Baltimore Health Commissioner To Lead Planned Parenthood

BALTIMORE, MD — Baltimore Health Commissioner Leana Wen, M.D., has been named the new president of Planned Parenthood. Dr. Wen, who has led the Baltimore City Health Department since 2015, has been outspoken on issues from the opioid crisis to the Trump administration.

Wen will be the first medical doctor to lead the nonprofit organization in nearly 50 years, according to Planned Parenthood.

Her last day as the city's health commissioner will reportedly be Oct. 12.

As the city's top doc, Wen has testified before Congress multiple times on the opioid crisis. She also fought federal policies that restricted access to care.

Last year after Baltimore lost federal funding for its teen pregnancy education program, the city filed suit.

"...we sued the Trump administration, and we won," Wen said. "I fought the Trump administration when they tried to impose a gag rule on what doctors are allowed or not allowed to tell our patients only for reproductive health and women's health. Imagine if this were the case for any other medical procedure. It would be ludicrous," said Wen.

"Reproductive health care is health care. Women's health care is health care. And health care has to be understood as a fundamental human right," Wen said. "Having a physician as the head of Planned Parenthood — it is a sign that what we are doing is mainstream medical care."

It is also a positive sign for Planned Parenthood, which suffered a public relations setback in recent years after allegations that it sold fetal tissue after performing abortions.

Planned Parenthood clinics provide reproductive health care services, from screenings to contraception to abortion.

"For years, I’ve worked closely with Dr. Leana Wen as she led the Baltimore City Health Department," said Senator Chris Van Hollen, D-Maryland. "She has a proven track record of looking out for women’s health and reproductive rights—and standing up to the Trump Administration. I know she’ll do the same at Planned Parenthood."

Throughout her career, Wen has served as a patient advocate and emergency physician. She graduated from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and went on to become a Rhodes Scholar, then a professor of emergency medicine and director of patient-centered care at George Washington University's School of Medicine and Health Policy in Washington, D.C.

Wen, who now has a 1-year-old son with her husband, reported that her mother, sister and she have all relied on Planned Parenthood.

SEE ALSO: Baltimore Suing Trump Administration Over Health Care

Photo of Dr. Leana Wen courtesy of the city of Baltimore.