The United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is a cabinet-level executive branch department of the U.S. federal government created to protect the health of the U.S. people and providing essential human services. Its motto is "Improving the health,safety,and well-being of America". Before the separate federal Department of Education was created in 1979,it was called the Department of Health,Education,and Welfare (HEW).
The surgeon general of the United States is the operational head of the United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps (PHSCC) and thus the leading spokesperson on matters of public health in the federal government of the United States. The surgeon general's office and staff are known as the Office of the Surgeon General (OSG),which is housed within the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health.
Alex Michael Azar II is an American attorney,businessman,lobbyist,and former pharmaceutical executive who served as the U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services from 2018 to 2021. Azar was nominated to his post by President Donald Trump on November 13,2017,and confirmed by the United States Senate on January 24,2018. He was also chairman of the White House Coronavirus Task Force from its inception in January 2020 to February 2020,when he was replaced by Vice President Mike Pence.
Faye Glenn Abdellah was an American pioneer in nursing research. Abdellah was the first nurse and woman to serve as the Deputy Surgeon General of the United States. Preceding her appointment,she served in active duty during the Korean War,where she earned a distinguished ranking equivalent to a Navy Rear Admiral,making her the highest-ranked woman and nurse in the Federal Nursing Services at the time. In addition to these achievements,Abdellah led the formation of the National Institute of Nursing Research at the NIH,and was the founder and first dean of the Graduate School of Nursing at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USUHS). A few of Abdellah's more passionate interests in public health included the importance of long-term care planning for elderly patients;the need to strengthen nursing school infrastructure;and the necessity of patient-centered approaches in nursing. In 2000,Abdellah was inducted into the National Women's Hall of Fame. During her acceptance speech,Abdellah made the following quote:"We cannot wait for the world to change. .. Those of us with intelligence,purpose,and vision must take the lead and change the world. .. I promise never to rest until my work has been completed!”
Gale S. Pollock is a retired United States Army major general who served as the Deputy Surgeon General of the United States Army from October 2006 to March 2007,and also as chief of the Army Nurse Corps. She became acting Surgeon General of the United States Army for nine months following the 20 March 2007 retirement of her predecessor,Kevin C. Kiley,due to fallout from the Walter Reed Army Medical Center neglect scandal. She was the first woman and the first non-physician to hold the position.
Rear Admiral Christine M. Bruzek-Kohler was the 21st Director of the United States Navy Nurse Corps,and served as the Commander Naval Medical Center San Diego and Navy Medicine West from May 2009 to August 2010. She officially retired from the Navy in December 2010.
Nancy J. Lescavage is a retired American rear admiral who served as the 20th director of the Navy Nurse Corps and was the commander of Naval Medical Education and Training Command,Bethesda,Maryland.
Rear Admiral Kathleen Lousche Martin served as Deputy Surgeon General of the Navy/Vice Chief,Bureau of Medicine and Surgery from October 2002 until her retirement in September 2005. She also held the position as the 19th Director of the Navy Nurse Corps from August 1998 to August 2001. She serves on the board of directors for Caliburn International,a military contracting conglomerate that also oversees operations of Homestead Temporary Shelter for Unaccompanied Children.
Retired Rear Admiral Mary Joan Nielubowicz was the Director of the Navy Nurse Corps from 1983 to 1987.
The New England Hospital for Women and Children was founded by Marie Zakrzewska on July 1,1862. The hospital's goal was to provide patients with competent female physicians,educate women in the study of medicine,and train nurses to care for the sick. Until 1951,the hospital remained dedicated to women,it was then renamed to New England Hospital to include male patients. The hospital was renamed again to the Dimock Community Health Center in 1969. At present,that institution provides a range of healthcare services including adult &pediatric primary care,women's healthcare,and HIV/AIDS specialty care.
