jerome adams surg genl

In an interview with the Washington Post, one of Donald Trump's former Surgeons General expressed frustration with the path his career has taken due to his ties to the former president that took place during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic.

As the report notes, Dr. Jerome Adams and his wife have pinned his struggles to find a landing spot commensurate with his experience on what they call they call the "Trump Effect" which is not abating now that the former president has launched a third run for the presidency.

According to the report, "It followed them from Washington to their home in the Indianapolis suburbs. They felt it when he was exploring jobs in academia, where he would receive polite rejections from university officials who worried that someone who served in the administration of the the former president would be badly received by their left-leaning student bodies. They felt it when corporations decided he was too tainted to employ."

In an interview, he explained that Trump is “a force that really does take the air out of the room,” before adding, "The Trump hangover is still impacting me in significant ways.”

As the Post's Manuel Roig-Franzia wrote, "The former surgeon general’s predicament underscores one of the givens of today’s political environment: Association with Trump becomes a permanent tarnish, a kind of reverse Midas touch. Whether indicted or shunned or marginalized, a cavalcade of former Trump World figures have foundered in the aftermath of one of the more chaotic presidencies in modern American history."

Saying he is not complaining, Adams stated, "People still are afraid to touch anything that is associated with Trump."

The Post report adds that Adams did finally land a spot in September 2021, when "Purdue University President Mitch Daniels, a former Indiana governor and Republican stalwart, hired Adams as the first executive director ofhealth equity initiativesat the school."

However, as Roig-Franzia notes, the spectre of association with Trump still haunts the doctor.

"Even as Adams was seeking to define the next chapter of his life, he was engaged in an almost constant battle on social media. His frequent tweets about everything from his personal life to public health issues have invariably drawn attacks from both the right and the left. Rather than ignore his critics, he has often punched back, engaging in Twitter spats that stretch for days," the journalist wrote.

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Surgeon general gets pushed to sidelines, sparking questions

Jerome Adams is the Trump administration’s strongest voice for minority communities and the coronavirus, but has drawn fire from liberals.

Jerome Adams and Donald Trump

Surgeon General Jerome Adams speaks during a White House coronavirus news briefing with President Donald Trump. | Win McNamee/Getty Images

By DAN DIAMOND

04/20/2020

The Trump administration took Surgeon General Jerome Adams off television last week after his controversial remarks on Covid-19’s threat to minorities, silencing the White House’s loudest voice on racial disparities even as concerns mount about risks to communities of color.

Adams made just one TV appearance last week, a steep decline from the 10-plus TV appearances he made the prior week on programs like ABC’s “Good Morning America,” CBS’ “This Morning” and NBC’s “Today Show.” The surgeon general received multiple requests for high-profile media appearances last week that the White House didn’t accept, said two people with knowledge of some of those requests. Adams also hasn’t made an appearance at a White House press briefing since April 10.

Adams’ disappearance on the airwaves and at the White House podium followed comments at a press briefing on April 10 that progressives attacked as racially insensitive for shifting responsibility to minorities. But health officials also fear that minimizing Adams means the White House is retreating from questions about its work on behalf of minority communities, a perennially sensitive issue for President Donald Trump and his administration. Early data from Chicago showed that black communities represented about two-thirds of the city’s Covid-19 deaths, despite representing about one-third of the population.

“No one at the task force is really talking about this, consistently, but Jerome,” said one Health and Human Services official briefed on the task force’s conversations. A second official noted that Adams, an African American anesthesiologist, had spent several weeks working with groups like the NAACP on the risks of the coronavirus outbreak to minority populations.

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Asked about Adams’ recent disappearance from TV, a spokesperson for the surgeon general’s office said that he “continues to participate in a variety of media interviews,” pointing to a series of radio appearances he made one week ago.

“On Monday, April 13, he called in to the following radio shows: Get Up! Mornings with Erica Campbell, WVON The Morning Show with Maze Jackson and Todd Stroger and Breitbart News Daily,” the spokesperson said.

