Adm. Brett P. Giroir, M.D. is a distinguished visiting executive at Leavitt Partners. From 2018 to 2021, he served as the Assistant Secretary for Health at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). There, he led development of HHS-wide public health policy recommendations and oversaw eleven core public health offices as well as eleven Secretarial advisory committees.
Adm. Giroir also served as Senior Advisor to the Secretary for Opioid Policy. In this capacity, he was responsible for coordinating HHS’s efforts across the Administration to fight America’s opioid crisis. From 2014-2015, Dr. Giroir chaired the Veteran’s Choice Act Blue Ribbon Panel to reform the U.S. Veterans Health System. During the Ebola emergency, he directed the Texas Task Force on Infectious and Disease Preparedness Response.
He was Executive Vice President and CEO of Texas A&M’s Health Science Center from 2013-2015, having earlier served as vice chancellor of strategic initiatives (2011-2013) and vice chancellor for research (2008-2011) for the entire Texas A&M University system. A pediatric critical care physician and a former member of the American Board of Pediatrics, Adm. Giroir cared for critically ill children for 14 years and was the first chief medical officer of Children’s Medical Center of Dallas (now Children’s Health). He was also a professor at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center from 1993-2003 and held a number of positions in academic and hospital leadership.
Adm. Giroir has had a significant federal portfolio. He directed the Defense Sciences Office of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) from 2006-2008. He joined the office in 2004 as deputy director, and between 1998 and 2004, was a member of the Defense Sciences Research Council.
Adm. Giroir has authored or co-authored almost 100 peer-reviewed scientific publications and holds patents on several biomedical inventions. He is the recipient of numerous honors and awards, including the U.S. Secretary of Defense Medal for Outstanding Public Service, the American Heart Association’s President Lyndon Baines Johnson Research Award and the Society of Critical Care Medicine’s Annual Scientific Award. He was the nation’s high school debate champion in 1978. He received a bachelor’s degree in biology from Harvard University in 1982 and a medical degree from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center (Dallas) in 1986.
Brett Giroir, M.D. is a physician, scientist and innovator whose career has been dedicated to improving public health and medicine. He is a pediatric critical care specialist by training and a physician-scientist who has served in a number of leadership positions in the federal government, as well as in academia.
Formerly, Dr. Giroir served as the 16th Assistant Secretary for Health in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and as an admiral in the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps. In that role, he led development of HHS-wide public health policy recommendations and oversaw several of the Department’s core public health offices, including the Office of the Surgeon General. His office led many critical national initiatives, including an historic new plan to end the HIV epidemic in America, the Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans, the revised Common Rule, and a cross-agency effort to improve outcomes for patients living with sickle cell disease. Dr. Giroir also served as Senior Adviser to the Secretary for Opioid Policy, responsible for coordinating HHS’s efforts across the Administration to fight America’s opioid crisis. He also served as Acting FDA Commissioner.
From 2013-2015, Dr. Giroir was Executive Vice President and CEO of Texas A&M’s Health Science Center and a professor of pediatrics and engineering, having earlier served as Vice Chancellor of Strategic Initiatives (2011-2013) and Vice Chancellor for Research (2008-2011) for the Texas A&M University system. Prior to these roles, he was professor of pediatrics and endowed chair at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center (1993-2003) and the first Chief Medical Officer of Children’s Medical Center of Dallas (now Children’s Health).
Dr. Giroir’s federal service includes directing the Defense Sciences Office of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) from 2006-2008. He joined the office in 2004 as Deputy Director and served on the Department of Defense’s Threat Reduction Advisory Committee both during his tenure at DARPA and thereafter. From 2014-2015, he chaired the Veteran’s Choice Act Blue Ribbon Panel to reform the U.S. Veterans Health System.
Dr. Giroir has authored or co-authored more than 100 scientific publications, editorials, and book chapters. He is the recipient of numerous honors and awards, including the U.S. Secretary of Defense Medal for Outstanding Public Service, the American Heart Association’s President Lyndon Baines Johnson Research Award, and the American Society of Nephrology’s President’s Medal. He received a bachelor’s degree in biology magna cum laude from Harvard University, and a medical degree from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center.