Source: United States Senator for West Virginia Joe Manchin
November 18, 2021
Senator Manchin’s remarks as prepared:
I am proud that yet another West Virginian is being sworn in to serve the American people. I have no doubt that Dr. Gupta will be a dedicated ONDCP Director.
Dr. Gupta is surrounded by a highly motivated, supportive family, and I think that says everything about who Dr. Gupta is as a father and husband.
I want to note the wonderful people who support Dr. Gupta, his family who are with him here today. His wife, Dr. Seema Gupta, who currently serves as a physician at the VA and his two twins boys, Arka and Drew who are attending Harvard Law School and Harvard Medical School after completing undergraduate degrees at Yale.
As a longtime resident of our home state of West Virginia, Dr. Gupta served as the Health Commissioner of West Virginia under both a Democrat and Republican Governor and led the state’s response to the drug epidemic that continues to ravage our state and many others. He established the West Virginia State Office of Drug Control Policy, and his opioid abatement plans served as national models.
I myself had the honor of working with Dr. Gupta when I was Governor and he served as the Director of the Kanawha County Health Department. His advice and expertise helped guide Charleston and Kanawha County through difficult times, and I will always be grateful for his help and continued friendship.
As a primary care physician, Dr. Gupta intimately understands the needs of communities across America, and is the first physician to ever hold this position.
As Commissioner of West Virginia’s Bureau for Public Health, Dr. Gupta saw first-hand the devastation that the opioid epidemic has unleashed on communities and led statewide efforts to tackle the drug epidemic.
His work leading efforts to combat the drug epidemic in a state with one of the worst overdose rates in the nation, makes him well-prepared to lead similar efforts on a national scale, when we lost more than 100,000 Americans in the last year alone. This hands-on experience makes him an excellent pick to lead the ONDCP, and I look forward to continuing to work with him.
Dr. Gupta is a dedicated public servant and has served West Virginians admirably. Congratulations Dr. Gupta and good luck to you in this new role addressing the drug epidemic in West Virginia and across America.