By Lacie Pierson, Charleston Gazette-Mail
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Dr. Rahul Gupta, the former top health officer in the Mountain State, is President Joe Biden’s pick to become the nation’s top anti-drug official.
If the U.S. Senate approves his nomination, Gupta will be the first physician to lead the Office of National Drug Control Policy, a position commonly referred to as the drug czar.
It’s the second time during his first year in office that Biden has tapped a West Virginian for a federal post. Biden appointed Gayle Manchin, wife of Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., as co-chairwoman of the Appalachian Regional Commission earlier this year.
Gupta’s nomination comes three years after he left his role as state health officer to work for March of Dimes.
State leaders congratulated Gupta on Tuesday afternoon, saying they hope his experience in West Virginia, considered the epicenter of the opioid addiction crisis, would be the driving force for allocating resources back to the state, as well as being beneficial for the rest of the country…