Adams also was booked for a series of regional and cable TV appearances on Monday April 20 including Sinclair, Hearst, Telemundo and the Black News Channel, the spokesperson said.

The White House defended its approach to communities of color. “The Vice President held a call with African American leaders on April 10,” spokesperson Katie Miller told POLITICO. “We continue to maintain daily communication with minority communities.”

A White House official also defended how the administration has deployed Adams, noting that Vice President Mike Pence pushed to add Adams to the task force more than a month ago and the vice president’s office has helped promote him for extensive appearances on television.

Another White House official pointed out that Anthony Fauci, the nation’s top infectious-disease expert, has appeared on programs like Desus & Mero, The Breakfast Club and actor Will Smith’s Snapchat show, which have popular followings in the African American community.

The Trump administration has faced weeks of questions about how its Covid-19 response is being tailored to hard-hit minority communities, such as the lengthy delay in producing federal data about racial disparities in outcomes. Adams’ remarks at the April 10 daily press briefing were designed to address those concerns — as the surgeon general discussed long-running issues like chronic disease and housing — although critics zeroed in on several comments that they said played into racial stereotypes.

“Avoid alcohol, tobacco and drugs,” Adams said that afternoon, as he urged communities of color to “step up” to fight the disease. “We need you to do this, if not for yourself, then for your abuela. Do it for your granddaddy. Do it for your Big Mama. Do it for your Pop-Pop.”

The comments were immediately questioned by a PBS reporter, who said they’d stirred outrage online, and roundly condemned by progressives including Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), who said they amplified claims about minority populations engaging in risky behaviors.

“Donald Trump has found a new vessel by which to spew his racist dog whistles: his Surgeon General Jerome Adams,” Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) said in an April 10 statement. “Jerome Adams used his five minutes of fame to do Trump’s dirty work and insult African Americans and other communities of color.”

Adams already has been criticized for amplifying some of Trump’s messages, like that the flu would end up being more dangerous than the coronavirus, while breaking with the president’s embrace of unproven anti-malaria drugs to treat Covid-19.

But Adams’ allies in the administration also say his recent comments on racial disparities were taken out of context, noting that his five minutes of remarks dealt with issues like structural inequality and Adams’ own history as an asthmatic patient.

Pressed by PBS reporter Yamiche Alcindor at the April 10 press briefing, Adams said he used terms like “big mama” because they’re familiar from his own family’s experience and that he wants all Americans to avoid substances like alcohol and tobacco at all times.

Fauci stepped in to defend Adams, too. “I know Jerome personally, and I can just testify that he made no — not even a hint— of being offensive at all with that comment. I thought that was appropriate,” Fauci said.

Nonetheless, the White House almost immediately pulled back from using Adams as a surrogate on TV shows with the largest and broadest audiences, which some advocates for minority communities say has deprived them of a key voice on some of the shows that most often influence the president’s response to Covid-19.

Several current and former HHS officials said Adams has been an important advocate for racial issues inside the administration, noting that he has been recognized by publications like Modern Healthcare as one of the nation’s preeminent minority leaders on health issues.

“He goes off-script, which gets him in trouble, but his heart is in the right place,” said one former official, noting that Adams has often echoed public health concerns raised by career scientists like Fauci during the Covid-19 outbreak, rather than the line touted by fellow Trump appointees.

In addition, some outside groups serving minority populations, like the National Medical Association — the nation’s oldest medical association representing African American physicians — said they’ve teamed up with Adams on recent Covid-19 efforts.

“The National Medical Association looks forward to working with Surgeon General Jerome Adams to eliminate disparities in healthcare and health in the African American community and communities of color overall,” a spokesperson said.

Unlike other public health officials like Fauci or White House coronavirus coordinator Deborah Birx, Adams occupies a role explicitly focused on communication. The surgeon general has been the “nation’s leading spokesperson on matters of public health since 1871,” according to the office’s description.

