U.S. Surgeon General Regina Benjamin said she would step down next month.
“We are grateful for her leadership and service,” said Dori Salcido, a Department of Health and Human Services spokeswoman.
Dr. Benjamin has served in the post since being named by President Barack Obama in 2009. During her tenure as “America’s doctor,” she has promoted physical activity and efforts to prevent and stop smoking by children and adolescents.
The U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, which is overseen by the surgeon general, is made up of about 6,500 people who work in several government agencies including the National Institutes of Health and the Food and Drug Administration.
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Dr. Benjamin announced her departure in an email to staff on Wednesday. She highlighted an upcoming National Prevention Council Annual Report involving health indicators, which shows decreases in death rates from stroke, cancer and heart disease as well as a reduction in the smoking rate among adolescents.
Dr. Benjamin said she plans to take a “short break” to enjoy the summer and will volunteer at a rural health clinic in Alabama that she established before joining the government. She spent much of her career in Alabama and in 2002 was named president of the state medical society of Alabama, the first African-American woman to hold that position.
Date: June 12, 2013