Antonia Novello

Antonia Novello
Commissioner of the New York State Department of Health
In office June 1999 – December 31, 2006
Governor	George Pataki
Preceded by	Dennis P. Whalen (Acting)
Succeeded by	Richard F. Daines
14th Surgeon General of the United States
In office March 9, 1990 – June 30, 1993
President	George H. W. Bush Bill Clinton
Preceded by	James Mason (Acting)
Succeeded by	Robert Whitney (Acting)
Personal details
Born	(1944-08-23) August 23, 1944 (age 79) Fajardo, Puerto Rico
Political party	Republican
Education	University of Puerto Rico, Río Piedras (BS) University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine (MD) Johns Hopkins University (MPH)
Military service
Allegiance	United States
Rank	Vice admiral
Unit	USPHS Commissioned Corps

Antonia Coello Novello (born August 23, 1944) is a Puerto Rican physician and public health administrator. She was a vice admiral in the Public Health Service Commissioned Corps and served as 14th Surgeon General of the United States from 1990 to 1993. Novello was the first woman and first Hispanic to serve as Surgeon General. Novello also served as Commissioner of Health for the State of New York from 1999 to 2006. Novello has received numerous awards including more than fifty honorary degrees, was elected to the National Academy of Medicine in 2000, and has been inducted into the National Women's Hall of Fame.^[1] Her memoir, Duty Calls: Lessons Learned from an Unexpected Life of Service, was published in 2024.^[2]