President Donald Trump has appointed Rear Adm. Sylvia Trent-Adams as acting U.S. Surgeon General after asking for the resignation of former President Barack Obama's surgeon general Vivek H. Murthy on Friday.
Murthy was asked to step down after "after assisting in a smooth transition into the new Trump administration," Department of Health and Human Services spokeswoman Alleigh Marré said, according to the New York Times. She said Murthy was still a member of the Commissioned Corps of the Public Health Service.
Credit: Shelby Lin Erdman, Cox Media Group National Content Desk
Credit: Shelby Lin Erdman, Cox Media Group National Content Desk
But the Times reported Murthy's wife said on Saturday that her husband was fired after he refused to resign.
Trent-Adams, who was Deputy Surgeon General under Murthy, is one of the first nurses to serve as U.S. Surgeon General. She also served as Chief Nurse Officer of the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps from November 2013 through May of 2016.
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