[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 160 (2014), Part 13]
[Senate]
[Pages 18810-18811]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                     NOMINATION OF DR. VIVEK MURTHY

  Ms. MIKULSKI. Madam President, I urge the Senate to schedule an 
immediate vote on the nomination of Dr. Vivek Murthy to serve as the 
next Surgeon General of the United States. One year ago, President 
Obama nominated Dr. Murthy to serve as our next Surgeon General. Ten 
months ago, Dr. Murthy's nomination was approved by the Senate Health, 
Education, Labor, and Pensions, HELP, Committee. Since then, his 
nomination has stalled. I, along with many of my colleagues, have 
written to Senate leadership, requesting an immediate floor vote. Yet--
here we are--still no vote.
  The Surgeon General serves as ``America's Doctor.'' He ensures 
Americans are receiving the very best scientific information available 
in order to improve their health and reduce risk of injury or illness. 
The Surgeon General also oversees the U.S. Public Health Service 
Commissioned Corps, a group of 7,000 men and women who are uniformed 
public health professionals working throughout the federal government 
to protect, promote, and advance our Nation's health. Finally, the 
Surgeon General is responsible for chairing the National Prevention 
Council.
  The urgent need to have a Surgeon General in place and at-the-ready 
is never more evident than when we are confronted with a public health 
crisis, as we are now. Over the past many months, our global community 
has struggled to respond to the Ebola epidemic plaguing West Africa and 
threatening communities nationwide. The United States has been rightly 
focused on dealing with the epidemic at its epicenter in West Africa, 
protecting our ports of entry, and protecting America's public health. 
Yet, our response has been hindered because we do not have a confirmed 
U.S. Surgeon General in place.
  Households across our nation were flooded with misinformation and 
confusion when Ebola was first diagnosed in the United States. If Dr. 
Murthy had been in place as Surgeon General, he would have been 
responsible for increasing public understanding about Ebola; providing 
accurate, important, and timely medical information; and helping to 
ease fears. As ``America's Doctor'' he would have provided an 
additional trusted voice that could have communicated with the public 
and helped address their concerns. Instead, ``America's Doctor'' was 
sitting on the sidelines awaiting a Senate vote on his nomination.
  Like so many of us, Dr. Murthy is the son of immigrant parents. He 
completed his early education in Miami, FL, and attended college at 
Harvard University where he received a bachelor's degree in biochemical 
sciences. He went on to receive an MD from the

[[Page 18811]]

Yale School of Medicine and an MBA in Health Care Management from the 
Yale School of Management. He completed his residency in Internal 
Medicine at Brigham and Women's Hospital.
  As a physician at Brigham and Women's Hospital, Dr. Murthy has cared 
for patients with a range of illnesses from diabetes and cardiovascular 
disease to cancer and infections. As a researcher, he has worked on 
vaccine development and he has studied the inclusion of women and 
minorities in clinical trials. As a teacher at Harvard Medical School, 
he knows what issues face our next generation of doctors. As a public 
health educator, Dr. Murthy created HIV/AIDS education programs for 
thousands of young people through an organization he cofounded. He 
built a rural community health partnership in India to train young 
women to be health care educators and leaders. As an organizational 
leader, Dr. Murthy cofounded a national medical organization, Doctors 
for America, to improve communication between physicians, patients, and 
policy makers. Finally, as a leader in prevention, he served on the 
Advisory Group to the National Prevention Council and helped develop 
the nation's first National Prevention Strategy. I think it is pretty 
clear that Dr. Murthy has the background and the boots on the ground 
expertise to serve as our Nation's 19th Surgeon General.
  Doubts about his ability to serve as Surgeon General are not the 
problem holding up his nomination. I fear that policy matters outside 
the scope of this position are actually to blame. I hope that my 
colleagues do not let public policy debates unrelated to the position 
in which he would serve stall his nomination any longer.
  Dr. Murthy's nomination has received widespread support from local, 
State, and national public health organizations including the American 
Academy of Pediatrics, American Cancer Society, American Diabetes 
Association, American Heart Association, and American Public Health 
Association.
  It is time to confirm Dr. Murthy as our Nation's 19th Surgeon 
General. It is time to take ``America's Doctor'' off the sidelines and 
put him into the game. Thank you.

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