Brenda Fitzgerald, conflict of interest and physician leadership

• Main Author: Robbins RA
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Arizona Thoracic Society 2018-02-01
• Series: Southwest Journal of Pulmonary and Critical Care
• Subjects: Brenda Fitzgerald; conflict of interest; physician leadership; physician executive; CDC; tobacco; credibility; public health; smoking; ethics
• Online Access: http://www.swjpcc.com/editorial/2018/2/6/brenda-fitzgerald-conflict-of-interest-and-physician-leaders.html

No abstract available. Article truncated at 150 words. Barely noticed in the news last week was Brenda Fitzgerald’s resignation as director of the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) after only 6 months on the job (1). Her resignation came one day after Politico reported that she bought shares in a tobacco company one month after assuming the CDC directorship (2). The stock was one of about a dozen new investments that also included Merck and Bayer (3). Fitzgerald had come under criticism by Senator Patty Murray for slow walking divestment from older holdings that government officials said posed potential conflicts of interest (1). While serving as director of the Georgia Department of Health, Fitzgerald owned stock in five other tobacco companies: Reynolds American, British American Tobacco, Imperial Brands, Philip Morris International, and Altria Group (4). “It gives you a window, I think, into her value system,” said Kathleen Clark, a professor of law focusing on government ethics at …