What does it mean to be the nation's doctor? In this engaging narrative, journalist Mike Stobbe examines the Office of the U.S. Surgeon General, underlining how it has always been an anomaly within the federal government with a unique ability to influence public health. But now Surgeon Generals compete with other high profile figures, like the Secretary of Health and Human Services and the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Furthermore, in an era of declining budgets, when public health departments eliminate tens of thousands of jobs, an invisible Surgeon General seems an indefensible waste of money. By tracing stories of how Surgeons General like Luther Terry, C. Everett Koop, and Joycelyn Elders created policies and confronted controversy around issues like smoking, AIDS, and masturbation, Stobbe highlights how this office is key to influencing the nation’s health, and why its decline is harming our national wellbeing.
