Adm. Brian Christine, an assistant health secretary and head of the Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, is a licensed Alabama physician who specialized in penile implants and men’s health.Show Caption
A federal official in the spotlight for helping lead the United States’ ongoing hantavirus response is also getting attention for his resume as a urologist.Adm. Brian Christine, an assistant health secretary and head of the Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, is a licensed Alabama physician who specialized in penile implants and men’s health.Christine became a leading figure in the Trump administration’s response to hantavirus that has been known to sicken at least 10 people, killing three, from an outbreak on the MV Hondius cruise ship. In the United States, more than 40 people are being monitored for the Andes virus, a type of hantavirus, which derives from rodents. Experts have said hantavirus’ risk to the public is low.Multiple news outlets have reported on Christine's skepticism of past federal health responses, including during the COVID-19 pandemic. A CNN report cast Christine’s views as far-right conspiracy theories.In response to emailed questions, the Department of Health and Human Services referred to Christine’s May 15 X post. Christine said CNN was “baselessly smearing people as 'far-right' conspiracy theorists to delegitimize their opponents.”“Thank God Donald Trump is our President and telling the truth is no longer a crime in America,” Christine said.The White House didn’t respond to an email request for comment.What we know about his role in hantavirus responseOn May 11, Christine spoke to reporters at the University of Nebraska Medical Center, where some patients are being quarantined for hantavirus and undergoing testing for the Andes virus. The U.S. government repatriated American passengers who were aboard the Hondius and is monitoring others who may have been exposed.In a news briefing, Christine said the American response is “what [a] strong public health system looks like” and “transparency is the order of the day.”Christine is a four-star uniformed officer leading over 5,000 public health professionals who respond to emerging health threats.What critics and supporters said during his confirmationPresident Donald Trump nominated Christine for the position in March 2025.Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Alabama, said in a July Senate committee hearing that Christine was a “medical expert.”Citing his expertise in prosthetic urology and men’s health, Christine told senators he would bring the perspective of day-to-day patient care to HHS.“Treatment decisions and hard conversations with patients and their loved ones happen in the clinic, or in the emergency room, or at the bedside,” he said in opening remarks. “They happen in community hospitals and medical offices, and that is where I practice, and that is what I know. Every organization, if it is to be successful, must have someone in a leadership position who lives and works on Main Street.”Christine said the nation’s health institutions and policies were broken, and average Americans distrusted healthcare systems. He said the Trump administration was focused on addressing chronic disease. His mission was to restore trust and confidence in healthcare. While recent reports have focused on his experience as a urologist, critics at the time focused on his views of vaccines.Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Virginia, grilled Christine after asking whether Christine recommended the COVID-19 vaccine. Christine said like any therapeutic or vaccine, it comes with "inherent risks and benefits." He later said he would make sure the patient would have access to good information. "That is pretty darn troubling," Kaine said.In October, the Senate confirmed Christine and a number of other administration nominees in a 51-47 vote. All Democrats opposed the nominations.At HHS, Christine replaced Dr. Rachel Levine, a pediatrician who was formerly Pennsylvania’s physician general and later the state’s health secretary. Levine, a Biden nominee who served until Trump took office in 2025, is transgender.The Washington Post reported Christine has frequently spoken out against rights for people who are transgender. What to know about Christine's resumeChristine earned his medical degree from Emory School of Medicine, in Atlanta, and completed his residency in urology at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. Christine is a board-certified urologic surgeon with more than 30 years of clinical experience serving patients in Birmingham, Alabama, Tuberville said. Christine worked at the Urology Centers of Alabama, a private practice. In 2022, Christine unsuccessfully ran for an Alabama state senate seat. A year later, he ran for a county commission seat before withdrawing, the Hoover Sun reported.The federal Public Health Service website said he’s a member of the American Urologic Association, the Sexual Medicine Society of North America, the International Society for Sexual Medicine and the International Continence Society.Years earlier, Christine hosted a YouTube show called “Erection Connection,” speaking with other urologists on men’s health, including erectile dysfunction.In addition, he promoted views questioning federal health systems, vaccines and public health measures during the COVID-19 pandemic. In his “Common Sense” YouTube show, he said health responses from the federal government, and organized medicine, injected “liberal and left values” to exert more government control.Christine has criticized the use of mail-in ballots during the 2020 election, and said the "pandemic was used to influence the outcome of the 2020 elections."Trump’s second term has had a number of vacancies in key positions in HHS, including at the Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Eduardo Cuevas is based in New York City. Reach him by email at emcuevas1@usatoday.com or on Signal at emcuevas.01.
