NEW YORK — The science of fighting disease has never been stronger. We have the means to detect outbreaks immediately, sequence pathogens in the space of days, and develop new vaccines in just months. Yet pandemics are coming faster and spreading more widely, threatening more lives and livelihoods than ever before. Recall the trauma of Covid-19, which inflicted economic hardship on billions of people and caused an estimated 18.2 million excess deaths between Jan. 1, 2020, and Dec. 31, 2021.