Lawrence Deyton, M.D., M.S.PH became chief public health and environmental hazards officer at the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) in January 2006.  He is also associate professor of medicine and of health policy at the George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences, where he holds a weekly clinic at the Washington, D.C., VA Medical Center, which cares for veterans with HIV, infectious diseases, and hepatitis C. Prior to his current VHA position, Dr. Deyton had served since 1998 as chief consultant for VHA’s public health programs, building policies and programs in HIV, hepatitis C, and emerging infectious diseases on behalf of health care providers and patients in the health system. Before that, he led research programs in the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases at the National Institutes of Health for 11 years, formulated policy for the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health of the Department of Health and Human Services for 6 years, and served as a legislative aide with the House of Representatives Subcommittee on Health and the Environment. Dr. Deyton is a graduate of Kansas University, the Harvard School of Public Health, and the George Washington University School of Medicine.