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.
The United States Public Health Service is a collection of agencies of the Department of Health and Human Services concerned with public health,containing nine out of the department's twelve operating divisions. The Assistant Secretary for Health oversees the PHS. The Public Health Service Commissioned Corps (PHSCC) is the federal uniformed service of the PHS,and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States.
The United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps,also referred to as the Commissioned Corps of the United States Public Health Service,is the uniformed service branch of the United States Public Health Service (PHS) and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States alongside the United States Army,Navy,Marine Corps,Coast Guard,Air Force,and Space Force and the NOAA Commissioned Officer Corps. The commissioned corps' primary mission is the protection,promotion,and advancement of health and safety of the general public.
Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USU) is a health science university of the U.S. federal government. The primary mission of the school is to prepare graduates for service to the U.S. at home and abroad as uniformed health professionals,scientists and leaders;by conducting cutting-edge,military-relevant research;by leading the Military Health System in key functional and intellectual areas;and by providing operational support to units around the world.
The Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health (OASH) is an operating agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services and the managing personnel body for the United States Public Health Service. The office is under the direction of the assistant secretary for health,who serves as the senior advisor on public health and science issues to the department secretary. The office serves as the focal point for leadership and coordination across the department in public health and science,provides direction to program offices within OASH,and provides advice and counsel on public health and science issues to the secretary.
The United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps (PHSCC),one of the eight uniformed services of the United States,has the authority to issue various awards,commendations,and other insignia to its members. These include individual honor awards,unit honor awards,service awards,training ribbons,special skill badges,and identification badges. The following PHSCC awards are listed in the service's order of precedence:
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.
The assistant secretary for health (ASH) is a senior U.S. government official within the United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). The position is a statutory office and the holder of the office serves as the United States Secretary of Health and Human Services's primary advisor on matters involving the nation's public health. The assistant secretary oversees all matters pertaining to the United States Public Health Service (PHS),the main division of the Department of Health and Human Services,for the secretary and provides strategic and policy direction. The Public Health Service comprises almost all of the agency divisions of the Department of Health and Human Services including the United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps,one of the eight federal uniformed services,comprising more than 6,500 uniformed health professionals who serve with the Department of Health and Human Services,or are assigned to work within other federal agencies,including the United States Armed Forces.
Steven Kenneth Galson is an American public health physician. He is currently Senior Vice President for Global Regulatory Affairs &Strategy at Amgen,the California-based biopharmaceutical company. He is also Professor-at-Large at the Keck Graduate Institute for Applied Life Sciences in Claremont,California. He is a retired rear admiral in the United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps and public health administrator who served as the acting Surgeon General of the United States from October 1,2007 –October 1,2009. He served concurrently as acting Assistant Secretary for Health from January 22,2009 to June 25,2009,and as the Deputy Director and Director of the Center for Drug Evaluation and Research (CDER) at the Food and Drug Administration from 2001 to 2007. As the Acting Surgeon General,he was the commander of the United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps and,while serving as the Assistant Secretary for Health,was the operational head of the Public Health Service.
Brett P. Giroir is an American pediatrician. He was formerly the U.S. assistant secretary for health,a four-star admiral in the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps and an acting Food and Drug Administration commissioner.
In the United States Navy,United States Coast Guard,United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps (USPHS),and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Officer Corps,captain is the senior-most commissioned officer rank below that of flag officer. The equivalent rank is colonel in the United States Army,Air Force,Space Force,and Marine Corps.
Sylvia Trent-Adams is a retired U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps rear admiral,who last served as the principal deputy assistant secretary for health from January 2,2019 to August 31,2020. She previously served as the deputy surgeon general of the United States from October 25,2015 to January 2,2019. Trent-Adams also served as the acting surgeon general of the United States from April 21,2017 to September 5,2017. She retired from the U.S. Public Health Service on September 30,2020 after over 33 years of combined uniformed service. On October 5,2020,Trent-Adams was named to the board of directors for AMN Healthcare.
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.
Rachel Leland Levine is an American pediatrician who has served as the United States assistant secretary for health since March 26,2021. She is also an admiral in the United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps.
Rear Admiral Kenneth Bernard is an American public health physician and expert on biodefense and health security policy. He served at the George W. Bush White House from 2002-2005 as Special Assistant to the President for Biodefense and as Assistant Surgeon General.
Andrea Joan Palm is an American government health advisor who is the United States Deputy Secretary of Health and Human Services in the Biden administration. Previously,Palm served as secretary-designee of the Wisconsin Department of Health Services from 2019 to 2021 in the administration of Governor Tony Evers,an office she was never sworn into due to Republican opposition in the Wisconsin Senate.
Roberta L. Shea is a United States Marine Corps officer who served as the Commanding General of the 1st Marine Logistics Group from July 2019 to April 2021.
The Public Health Service Response Service Award is a decoration of the United States Public Health Service presented to members of the United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps. It recognizes deployments to meet a public health need or to support a National Special Security Event.
The Public Health Service National Emergency Preparedness Award is a decoration of the United States Public Health Service presented to members of the United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps. It recognizes service to provide emergency medical or support services between 2006 and 2019.
