O'Neill named deputy AIDS coordinator in new State Department office

Joe O'Neill, MD, head of the White House Office of National AIDS Policy since July 2002, has been named a deputy coordinator and chief medical officer in the newly created Office of the Global AIDS Coordinator at the State Department. The office was created to oversee U.S. assistance in the international fight against HIV/AIDS, including oversight of President Bush's five-year, $15 billion international AIDS initiative. In July, Bush nominated Randall Tobias, a former pharmaceutical company executive, to head the new office. His appointment has yet to be confirmed by Congress. There was no report as to whether O'Neill will continue to head ONAP while also serving in the Office of the Global AIDS Coordinator.