Alex Michael Azar II (17 June 1967-) was US Secretary of Health and Human Services from 29 January 2018 to 20 January 2021, succeeding Tom Price and preceding Xavier Becerra.
Biography[]
Alex Azar was born in Johnstown, Pennsylvania in 1967, and he worked as a law clerk for federal judges and US Supreme Court justices during the 1990s before becoming a law firm partner in Washington DC in 1996.
From 2001 to 2005, he served as General Councel of the US Department of Health and Human Services, and he went on to serve as its Deputy Secretary from 2005 to 2007. From 2012 to 2017, Azar served as President of Eli Lilly and Company, a major pharmaceutical drug company, and he was involved in "big pharma" lobbying campaigns.
On 13 November 2017, President Donald Trump nominated Azar to serve as his new Secretary of Health and Human Services, and he took office on 29 January 2018. He was criticized for the nation's unpreparedness for the COVID-19 pandemic, and he left office with the rest of the Trump administration on 20 January 2021.