Vivek Murthy, MD, has been confirmed as the new Surgeon General of the United States. His confirmation was held up in Congress for a full year because of opposition from the National Rifle Association.
Murthy has stated in the past that he believes that gun violence to be a public health issue, to which the NRA objects. During his confirmation hearings, however, he said that he plans to target obesity, not guns. Another factor in the political opposition to his appointment was that he was a co-founder of Doctors for America, which started out as Doctors for Obama.
The confirmation came during the lame duck session of Congress, after the November midterm elections.
The Surgeon General of the United States is the leading voice on matters of public health in the nation. In this role, Murthy will be the principal adviser on public health and scientific issues to the Secretary of Health and Human Services.
Informally, the position involves issuing health warnings and advice to the nation. Frequently, the Surgeon General has advocated controversial positions or been in the forefront of ground-breaking changes in health issues. For example, Luther L. Terry, MD, issued a report in 1964 declaring smoking to be hazardous to health. In 1986, C. Everett Koop, MD, issued a major report on AIDS.
As part of his job, Murthy will serve as the operational head of the U.S. Public Health Service Commission Corps, a uniformed service corps of 6,500 members who are health professionals. As Surgeon General, he wears a U.S. Navy uniform with a Public Health Service insignia and has the rank of vice admiral.
The position of Surgeon General has been open since July 2013 when Regina M. Benjamin, MD, left the post. In the interim, Read Admiral Boris D. Lushniak, MD, served in the position.