- Regina Benjamin
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Regina Benjamin 
Surgeon General of the United States Incumbent Assumed office
November 3, 2009President Barack Obama Preceded by Donald Weaver (Acting) Personal details Born October 26, 1956
Mobile, Alabama, U.S.Alma mater Xavier University of Louisiana
University of Alabama, Birmingham
Tulane UniversityProfession Physician Religion Roman Catholicism[1] Military service Allegiance United States Service/branch 
United States Public Health Service Commissioned CorpsYears of service 2009–present Rank 
Vice AdmiralAwards Public Health Service Regular Corps Ribbon Vice Admiral Regina Marcia Benjamin, USPHS (born October 26, 1956 in Mobile, Alabama[2]) is an American physician who serves as the 18th Surgeon General of the United States.[1] Dr. Benjamin previously directed a nonprofit primary care medical clinic in Bayou La Batre, Alabama and served on the Board of Trustees for the Morehouse School of Medicine.
Contents
Education
Dr. Benjamin graduated from Fairhope High School in Fairhope, Alabama and then attended college at Xavier University of Louisiana in New Orleans where she was initiated into the Gamma Alpha Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta sorority. She is also a member of the second graduating class of Morehouse School of Medicine.[1] She received her M.D. degree from the University of Alabama at Birmingham and completed her residency in family practice at the Medical Center of Central Georgia.[1] About her experience as the first member of her family to attend medical school, she has stated that "I had never seen a black doctor before I went to college."[3] After entering solo medical practice in Bayou La Batre, Benjamin worked for several years in emergency rooms and nursing homes to financially support its mission. After receiving an MBA from the Freeman School of Business at Tulane University, she converted her office to a rural health clinic.[4]
Professional activities
Dr. Benjamin is former associate dean for rural health at the College of Medicine at the University of South Alabama, where she administered the Alabama AHEC program and previously directed its Telemedicine Program. She served as the president of the Medical Association of the State of Alabama (MASA) in 2002. In 1995, she was elected to the Board of Trustees of the American Medical Association, making her both the first physician under age 40 and the first African-American woman to be elected. She also served on the Board of Trustees of Florida A & M University, appointed by Florida Governor Jeb Bush.[5] From 2008–2009, she served as Chair of the Board of Trustees of the Federation of State Medical Boards, a national non-profit organization representing the 70 medical and osteopathic boards of the United States and its territories.[6]
Dr. Benjamin is a Diplomate of the American Board of Family Practice and a Fellow of the American Academy of Family Physicians. She was a Kellogg National Fellow and also a Rockefeller Next Generation Leader. She has served on boards and committees including the Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured, Catholic Health East, Medical Association of the State of Alabama, Alabama Board of Medical Examiners, Alabama State Committee of Public Health, Mobile County Medical Society, Alabama Rural Health Association, Leadership Alabama, Mobile Area Red Cross, Mercy Medical, Mobile Chamber of Commerce, United Way of Mobile, Physicians for Human Rights[7] and Deep South Girl Scout Council.[8]
She was appointed by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Donna Shalala to the Clinical Laboratory Improvement Act Committee and to the Council of Graduate Medical Education, and she is also a member of the "Step 3 Committee."[8] In Alabama, she formerly served as vice president of the Governor's Commission on Aging, and also formerly as a member of the Governor's Health Care Reform Task Force and the Governor's Task Force on Children's Health.[8]
She was a paid consultant for Burger King, contracted to provide nutritional advice on their offerings.
Dr. Benjamin's clinic was destroyed in 2005 by Hurricane Katrina and in 2006 by a fire on New Year's Day, one day before the scheduled reopening. She made headlines when she rebuilt the clinic a second time.[4]
Bayou La Batre Rural Health Clinic
Dr. Benjamin is founder and CEO of the Bayou La Batre Rural Health Clinic in Bayou La Batre, Alabama. Bayou La Batre is a small shrimping village along the Gulf Coast. Benjamin was the subject of a Reader's Digest article that chronicled her efforts to rebuild the clinic after Hurricane Katrina.[9]
Surgeon General of the United States
Benjamin accepting President Barack Obama's nomination.
