''This article is about James W. Holsinger, Jr. For other uses, see
Holsinger (disambiguation).''
'James Wilson Holsinger, Jr.', (born
May 11,
1939 in
Kansas City, Kansas) is an American
physician. A former
Major General in the
U.S. Army Reserve (1962 to 1993), he has worked primarily in the
public health for over thirty years. He served as the
Under Secretary of Veterans Affairs for Health from 1990 to 1993, during the administrations of
George H. W. Bush and
Bill Clinton.
[1] From 1994 to 2003, Holsinger was the
Chancellor of the
University of Kentucky's
Chandler Medical Center. From 2003 to 2005 he served as
Kentucky's Secretary of Health and Family Services.
5 On
May 24,
2007,
President George W. Bush nominated Holsinger to become the
Surgeon General of the United States.
Holsinger's nomination became controversial due to, according to his critics, anti-gay bias in his work in the United Methodist Church.
Holsinger obtained his medical degree in 1964 and a
Ph.D. in
anatomy in 1968, both from
Duke University.
As of 2007, he is a professor at the University of Kentucky. Holsinger is a leader in the
United Methodist Church, serving as treasurer of the
World Methodist Council and as President of the Judicial Council.
5
Early life and education
Holsinger was born in
Kansas City, Kansas to James W. Holsinger, Sr. (1906–1994), an Army
Brigadier General, and Ruth Reitz Holsinger (b. 1909).
[2][3]
Holsinger graduated from
Duke University with a
M.D. in 1964 and a
Ph.D. in
anatomy in 1968. He holds a degree from the
University of Kentucky in human studies. Additionally, he holds
master's degrees in hospital financial management from the
University of South Carolina, as well as
biblical studies from the
Asbury Theological Seminary.
[4][5]
He served as a surgical resident at
Duke University Medical Center and
Shands Teaching Hospital where he was also a fellow in Cardiology.
5 Holsinger has published four medical books and sixty-one
peer-reviewed papers.
5
Career
Department of Veterans Affairs
Holsinger served for twenty-six years in the
United States Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) from 1969 to 1994.
[6] He served at five different hospitals, rising to become a Medical Center Director.
5 In 1990, President George H. W. Bush appointed Holsinger as Chief Medical Director of the VA (title changed to
Under Secretary of Veterans Affairs for Health in 1992).
[7] He implemented the joint VA and
Department of Defense Contingency Hospital System, which could provide 25,000 beds within seventy-two hours for soldiers fighting in
Kuwait during the first
Iraq War.
[8][9] He oversaw the nation's largest
health care system, which served one million in-patients and twenty million out-patient visits per year. Holsinger also developed
health care policy for twenty-six million veterans.
[10]
When Holsinger assumed the post of Chief Medical Director, the VA was criticized for the quality of the care it provided. In 1991, Holsinger acknowledged that inadequate care had caused the deaths of six patients at its North Chicago hospital.
[11] He commissioned a team to review the quality of care, and based on its findings suspended surgical care at the facility. Later, testimony before a
Congressional subcommittee reported problems at more than thirty other veterans' hospitals.
1 Holsinger responded, "Our patients are older, sicker and more complex than the average patient."
1
In 1993, he moved to Kentucky to become the Director of the VA Medical Center. He remained a consultant in cardiology for the hospital until 2003. Holsinger was awarded the
Surgeon General's Medal by Surgeon General
Antonia Novello.
5
United States Army Reserve
Holsinger served for over thrity-one years in the
United States Army Reserve. He was awarded the
Distinguished Service Medal, the
Legion of Merit and the
Meritorious Service Medal three times. He was assigned to the
Joint Chiefs of Staff and promoted to
Major General in medical logistics working at the
Pentagon under General
Colin Powell. Holsinger retired from the United States Army Reserve in 1993.
5
University of Kentucky
Gill Heart Institute
From 1994 to 2003, Holsinger served as
Chancellor of the
University of Kentucky Medical Center with responsibility for five health colleges, four graduate centers, two hospitals and numerous clinics in Kentucky.
[12] Under Holsinger's leadership, the university built the
Gill Heart Institute and two research buildings, and Holsinger laid the groundwork for the expansion the hospital has undergone since he left.
168 Holsinger helped establish the Women's Health Center and the College of Public Health.
8 After spending two years in Kentucky state government, he returned to the University of Kentucky as a professor for the graduate program in Public Health. In 2004, Holsinger was named a Master in the
American College of Physicians.
[13]
HIV education efforts
In the late 1990s, Holsinger led an international team to address the
AIDS epidemic in
sub-Saharan Africa. Working with
Africa University in
Zimbabwe, the team created a School of Health Sciences with nursing and public health programs to educate young people to deal with the AIDS crisis. Holsinger helped the university obtain a
USAID grant to build the facility, which houses one of the few AIDS laboratories in southern Africa.
[14]8 In 2007, the program is preparing to field-test an
HIV vaccine.
