Reports and other publications from the Surgeon General are widely respected for their evidence-based approach to our nation’s most urgent public health issues. These influential documents bring together the expertise of scientific, medical, and public health professionals nationwide on a wide variety of topics, from the opioid and e-cigarette crises to health misinformation, disease prevention, breastfeeding, and oral health.
- Surgeon General’s Reports are comprehensive scientific review documents prepared by experts on behalf of the Surgeon General. They are often landmark publications that identify and shape the science and culture of our public health.
- Surgeon General’s Calls to Action are science-based summary documents prepared by experts on behalf of the Surgeon General. They are intended to catalyze action on urgent public health problems.
- Surgeon General’s Advisories are public statements that call the American people’s attention to a public health issue and provide recommendations for how that issue should be addressed. Advisories are typically shorter than Reports or Calls to Action, and they are reserved for significant public health challenges that demand the American people’s immediate attention.
Surgeon General publications have helped shape national conversations and public health efforts for decades. Reports on the adverse health consequences of smoking triggered nationwide efforts to prevent tobacco use. Other publications on HIV/AIDS, mental health, substance use disorders, nutrition, and violence—to name but a few—have heightened America's awareness of critical public health issues and continue to generate major public health initiatives.
Archives
Many of these reports and other publications can be accessed below. In addition, as part of its Profiles in Science project, the National Library of Medicine (NLM) has digitized and made available numerous documents of the Surgeon General published prior to 2000. The collection includes reports, proceedings, background papers, photographs, and other ephemera of historical interest. Selected documents from 2001 to the present are also available as full text in NLM's Health Services Technology Assessment Texts system.
Public Health Reports
Published since 1878, Public Health Reports (PHR) is the official journal of the Office of the U.S. Surgeon General and the U.S. Public Health Service. Read PHR’s peer-reviewed articles on important national public health issues.
