Trust for America's Health Statement on Dr. Vivek Hallegere Murthy being Nominated for Surgeon General

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Nov 15, 2013, 10:39 ET

WASHINGTON, Nov. 15, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The following is a statement from Jeffrey Levi, Ph.D., executive director of Trust for America's Health (TFAH) and chair of the Advisory Group on Prevention, Health Promotion, and Integrative and Public Health, on President Obama nominating Dr. Vivek Murthy as surgeon general of the United States.

"TFAH applauds the nomination of Dr. Murthy. Dr. Murthy is a forward thinking and innovative health leader who is also committed to integrating community-based prevention into the health system. Without marrying the traditional healthcare setting with everything that impacts health outside the doctor's office, the U.S. health system will not achieve the goals of improving health outcomes and reducing cost.

Dr. Murthy has demonstrated this ability in his personal work as well as his policy work, which I have seen firsthand during his time as a member of the Advisory Group on Prevention, Health Promotion, and Integrative and Public Health. Working with Dr. Murthy on the Advisory Group has made it readily apparent that he has the history and perspective to infuse a public health and community perspective into his role as the Nation's Doctor.

Quite clearly, Dr. Murthy will bring strong leadership to the National Prevention Strategy and a powerful vision for improving the health of Americans. TFAH and I look forward to working with him as surgeon general and as the new chair of the National Prevention Council. We urge the United States Senate to quickly confirm his appointment."

Trust for America's Health is a non-profit, non-partisan organization dedicated to saving lives by protecting the health of every community and working to make disease prevention a national priority. For more information, visit www.healthyamericans.org.

SOURCE Trust for America's Health