Robert A. Whitney was the Acting Surgeon General of the United States from July 1, 1993-September 1993.

A career United States Public Health Service officer, Dr. Whitney was appointed deputy surgeon general September 1, 1992. Since 1971, he held a number of positions of increasing responsibility in the National Institutes of Health. From 1989 to 1992, he was director of the NIH National Center for Research Resources .

Prior to joining PHS, Dr. Whitney was director of the U.S. Army training program in laboratory animal medicine and served a year in Vietnam (1970) as commander of a veterinary medical detachment.

Whitney was born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, July 17, 1935. He received his Doctorate of Veterinary Medicine degree from Oklahoma State University in 1959 and his master's in pharmacology from Ohio State University in 1965.

He is a diplomate of the American College of Laboratory Animal Medicine and served as chief veterinary officer of the Public Health Service from 1985-1989. His awards include United States Public Health Service Distinguished Service Medal and the Army Legion of Merit.

This article was originally based on public domain text written by the U.S. government.