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Former Surgeon General Jerome Adams says CDC officials wouldn't follow the new guidance 'for their own family'

John L. Dorman Dec 29, 2021,

Surgeon General Jerome Adams

Former US Surgeon General Jerome Adams.

Dr. Jerome Adams criticized the CDC's decision to cut the isolation time from 10 days to five days.

The change is for people who have tested positive for the coronavirus but remain asymptomatic.

Adams said infected people should secure an antigen test and wait for a negative result.

Former US Surgeon General Jerome Adams on Tuesday spoke out against the latest guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which recommended that asymptomatic people infected with the coronavirus complete their isolation period after five days.

Adams — who served under President Donald Trump from 2017 to 2021 and was a prominent member of the White House coronavirus task force in the former president's administration — said that people should take an antigen test and secure a negative result for the coronavirus before ending their quarantine.

The former surgeon general went on to speak of his high regard for the CDC but said people who work at the agency would be reluctant to follow the new guidelines.

"I love the CDC. Grew up wanting to work there and have been one of their most ardent defenders. I never dreamed the day would come when I would advise people NOT to follow their guidance," he tweeted.

"But ask any of them. They wouldn't even follow it for their own family," he added.

Adams' comments came after the CDC cut its recommended isolation time in half — from 10 days to five days — for asymptomatic people who test positive for the coronavirus.

The agency said that the new guidelines were driven by science that showed that the bulk of virus transmission transpired earlier in the infection period.

But Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation's top infectious-disease expert, recently told CNN the CDC changed the guidelines based on the number of new cases fueled by the Omicron variant, while emphasizing the need keep the economy from faltering.

"With the sheer volume of new cases that we are having and that we expect to continue with Omicron, one of the things we want to be careful of is that we don't have so many people out," Fauci said. "If you are asymptomatic, and you are infected, we want to get people back to jobs — particularly those with essential jobs to keep our society running smoothly."

Fauci said the changes had been under consideration for some time and called the new guidelines "very prudent" at this point in the COVID-19 pandemic.

Adams — while continuing to push back against the agency's changes on Twitter — stressed the importance of testing.

"Regardless of what CDC says, you really should try to obtain an antigen test (I know - easier said than done) and confirm it's negative prior to leaving isolation and quarantine. There's not a scientist or doctor I've met yet who wouldn't do this for themselves/their family," he tweeted.

"Many who are defending/championing this policy on TV have told me privately if it were their family/workplace, they would want a 'test out' of isolation policy. This isn't about the best science — it's a compromise to keep the economy open in the face of inadequate tests," he added.

The Trump administration was criticized by those who felt it put economic needs before safety. Axios reported Trump officials overruled the CDC's recommendation to extend a cruise-ship ban. And The Washington Post reported Trump appointees tried to alter CDC reports on the coronavirus to better align with Trump's optimistic views.

With the rapid spread of the Omicron variant of the coronavirus, Americans have been lining up across the country to secure free tests and have scouted convenience stores looking for kits that are suddenly in short supply, an issue that President Joe Biden has committed to tackling in the ensuing weeks.

Adams on Tuesday told Indianapolis' WISH-TV 8 that he was concerned by the message the CDC's decision sent to the general public.

"I'm worried now that they're saying that the people who have isolated for five days can end isolation. But what most of America will hear is that, 'Hey, isolation is done for everybody,'" he said. "It doesn't matter if you've got symptoms or not. It doesn't matter if you wear a mask because the guidance also says that for the second five days, you should be wearing a mask around everyone else."

He added: "We haven't had a great mask compliance thus far, so I don't have a whole lot of confidence that people are going to wear a mask after they end isolation."

Nearly 822,000 people had died of the coronavirus in the US as of Wednesday, with more than 53.4 million confirmed cases, according to Johns Hopkins University.

jerome adams surg genl

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