On July 13, 2009 President Barack Obama announced the choice of Benjamin for the position of Surgeon General of the United States[10][11][12][13] and as a Medical Director in the regular corps of the Public Health Service.[14] On October 7, 2009, Benjamin was unanimously approved by the United States Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.[15] Benjamin was unanimously confirmed by the United States Senate on October 29, 2009.[14]
Dr. Benjamin accepted the President's nomination, and made clear her dissatisfaction with the current health care system, in terms of accessibility as well as cost.[1] Also in accepting her nomination, Benjamin described her own hardships faced by disease and illness in her own family. She noted her brother, who died of HIV, as well as her father, who died of high blood pressure and diabetes, and her mother who died of lung cancer. All of which, she implied, were "preventable diseases."[16]
In January 2010, Dr. Benjamin released her first document, entitled "The Surgeon General’s Vision for a Healthy and Fit Nation." In it she highlighted the alarming trend of overweight and obese Americans, and offered a blueprint for grassroots efforts to make changes that promote the health and wellness of families and communities. [17]
Criticism
Her political support for abortion access has been cited as a source of controversy, since Benjamin, who is a Roman Catholic, has also received an award from the Holy See, a strong opponent of such procedures.[18] Benjamin also sits on the board of the Catholic Health Association[19] and is active in her local church.[20]
Benjamin's weight and personal health[21] have also been a source of criticism.[22]
Awards
In 1998 she was the United States recipient of the Nelson Mandela Award for Health and Human Rights.[4]
Dr. Benjamin was named by TIME magazine as one of the "Nation's 50 Future Leaders Age 40 and Under." She has been featured in a New York Times article, "Angel in a White Coat," and was chosen "Person of the Week" by ABC's World News Tonight with Peter Jennings, "Woman of the Year" by CBS This Morning, and "Woman of the Year" by People Magazine. She was also featured on the December 1999 cover of Clarity Magazine and received the 2000 National Caring Award, which was inspired by Mother Teresa.[8]
In 2006, she was awarded the papal cross Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice by Pope Benedict XVI.[23]
In 2008, Dr. Benjamin was named one of America's Best Leaders by U.S. News & World Report.[24] In September 2008, she was one of that year's class of 25 in the MacArthur Fellows Program, nicknamed the "Genius Awards," receiving a grant from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation that would have been worth $500,000 over the course of five years.[25] However, as a federal employee, she had to stop accepting the MacArthur Fellows stipend when she accepted the position as Surgeon General.[3]
Badge of the Public Health Service Commissioned Corps
Public Health Service Regular Corps Ribbon
Commissioned Corps Training RibbonIn 2009, she received the American Medical Association Foundation Leadership Award.
In 2010, she was awarded an honorary degree of Doctor of Science from Dartmouth College at their Commencement ceremony.
On May 8, 2010, she was awarded an honorary degree of Doctorate of Pharmacy from the Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences at the college's 130th Commencement ceremony held at the Empire State Plaza in Albany, NY.
On May 28, 2011, she received an honorary degree of Doctorate of Humane Letters from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, after which she delivered the address for the school's 205th commencement.
References
- ^ a b c d e Woman in the News | Regina Marcia Benjamin A Doctor From the Bayou
- ^ Regina Benjamin Picked as Surgeon General
- ^ a b Deborah Solomon, "Questions for Regina Benjamin", New York Times Magazine, 2011-01-09. Retrieved January 8, 2011.
- ^ a b c "Obama Taps 'Genius' Doctor, Katrina Victim for Surgeon General". article (Fox News Channel). July 13, 2009. http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2009/07/13/obama-taps-alabama-doctor-surgeon-general/. Retrieved July 13, 2009.
- ^ Dr. Regina Benjamin's Background – Fox10tv.com
- ^ Benjamin RM. Planting Seeds of Excellence. Journal of Medical Licensure and Discipline. 95(1):3–4. 2009.
- ^ Physicians for Human Rights 2002 Annual Report
- ^ a b c d Regina M. Benjamin, MD – Bayou Clinic Homepage
- ^ Dr. Regina Benjamin – A Healing Force
- ^ The Doctor Is (Finally) In: Obama To Name Regina Benjamin
- ^ Alabama Doctor Tapped for Surgeon General
- ^ Obama picks Regina Benjamin as surgeon general
- ^ Obama on health care policy: ‘No free lunch’
- ^ a b Senate Confirms Regina Benjamin as Surgeon General
- ^ Senate Committee Approves Dr. Regina Benjamin
- ^ Regina Benjamin, Obama's Pick For Surgeon General
- ^ Surgeongeneral.gov
- ^ Obama's surgeon general pick: a Catholic who backs abortion rights
- ^ CHAUSA: The Catholic Health Association of the United States – CHA Board: Board of Trustees
- ^ Picks For NIH Head, Surgeon General Side With Obama On Reproductive Issues, Despite Faith
- ^ Critics Slam Overweight Surgeon General Pick, Regina Benjamin
- ^ Regina Benjamin once served as intern for CIA
- ^ "Obama Taps Ala. Doctor For Surgeon General". http://cbs5.com/national/obama.surgeon.general.2.1083264.html. Retrieved July 13, 2009.[dead link]
- ^ "America's Best Leaders – Regina Benjamin". http://www.usnews.com/articles/news/best-leaders/2008/11/19/americas-best-leaders-regina-benjamin-small-town-primary-care-physician.html. Retrieved July 13, 2009.
- ^ Obama Names Regina Benjamin as Surgeon General
External links
Political offices Preceded by
Donald Weaver
ActingSurgeon General of the United States
2009–presentIncumbent Surgeons General of the United States Woodworth · Hamilton · Wyman · Blue · Cumming · Parran · Scheele · Burney · Terry · Stewart · Steinfeld · Ehrlich (acting) · Richmond · Brandt (acting) · Koop · Mason (acting) · Novello · Whitney (acting) · Elders · Manley (acting) · Satcher · Moritsugu (acting) · Carmona · Moritsugu (acting) · Galson (acting) · Weaver (acting) · Benjamin
Categories:- 1956 births
- African-American Catholics
- African-American physicians
- American physicians
- American Roman Catholics
- Freeman School of Business alumni
- MacArthur Fellows
- Living people
- People from Mobile, Alabama
- Recipients of the Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice
- Tulane University alumni
- United States Public Health Service
- University of Alabama at Birmingham alumni
- Xavier University of Louisiana alumni
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