Donald Trump, who was re-elected as the US President in the 2024 elections, has named Mehmet Oz, known simply as Dr. Oz, as his pick for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) administrator. As with several other Trump’s choices for his upcoming administration, this has garnered considerable scrutiny. Particularly, many are also wondering who is Dr Oz.
Here’s everything to know about Mehmet Oz and his role in the Trump administration.
Who is Dr Oz?
Dr. Oz is a TV personality, physician, educator, and author. Born in 1960 in Cleveland, Ohio, in a Turkish-American family, he served in the Turkish Army for two months so that he would lose his dual citizenship. Oz followed in the footsteps of his father, Mustafa Öz, into the world of medicine. The latter served as chief of thoracic surgery at the Medical Center of Delaware for several years.
Oz grew up in Wilmington, Delaware, before obtaining his undergraduate degree in biology magna cum laude from Harvard University. He then went on to receive MD and MBA degrees at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. Oz is a highly accomplished physician. After starting his career in medicine as a resident at the Presbyterian Hospital in New York City, he joined Columbia University in 1986.
Dr. Oz remained affiliated with the school for over three decades and was named professor emeritus in 2018. However, Columbia reportedly removed all mentions of him in 2022. Oz is arguably most known as the host of the syndicated series, The Dr. Oz Show (2009-2022). However, he became a subject of controversy for the purported promotion of pseudoscience, faith healing, paranormal beliefs, and alternative medicine.
In 2022, Oz ran an unsuccessful US Senatorial campaign from Pennsylvania on a Conservative platform. He has been married to his wife Lisa, also a TV personality, since 1985. They have four children together, Daphne, Arabella Sezen, Oliver Mustafa, and Zoe Yasemin.
Following Trump’s announcement, Oz took to X (formerly Twitter) and posted, “I am honored to be nominated by @realDonaldTrump [Trump] to lead CMS. I look forward to serving my country to Make America Healthy Again under the leadership of HHS Secretary @RobertKennedyJr [Robert F. Kennedy Jr.]”
