year—the largest federal pension on record. Since retiring, that pension alone has reportedly provided him with approximately $1.5 million.
Taken together, the Post estimates Fauci has earned at least $12.5 million since leaving government, boosting his estimated net worth to roughly $27.5 million.
Financial disclosures indicate Fauci’s wealth has risen dramatically over the past several years. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, his reported net worth stood at approximately $7.6 million in 2019. By 2023, it had climbed to about $15 million, during a period when taxpayers were also funding his transportation and security.
Lawrence Gostin, a Georgetown University professor and longtime friend of Fauci’s, said the former government health official remains deeply committed to teaching while living a quieter life in retirement.
“He is kind and generous with his time for students,” Gostin told The Post.
Gostin also described Fauci as “proud of his Catholic, Italian heritage” and noted that he is “still super fit but walks rather than runs,” now that he is 85 years old.
Fauci and his wife, Christine Grady, have become increasingly visible together since his retirement and are frequently seen attending Georgetown University events and walking near their $2.4 million home in Washington, D.C.
Fauci, who did not respond to The Post’s request for comment, wrote in his memoir that he deliberately avoided having an extravagant retirement celebration when he left the NIH.
“I opted instead for a no-bells-and-whistles, carrots-and-hummus affair on the top floor of a campus building,” he wrote, adding that even the “affectionate remarks” from colleagues were carefully timed.
“I insisted that no one go on for longer than three minutes,” he claimed.
Not everyone shares that modest assessment of Fauci’s personality. Dr. Carole Lieberman, who regularly invited him to appear on Lifetime Medical Television during the 1990s, said she found him eager for media attention.
“He always said yes [to coming on],” Lieberman told The Post. “Every single time I called him he said yes, but it wasn’t really my talent for booking him, it was his narcissism.”