Who is Don Wright, the New HHS Secretary?

After the resignation of Tom Price as secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) over his abuse of air travel, President Trump named Don Wright, deputy assistant secretary and director of the Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, to be acting HHS secretary. Who exactly is Don Wright? Wright has been in government service since the presidency of George W. Bush. He previously served in the Department of Labor (DOL) as director of the Office of Occupational Medicine. From 2007 to 2009, he was the HHS principal deputy assistant secretary for Health. During this time, he was appointed by President George W. Bush to serve as the alternate U.S. delegate to the World Health Organization Executive Board. Wright was named acting assistant secretary for Health at HHS on Feb. 10, 2017. The assistant secretary for Health leads development of HHS-wide public health policy recommendations, oversees 12 core public health offices — including the Office of the Surgeon General – and 11 advisory committees. Dr. Wright is also the deputy assistant secretary for Health and director of the Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion (ODPHP), a position he has held since Jan. 3, 2012. According to his LinkedIn profile, he received a bachelor’s degree in zoology and animal biology at Texas Tech University, a medical degree from the University of Texas and a master’s degree in public health from the Medical College of Wisconsin. He finished his family residency training at Baylor College of Medicine. He is board-certified in both Family Medicine and Preventive Medicine. He is a fellow of the American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine and the American Academy of Family Physicians.