HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius announced Thursday the Senate confirmation of Regina Benjamin, MD, as U.S. Surgeon General.
"Dr. Benjamin will quickly become America's doctor as our next Surgeon General. Her deep knowledge and strong medical skills, her commitment to her patients, and her ability to inspire the people she interacts with every day will serve her well as Surgeon General," Sebelius said in a press release. "She will be an integral part of our H1N1 response effort, and America can expect to see her very soon communicating important information about how to stay healthy and safe this flu season. I commend the Senate for their unanimous vote, and I look forward to working with Dr. Benjamin in the days ahead."
Benjamin, who employs and works closely with a PA and AAPA member in her small rural clinic in Alabama, has long demonstrated support and understanding of the PA profession. The new Surgeon General is the founder and CEO of the Bayou La Batre Rural Health Clinic in Bayou La Batre, Alabama. Earlier this year, she was a keynote speaker at AAPA's 2009 CORE meeting in her role as chair of the Federation of State Medical Boards in 2008-2009.
She is currently the immediate past-chair of the Federation of State Medical Boards of the United States, and previously served as associate dean for rural health at the University of South Alabama College of Medicine. In 2002, she became president of the Medical Association of the State of Alabama, making her the first African American woman to be president of a State Medical Society in the United States.