[15]
Kentucky state government
Capitol, Frankfort Kentucky
Holsinger served as Secretary of the Cabinet for Health and Family Services for Kentucky under Governor
Ernie Fletcher.
[16] He was responsible for the management of the state’s health and social services programs, including the five billion dollar Kentucky
Medicaid program.
[17][18] Holsinger also led the social services response to the 6,000 evacuees of
Hurricane Katrina who relocated to Kentucky.
8
While serving as Secretary, Holsinger published a paper on physician professionalism stating that the autonomous practice of medicine contributes to physician dissatisfaction because of the prevalence of third-party payers and liability concerns. He recommended a new professional structure based on teamwork between physicians and "fair access to health care for all Americans."
[19]
Political affiliation
The ''
Associated Press'' said Holsinger was a financial supporter of the
Republican Party.
[20] According to the ''
The Courier-Journal'', he contributed $23,000 over ten years to the party and its candidates, including President
George W. Bush.
40
Nomination for Surgeon General
On
May 24,
2007, Holsinger was nominated by George W. Bush to become the 18th Surgeon General of the United States. The
Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) held the confirmation hearing on
July 12,
2007. If the Committee recommends Holsinger for Surgeon General, the
United States Senate is expected to vote in September.
[ Nominee for Surgeon General Testifies in Senate Harris, Gardiner ]
Holsinger was supported by the
American College of Physicians and former Surgeon General
C. Everett Koop. He was opposed by several gay and lesbian organizations and the
American Public Health Association.
[21]
Confirmation process
Following the nomination, Holsinger's views on homosexuality came under scrutiny, and several Democratic senators expressed concern or opposition to the nomination. In addition, individuals released statements supporting or opposing the nomination. Kevin Naff, editor of the
LGBT newspaper, the ''
Washington Blade'', charged that Holsinger has a "long record of anti-gay bias."
[22] Paul Weyrich, the conservative commentator, said opposition to Holsinger's nomination amounted to an assault on religious freedom.
[23] Still others asserted that Holsinger is not hostile to homosexuals citing his support for a session on lesbian health issues at a health conference
16 and the support of a former colleague who is a lesbian.
[ Surgeon General Nominee Is Assailed for Church Role Banerjee, Neela ]
Holsinger's 1991 paper
The critics were largely concerned with a 1991
white paper he wrote titled ''
Pathophysiology of Male Homosexuality'' for a committee in the United Methodist Church reviewing its position that homosexuality violates Christian teaching.
According to
Jake Tapper of
ABC News, the paper "purported" to discuss homosexuality from a medical standpoint.
[24] But the Rev.
J. Philip Wogaman, the main writer for the committee, said Holsinger imposed his views of homosexuality in the report.
According to Wogaman, Holsinger resigned after he anticipated that the committee was preparing to support the moral dignity of
non-promiscuous homosexuality.
The church never adopted the committee's recommendations
[25] but continues to struggle with the issue.
[26]
Supporters of Holsinger's nomination defended the paper as a review of the relevant medical literature at that time.
Critics said the paper reflected a pre-1970s view of human sexuality, and that it had a political agenda and was not a scientific paper.
24 At his confirmation hearing, Holsinger said the paper did not represent his current views and was not “an example of my scientific work.”
Critics have also expressed concerns about Holsinger's leadership of The United Methodist Church’s Judicial Council, the highest court of the Church. In 2005, the court defrocked
Elizabeth Stroud, an openly lesbian minister, and in a separate case reinstated a pastor who had been suspended for refusing to allow a gay man to join his congregation.
[27] However, a Judicial Council member said that the decisions should not be read as Holsinger's personal views because the council does not have the power to establish church law and lacked the discretion to rule otherwise.
16 But, as the ''
New York Times'' noted, "some council members opposed his views, and the bishops later rejected one decision."
[29][30]
Finally, gay rights groups have expressed concerns that the church to which Holsinger belongs, Hope Springs United Methodist Church, had a program that tries to "cure" gays.
However, the church's pastor denied this.
Supporters have pointed out that Holsinger faced down state legislators who, objecting to a session on lesbian health issues at a 2002 women's health conference, threatened to withhold funds.
16 A former co-worker who is lesbian wrote that although a "liberal Democrat", she strongly supported Holsinger as a leader with integrity.
Public health stances
Smoking
Holsinger has been a strong advocate for tobacco restrictions, implementing
smoking bans in the entire
VA hospital system
[34] and pushing to increase the
excise tax on cigarettes from 3 cents to 75 cents (ultimately raised to 30 cents) in a tobacco-growing state.
[35]29[36] At his confirmation hearing, Holsinger said one of his top three priorities is “making America a tobacco-free nation”.
Childhood obesity
Holsinger has consistently aired concerns about childhood obesity, pushing for a limit on
junk food in schools, lobbying and educating for the promotion of exercise and improvements of school nutrition.
[37][38] He included this as one of his highest priorities at his confirmation hearing.
He said he supported banning mass media advertising of junk food geared to children.
