Leana S. Wen

Washington, D.C.

Contributing columnist focusing on public health and health policy

Education: California State University, Los Angeles, BS; Washington University School of Medicine, MD; University of Oxford, MSc

Leana S. Wen, a Washington Post contributing columnist, writes on a broad range of topics with an emphasis on public health and health policy. Wen is a professor of health policy and management at the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health, a nonresident senior fellow at the Brookings Institution and author of the recent book "Lifelines: A Doctor's Journey in the Fight for Public Health." Wen writes the newsletter The Checkup With Dr. Wen. Sign up here. An emergency physician and CNN medical analyst, she is on the board of directors of the Bipartisan Policy Center, Glaukos Corporation, UroGen, Baltimore Community Foundation and National Committee on U.S.-China Relations, and on the advisory boards of the Behavioral Health Group, B-Generous, MANUAL and Shatterproof. Previously, she served as Baltimore’s health commissioner and led the nation’s oldest continuously operating health department. She has also been the director of patient-centered care research in the department of emergency medicine at George Washington University; president of Planned Parenthood; global health fellow at the World Health Organization; and distinguished fellow at the Fitzhugh Mullan Institute for Health Workforce Equity. Wen lives with her husband and two young children in Baltimore.
Latest from Leana S. Wen

The Checkup With Dr. Wen: At last, birth control pills can be purchased over the counter

Here’s what to know about Opill, the contraceptive that is now available without a prescription.

April 25, 2024
A package of daily birth control pills. (Rich Pedroncelli/AP)

Why we shouldn’t panic if bird flu becomes the next pandemic

The federal government has plans in place in case avian flu becomes the next pandemic.

April 23, 2024
Cattle are seen at a dairy farm near Vado, N.M. (Rodrigo Abd/AP)

The Checkup With Dr. Wen: Readers recall the suffering of vaccine-preventable diseases

These stories are essential to convincing people to vaccinate their children.

April 18, 2024
Nurse Anita Eastwood attends to a 27-year-old polio patient in an iron lung on Nov. 30, 1954. (AP Photo)

Why the spread of bird flu to a Texas dairy worker is so alarming

After jumping from cattle to a person, the disease should be taken seriously.

April 16, 2024
Cows at a cattle farm in Austin on April 2. (Adam Davis/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock)

The Checkup With Dr. Wen: How covid-19 might have improved public health infrastructure

A new coalition is bridging the divide between public health and health care.

April 11, 2024
An ambulance drives through Borough Park in New York City on Sept. 28, 2020. (Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

One woman’s story of agony shows why childhood immunizations are so crucial

Ina Pinkney explains why childhood immunizations are so crucial.

April 8, 2024
Ina Pinkney awaits patrons in her restaurant in Chicago on Sept. 23, 2002. (Tim Boyle/Getty Images)

The Checkup With Dr. Wen: Why cancer rates are rising among younger people

Even though overall cancer rates are falling, young people are at greater risk.

April 4, 2024
Catherine, Princess of Wales, attends the Remembrance Sunday service in London on Nov. 12. (Kin Cheun/(AP photo)

Too few people are screened for colon cancer. This new test might help.

Colorectal cancer is one of the deadliest cancers, yet 1 in 3 eligible people have never been tested for it.

April 2, 2024
A flag installation on the National Mall spotlights colorectal cancer cases on March 12. (Paul Morigi/Getty Images for Fight Colorectal Cancer)

The Checkup With Dr. Wen: Do you know a vaccine skeptic? Here are 10 simple responses.

Parents are just trying to do what’s best for their kids. Here’s how to help them.

March 28, 2024
An infant is vaccinated in Fayetteville, Ga., in 2021. (Angie Wang/AP)

How to counter vaccine misinformation in political discourse

Childhood immunizations should not be a partisan talking point.

March 26, 2024
A campaign button for independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on a supporter outside the Supreme Court on March 18. (Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post)