| Richard Carmona | |
|---|---|
| Vice Admiral Richard Carmona, USPHS Surgeon General of the United States |
|
| 17th Surgeon General of the United States | |
| In office August 5, 2002 – July 31, 2006 |
|
| President | George W. Bush |
| Preceded by | Kenneth P. Moritsugu (Acting) |
| Succeeded by | Kenneth P. Moritsugu (Acting) |
| Personal details | |
| Born | November 22, 1949 New York, New York, USA |
| Political party | Independent[1] |
| Residence | Tucson, Arizona, USA |
Richard Henry Carmona (born November 22, 1949) is an American physician, public health administrator, and politician. He was a vice admiral in the Public Health Service Commissioned Corps and served as the seventeenth Surgeon General of the United States. Appointed by President George W. Bush in 2002, Carmona left office at the end of July 2006 upon the expiration of his term. After leaving office, Carmona was highly critical of the Bush administration for interfering with and suppressing scientific findings which conflicted with the Administration's ideological agenda. In August 2006, Carmona returned home to Tucson, Arizona.[2] In November 2011, he announced he would seek the Democratic Party's nomination for United States Senate in the hopes of succeeding outgoing Republican Senator Jon Kyl, despite being registered as a political independent.[3]
Contents |
Carmona was born in New York City of Puerto Rican descent, and raised in Harlem. After dropping out of Dewitt Clinton high school at age 16, he enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1967.[4] While enlisted, he received his General Educational Development (GED), joined the United States Army Special Forces, became a combat-decorated Vietnam veteran, and began his career in medicine as a Special Forces medic.
After leaving active duty, Carmona attended the Bronx Community College of the City University of New York, where he earned his associate of arts degree in nursing. In 1977, he graduated from the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), with a bachelor of science degree; in 1979, he received his medical degree from UCSF, where he was awarded the prestigious gold headed cane as the top graduate. In 1998, he earned a Master's degree in Public Health (M.P.H.) from the University of Arizona.
Carmona worked in various positions in the medical field including paramedic, registered nurse, and physician. He completed a surgical residency at UCSF and a National Institutes of Health-sponsored fellowship in trauma, burns, and critical care. Carmona is a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons and certified in correctional health care and in quality assurance. Carmona has been Chairman of the Arizona Southern Regional Emergency Medical System, Chief Medical Officer, hospital CEO, public health officer, and chief executive officer of the Pima County health care system. In 1997, the Pima County system continued to lose millions of dollars, and he was forced to resign.[5] Carmona was also a professor of medicine at the University of Arizona.
He worked for the Pima County Sheriff's Department since 1986. He eventually worked his way up to deputy sheriff. He served as medical director of the county's police and fire departments. He was a peace officer leader of the SWAT division, with expertise in special operations and emergency preparedness, including weapons of mass destruction.[6]
In 1999, he confronted a mentally-ill person who was assaulting someone else at a car accident. After the person would not step out of his car, he shot at Carmona, and the Deputy Sheriff shot back seven times, killing him.[7] The deceased was an ex-convict who had shot and killed his father that day. Carmona was heavily criticized for his handing of the situation. However in 2000, he was honored by the National Association of Police Organizations as one of the nation's top cops.
President Bush nominated Carmona in March 2002 had a lot of criticism. During the nomination process, Carmona was criticized for character and competence issues; [8][9] he was confirmed by the U.S. Senate on July 23, 2002. [10]
In 2006, Carmona released a landmark Surgeon General's report on the health effects of secondhand smoke.[11] Carmona's report underlined the risks of secondhand smoke exposure; at the time of the report's release, Carmona stated: "The debate is over. The science is clear: Secondhand smoke is not a mere annoyance, but a serious health hazard."[12] The report encouraged the adoption of indoor smoking bans and noted that such bans did not appear to have a harmful economic effect on bars and restaurants. After leaving office, Carmona testified before Congress that the Bush Administration had tried for years to "water down" his findings on the dangers of secondhand smoke, and had pressured him not to testify in the tobacco industry's racketeering trial.[13]
In earlier testimony before the U.S. Congress, Carmona had stated that he would not object to a ban on all tobacco products "if Congress chose to go that way." The Bush Administration distanced itself from this statement.[14]
Carmona is currently vice chairman of the Canyon Ranch resort and spa company, president of the non-profit Canyon Ranch Institute, and a professor at the Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health at the University of Arizona. On June 16, 2010, Ross University School of Medicine named Carmona to its Board of Trustees.[15]
In 2006, Republicans attempted to recruit Carmona to run for Congress in Arizona's 8th Congressional district, but he declined.[16]
On July 10, 2007, Carmona, along with former Surgeons General C. Everett Koop and David Satcher, testified before the United States House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform about political and ideological interference with the Surgeon General's mission. Carmona accused the Bush Administration of preventing him from speaking out on certain public health issues such as embryonic stem cell research, global climate change,[17] emergency contraception, and abstinence-only sex education, where the Administration's political stance conflicted with scientific and medical opinion.[18]
Carmona also testified that the Bush Administration had attempted for years to "water down" his report on the dangers of secondhand smoke and pressured him not to testify in the tobacco industry's racketeering trial: "Anything that doesn't fit into the political appointees' ideological, theological or political agenda is ignored, marginalized or simply buried."[19][20] According to Carmona, he was even ordered not to attend the Special Olympics because the event was sponsored by the Kennedy family, and was told to mention President Bush three times on every page of his speeches.[13] The Washington Post subsequently identified William R. Steiger as the Bush Administration official who had blocked release of Carmona's report on global health because it conflicted with the Administration's political priorities.[21]
Reuters reported that Carmona's predecessors as Surgeon General had acknowledged the high level of political interference he experienced, saying: "We have never seen it as partisan, as malicious, as vindictive, as mean-spirited as it is today, and you clearly have worse than anyone's had."[19]
Carmona is seeking the Democratic nomination for U.S. Senate in Arizona in the race to replace retiring Republican Senator Jon Kyl.[1]
Carmona is married to Diana Sanchez. They have two daughters and two sons.
| Bronze Star |
|
|
| Presidential Unit Citation |
| Army Meritorious Unit Commendation |
| Army Good Conduct Medal |
| National Defense Service Medal |
| Vietnam Service Medal |
| Public Health Service Regular Corps Ribbon |
| Republic of Vietnam Civil Actions Unit Citation |
| Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross Unit Citation |
| Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal |
| Commissioned Officers Association of the U.S. Public Health Service Medal |
| Association of Military Surgeons of the United States Medal |
| Reserve Officers Association Medal |
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Kenneth P. Moritsugu Acting |
Surgeon General of the United States 2002–2006 |
Succeeded by Kenneth P. Moritsugu Acting |
|
|||||||