Leana Wen, MD, MSc, FAAEM, is an emergency physician, clinical associate professor at The George Washington University, and nonresident senior fellow at the Brookings Institution. She is a columnist for The Washington Post, where she writes a twice-weekly column on public health and health policy and anchors the Post newsletter, "The Checkup with Dr. Wen."
Previously, she served as Baltimore's Health Commissioner, where she led the nation's oldest continuously operating health department to fight the opioid epidemic, address disparities and mental health access, and improve maternal and child health. She is the author of two books, the most recent of which is "Lifelines: A Doctor's Journey in the Fight for Public Health," and is a frequent on-air commentator for CNN, NPR, PBS, and BBC.
Wen obtained her medical degree from Washington University School of Medicine and studied health policy at the University of Oxford, where she was a Rhodes Scholar. She completed her residency training at Brigham & Women's Hospital and Massachusetts General Hospital, where she was a clinical fellow at Harvard Medical School. Her awards include being named one of Governing's Public Officials of the Year, Modern Healthcare's Top 50 Physician-Executives, and TIME's 100 Most Influential People.