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National
Institutes of Health Director: Francis
Collins, M.D., Ph.D. |
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On August 7, the Senate confirmed Francis Collins,
M.D., Ph.D., as the Director of National Institutes of Health by
unanimous consent.
Collins, a physician-geneticist well-known for
developing a technique for identifying genes and for his successful
leadership of the Human Genome Project, served as the first Director
of the NIH’s National Human Genome Research Institute (1993-2008).
Collins’ scientific accomplishments include
identifying the genes involved in several diseases and conditions,
including cystic fibrosis and neurofibromatosis. After the
completion of the Human Genome Project, Collins directed funding to
the sequencing of other organisms, including yeast, mustard plant,
platypus, and dog. He is a strong supporter of “personalized
medicine,” in which genomics can be used to provide better, more
individualized clinical care; a book he has authored on the subject
(The Language of Life) will be published next year.
Collins received a B.S. in Chemistry from the
University of Virginia, a Ph.D. in Physical Chemistry from Yale
University, and an M.D. with Honors from the University of North
Carolina. Prior to coming to NIH in 1993, he spent nine years on
the faculty of the University of Michigan, where he was an
investigator of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. AAI President
Betty Diamond called the nomination of Francis Collins “an excellent
choice that will ensure the advancement of biomedical research - and
the success of the NIH – for many years to come.”
Collins had been nominated by President Barack Obama
on July 8, 2009.
►
Read
Letter to Dr. Collins from AAI President Betty Diamond
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Secretary of Health and Human
Services: Kathleen
Sebelius |
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On April 28, 2009, after confirmation
hearings held by the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions
Committee and the Senate Finance Committee, the U.S. Senate
confirmed Kathleen Sebelius as Secretary of Health and Human
Services by a vote of 65 to 31. Sebelius is a former governor of
Kansas and served nearly a decade as the state’s insurance
commissioner.
Sebelius had been nominated by President Obama on February 29, 2009.
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Food and Drug Administration
Commissioner: Margaret
"Peggy" Hamburg |
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On May 18, 2009, the Senate unanimously
confirmed President Obama’s nomination of Margaret “Peggy”
Hamburg, Ph.D., to be the new Commissioner of the Food and Drug
Administration (FDA). A former Commissioner of Health for the City
of New York and Assistant Director of the National Institute of
Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), Dr. Hamburg has focused on
global health, public health systems, infectious disease,
bioterrorism, and emergency preparedness. She previously served as
the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation for the U.S.
Department of Health and Human Services.
Hamburg had been nominated by President Obama on March 14, 2009.
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Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention Director:
Thomas R. Frieden, M.D., M.P.H. |
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Following his appointment by President
Obama, Thomas R. Frieden, M.D., M.P.H., assumed the position
of Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
on June 9, 2009. Dr. Frieden received his M.D. and M.P.H. degrees
from Columbia University, completed infectious disease training at
Yale University, and is the former Commissioner of the New York City
Health Department.
Frieden had been appointed by President Obama on May 15, 2009.
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Surgeon General: Regina Benjamin, M.D. |
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On July 13,
2009, President Obama nominated Regina Benjamin, M.D., as the
United States Surgeon General. Dr. Benjamin is founder and CEO of
the Bayou La Batre Rural Health Clinic in Bayou La Batre, Alabama.
In 1995, she became the first African-American woman to be elected
to the American Medical Association (AMA) Board of Trustees.
Benjamin received a B.S. (1979) from Xavier University of Louisiana,
attended Morehouse School of Medicine from 1980 to 1982, and
received an M.D. (1984) from the University of Alabama at
Birmingham; she also holds an M.B.A. (1991) from Tulane University.
Benjamin’s
nomination was unanimously approved by the Senate Health, Education,
Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee on October 7; no date has been
set for a final vote by the full Senate. |
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