Rear Admiral Karen Ann Flaherty assumed duties as the Deputy Surgeon General of Navy Medicine at the Bureau of Medicine and Surgery as of August 6,2010. Flaherty served as the 22nd Director of the United States Navy Nurse Corps as well as the Deputy Chief,Wounded,Ill,and Injured at the Bureau of Medicine and Surgery from 2009 to 2010.
Vivek Hallegere Murthy is a British-American physician and a vice admiral in the United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps who has served as the 19th and 21st surgeon general of the United States under Presidents Barack Obama,Donald Trump,and Joe Biden. Murthy is the first surgeon general of Indian descent,and,during his first term as surgeon general,he was the youngest active duty flag officer in federal uniformed service.
Susan Jane Blumenthal is an American physician,global health expert,psychiatrist and public health advocate. With more than two decades of service as a senior government health leader in the administrations of four U.S. presidents,Blumenthal served as the first Deputy Assistant Secretary for Women's Health and director of the Office on Women's Health within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS),as well as Assistant Surgeon General of the United States and senior global health advisor within the HHS. She also was a research branch chief at the National Institutes of Health (NIH),and the chair of the NIH Health and Behavior Coordinating Committee. As of 2016,she has served as the senior medical and policy advisor at amfAR,The Foundation for AIDS Research,a senior fellow in health policy at New America,and a clinical professor at Tufts and Georgetown Schools of Medicine. Blumenthal is the Public Health Editor of the Huffington Post. She is married to United States Senator Ed Markey.
Deborah Leah Birx is an American physician and diplomat who served as the White House Coronavirus Response Coordinator under President Donald J. Trump from 2020 to 2021. Birx specializes in HIV/AIDS immunology,vaccine research,and global health. Starting in 2014,she oversaw the implementation of the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) program to support HIV/AIDS treatment and prevention programs in 65 countries. From 2014-2020,Birx was the United States global AIDS coordinator for presidents Barack Obama and Donald J. Trump and served as the United States special representative for global health diplomacy between 2015 and 2021. Birx was part of the White House Coronavirus Task Force from February 2020 to January 2021. In March 2021,Birx joined ActivePure Technology as Chief Medical and Science Advisor.
Jerome Michael Adams is an American anesthesiologist and a former vice admiral in the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps who served as the 20th surgeon general of the United States from September 5,2017,until January 20,2021. Prior to becoming Surgeon General,he served as the Indiana state health commissioner,from 2014 to 2017.
Erica G. Schwartz is a retired U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps rear admiral who last served as the deputy surgeon general of the United States from January 2019 to April 2021. As a Commissioned Corps officer,she served with the U.S. Coast Guard as their Chief of Health Services and Chief of Preventive Medicine at the U.S. Coast Guard headquarters and became its principal expert on flu pandemics. Prior to becoming Deputy Surgeon General,she served as the Coast Guard's Chief Medical Officer from 2015 to 2019. She retired in April 2021 after over 27 years of combined uniformed service.
Christi A. Grimm is an American government official who has served as the Inspector General in the United States Department of Health and Human Services since February 2022.
Beth Anne Killoran is an American information technology executive and civil servant. She is the deputy chief information officer (CIO) of the General Services Administration. Killoran was previously the CIO of the United States Department of Health and Human Services.
Susan M. Orsega is an American nurse and rear admiral who currently serves as the senior advisor to the Assistant Secretary for Health. She previously served as the acting surgeon general from January 20 to March 4,2021. Orsega is one of the first nurses to serve in the position. She also previously served as the director of Commissioned Corps Headquarters,tasked with the administration of the members of the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps (USPHS),from March 2019 to October 2021. Prior to becoming acting surgeon general,Orsega was the chief nurse officer of the USPHS from 2016 until 2019.
Denise Hinton is an American nurse serving as the deputy surgeon general of the United States. She is a rear admiral in the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps. Hinton was the chief scientist of the Food and Drug Administration from 2017 to 2021.
United States 
United States Army 
USPHS Commissioned Corps 
Rear Admiral 