42
Readiness of Public Health Service Commissioned Corps
During his confirmation hearings, Holsinger said that if confirmed he would focus on improving the ability of the
Public Health Service Commissioned Corps to respond rapidly to emergencies.
Embryonic stem-cell research
In 2002, Holsinger testified at a Kentucky legislative hearing discussing
stem cell research.
The
Christian right characterized his testimony as supporting a "loosening [of] regulations". However, the White House said that Holsinger's concerns only involved the severity of the penalties.
[39] In 2005, he argued against a Kentucky anti-cloning bill, warning it could restrict future research. Holsinger testified that his father died of
Parkinson's disease which is under investigation for
gene therapy.
[40] During the HELP hearing, Holsinger said he supported President
Bush’s stem cell policy,
which restricts federal funding to already existing embryonic cell lines while providing funds for adult and animal stem cell research.
[41]
Sex education
Holsinger said that
abstinence education is one way to prevent sexually transmitted diseases and unwanted teen pregnancy but also supported educating teenagers about condom use.
[ Holsinger Tries to Convince Skeptics He Has Moved Beyond Controversial Paper Amstrong, Drew ]
Morning after pill
Holsinger said he did not support restricting the availability of an emergency contraceptive known as the
morning-after pill, or
Plan B.
Health insurance industry
During the HELP hearing, Holsinger stated that that he would seek ways to help the uninsured. "I think we need to have every American covered for health care." He offered no opinion on how to achieve this goal.
He said that he supported banning drug companies from advertising on television.
[42]
Independence of the office of Surgeon General
Two days before the HELP confirmation hearing, former Surgeon General
Richard Carmona went public with claims that the Bush Administration censored his speeches and buried his scientific reports.
[43] When asked about this at the hearing, Holsinger said, “If I were faced with a situation that I felt I could not in good conscience do, I think I have a clear response to that. I would resign.”
References
1. Investigator Cites Poor Care at Veterans Hospitals
2. James Wilson Holsinger, Brigadier General
3. Holsinger will be tough act to follow
4. UK, State Officials Praise Nomination of James Holsinger Blanton, Jay
5. James W. Holsinger, Curriculum Vitae Holsinger, James W.
6. Bush taps Kentuckian as surgeon general Gerth, Joseph
7. James W. Holsinger
8. Prepared Statement of James W. Holsinger Jr., MD. Holsinger, James W.
9. VA/DoD Contingency
10. Veteran Health Administration - Programs & Organizations.
11. U.S. Links 6 Deaths to Poor Hospital Care
12. University of Kentucky Chancellor's Office. Organizational Charts
13. College announces service awardees and new Masters
14. Africa University dedicates health sciences building
15. Witness Testimony
16. Criticism surprises Holsinger colleagues Vos, Sarah
17. CHFS Mission-Vision
18. CHFS Executive Organizational Chart
19. Physician Professionalism for a New Century Holsinger, James W.
20. Support is slow coming for surgeon general pick Alonso-Zaldivar, Ricardo
21. Surgeon general nominee vows science comes first Carroll, James
22. Dems should derail Holsinger Naff, Kevin
23. A new (unconstitutional) religious test for a presidential appointee? Weyrich, Paul
24. "Homosexuality Isn't Natural or Healthy" Tapper,Jake
25. Can a Methodist Be U.S. Surgeon General? Tooley, Mark
26. Report of the Task Force on Homosexuality and the Unity of the Church Task Force on Homosexuality and the Unity of the Church
27. Top Methodist Court Backs Conservatives on Gay Issues Banerjee, Neela
28. Church court reinstates pastor who denied membership to gay man Caldwell, Neill
29. A Nominee's Abnormal Views
30. Bishops' president foresees more dialogue after judicial session Caldwell, Neill
31. Holsinger's church role scrutinized Jester, Art
32. Bush Surgeon General Nominee Condemned By Gay Groups
33. Surgeon general pick concerns LGBT leaders Roehr, Bob
34. Condo, Adam. Smoking Ban Opposed for Veterans' Hospitals. The Kentucky Post. page 1K. January 16, 1992
35. Pick him – Holsinger good choice for surgeon general
36. Poll Finds Support; Its Advocates In Legislature Hopeful Ward, Karla
37. Holsinger familiar with obesity issue Isaacs, Barbara
38. Enter Dr Nice Guy
39. Bush nominee runs into crossfire Ward, Jon
40. Holsinger assailed, defended over views on gays Wolfson, Andrew
41. The President's decision: the overview; Bush gives his backing for limited research on existing stem cells Seelye, Katharine Q.
42. Bush surgeon general nominee denies he's anti-gay Dunham, Will
43. Ex-Surgeon General Says Administration Interfered Rovner, Julie
External links
★
Office of the Surgeon General. United States Department of Health and Human Services homepage.
★
President Bush Nominates Dr. James Holsinger Jr. as Surgeon General, White House press release,
May 24,
2007.
★
UK, State Officials Praise Nomination of James Holsinger, University of Kentucky press release,
May 25,
2007.
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