AIDS researcher Robert Redfield, MD, has surfaced as the White House's favored pick to lead the CDC.
Here are seven things to know about Dr. Redfield.
1. He is endowed professor in translational medicine at the University of Maryland School of Medicine in Baltimore. He also is co-founder and associate director of the Institute of Human Virology.
2. As associate director, he helps oversee an institute that serves approximately 5,000 patients in the Baltimore area and more than 500,000 patients in various African and Caribbean nations, according to the IHV website. The institute specifically focuses on HIV/AIDS treatment as well as the treatment of hepatitis C, hepatitis B, HPV and other diseases.
3. Dr. Redfield is also responsible for a care and treatment program within the U.S. President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, or PEPFAR.
4. Previously, Dr. Redfield served on the Presidential Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS and as an adviser to the National Institutes of Health under President George W. Bush, reports Politico.
5. An internal medicine physician by training, Dr. Redfield earned a bachelor's degree and a medical degree from Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. He completed internship and residency at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C.
6. If selected to lead the CDC, Dr. Redfield would replace former CDC Director Brenda Fitzgerald, MD. Dr. Fitzgerald resigned in January after a Politico report revealed she invested in tobacco and drug company stock after taking her CDC post. Longtime CDC official Anne Schuchat has been acting leader of the health agency since Dr. Fitzgerald's departure.
7. According to Politico, the White House is carefully vetting Dr. Redfield in the wake of Dr. Fitzgerald's resignation. Individuals with knowledge of the process told the publication a pick is expected to be announced in the coming weeks.
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