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Nature Medicine 12, 378 (2006)
Published online: 29 March 2006 | doi:10.1038/nm0406-378

Profile: Thomas Frieden

Apoorva Mandavilli1

  1. New York


It's not often that the health official of a city makes global headlines—even when the city in question is New York. With his daring policies on HIV, diabetes and smoking, Thomas Frieden is putting New York on the map.


For a few months before he entered medical school, Thomas Frieden lived in Stanton, Tennessee, a small, rural area so poor that few residents had telephones. Sent by the Appalachian Student Health Coalition, a community outreach program led by volunteers, Frieden rode his bicycle for five days to the predominantly black town.