Brian Christine

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Brian Christine
Official portrait, 2025
18th Assistant Secretary for Health
Incumbent
Assumed office
11 November 2025
PresidentDonald Trump
Secretary
Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
Preceded byRachel Levine
Personal details
BornBrian Sam Christine
1963 or 1964 (age 62–63)
PartyRepublican
Spouse
Kellie Bourland
​
(m. 2003)​
RelativesBobby Christine (brother)
EducationEmory University (MD)
SignatureA signature reading "Brian Christine"
Uniformed service
AllegianceUnited States
Branch
United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps
Service years
2025–present
Rank
Admiral

Brian Sam Christine (born 1963 or 1964) is an American urologist and politician who has served as the assistant secretary for health since 2025.

Christine graduated from Emory University with a Doctor of Medicine and took residency at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. He worked at the Urology Centers of Alabama and later established his own practice in Birmingham, Alabama. In 2022, Christine unsuccessfully ran for Alabama's fifteenth Senate district in that year's election. The following year, he ran in a special election for the Jefferson County Commission, but withdrew his candidacy.

In March 2025, President Donald Trump nominated Christine to serve as the assistant secretary for health. He was confirmed by the Senate in October.

Early life and education

Brian Sam Christine[1] was born in 1963 or 1964.[2] Christine is a descendant of Italian immigrants to the United States.[3] His brother, Bobby, later became the judge advocate general of the United States Army.[4] Christine graduated from Emory University with a Doctor of Medicine.[5] He is Catholic.[6]

Career

Urology practice

After graduating from Emory University, Christine took residency at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. He joined the Urology Centers of Alabama after completing his residency.[5] Christine's work specialized in penile implant surgery, and he published several papers on the procedures.[7] In October 2003, Christine married Kellie Bourland.[1] By October 2011, he had become the director of erectile restoration and prosthetic urology at Urology Centers of Alabama.[8]

By 2017, Christine had established a urology practice in Birmingham, Alabama. The practice advertised itself as inclusive of gay and transgender men, and a medical-conference biography stated that his practice specialized in erectile dysfunction in transgender men after gender-affirming surgery; in March 2025, he told The Wall Street Journal that he had never treated a transgender patient. By that month, Christine's practice had employed thirty doctors.[7] He hosted a YouTube show, Erection Connection, for urologists to learn about erectile dysfunction and a podcast, Common Sense.[9]

Political activities

Christine is a Republican donor.[7] In December 2021, he introduced Lynda Blanchard in her campaign announcement for the 2022 Alabama gubernatorial election.[10] In April 2022, Christine announced a campaign in that year's Alabama Senate Republican primary election for the state's fifteenth district.[11] The following month, the incumbent senator, Dan Roberts, defeated Christine in the primary.[12] In May 2023, Christine stated that he would run for a seat on the Jefferson County Commission vacated by the resignation of Steve Ammons.[13] That month, he withdrew from the election and endorsed Mike Bolin, a former Alabama Supreme Court justice.[14] Christine donated US$8,000 to Donald Trump's 2024 presidential campaign.[6]

Assistant Secretary for Health (2025–present)

On 24 March 2025, President Donald Trump nominated Christine to serve as the assistant secretary for health.[7] Christine appeared before the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions on 16 July. He positioned himself as a "main street doctor" with a range of experience.[5] The committee voted to approve Christine's nomination on 24 July.[15] The Senate voted to confirm Christine in a 51–47 vote along party lines on 8 October.[16] The position promoted Christine to become a four-star admiral. He was ceremonially sworn in by Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on 15 December.[17]

As the assistant secretary for health, Christine has advocated for the Department of Health and Human Services to establish an Office of Men's Health.[2] He sought to block federal funding for gender transition care.[9] Christine led the United States federal government's response to the MV Hondius hantavirus outbreak.[18]

Views

Domestic affairs

In his campaign for the Alabama Senate in 2022, Christine stated that he was "fiscally responsible" and advocated for libertarian conservatism. He supported school choice and opposed single-payer healthcare.[11] Christine opposes abortion and was among several doctors who demonstrated outside the Supreme Court Building amid oral arguments in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization (2022).[6] He supported Alabama's abortion law, which offered no exclusion for rape or incest.

Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Christine stated that the pandemic was used to affect the outcome of the 2020 presidential election. He suggested that "multinational large corporations and conglomerates", the financier George Soros, and the World Economic Forum sought to intentionally close small businesses in the pandemic. In a podcast, Christine stated that he had received the COVID-19 vaccine, but not successive booster doses. He opposed vaccine mandates.[6] Christine compared the Biden administration's response to the pandemic to Nazi Germany. He supported a call from the political activist Charlie Kirk to contest the 2020 election.[9]

Transgender issues

Christine is critical of gender-affirming surgery and hormone manipulation. In 2021, he asserted that gender could not be changed in an article for Yellowhammer News, adding that doctors and nurses who practice medical techniques to conform to gender identity were going against their "conscience". Christine opposes transgender people in sports.[7] He stated that, while he believed that gender dysphoria was a legitimate condition, it should be treated with corrective care, rather than affirming care.[6]

References

  1. "For Your Information". The Birmingham News. 22 October 2003. Retrieved 15 May 2026.
  2. Ghorayshi, Azeen (12 May 2026). "Why So Many Men Are Obsessed With Testosterone". The New York Times Magazine. Retrieved 15 May 2026.
  3. Blakely, Will (8 May 2023). "Birmingham urologist Brian Christine declares run for Jefferson County Commission". 1819 News.
  4. Fogel, Apryl (26 March 2025). "Trump taps Mountain Brook urologist Dr. Brian Christine for assistant secretary HHS role". 1819 News.
  5. Cirruzzo, Chelsea (16 July 2025). "Nominee to be key deputy to RFK Jr. at HHS positions himself as 'main street doctor'". Stat. Retrieved 15 May 2026.
  6. Nirappil, Fenit (12 April 2025). "Trump health nominee called for 'corrective care' for trans youth". The Washington Post. Retrieved 15 May 2026.
  7. Whyte, Liz (27 March 2025). "Trump's Nominee for Top Health Post Is Urologist Whose Practice Treated Transgender Men". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 15 May 2026.
  8. Faulk, Kent (6 October 2011). "Variety of treatments available for those with low testosterone". AL.com. Retrieved 15 May 2026.
  9. Kaczynski, Andrew (15 May 2026). "Penile implant specialist with history of far-right comments led hantavirus presser". CNN. Retrieved 15 May 2026.
  10. "Lindy Blanchard announces her campaign for Governor of Alabama". Montgomery Advertiser. 7 December 2021. Retrieved 15 May 2026.
  11. Emby, Neal (29 April 2022). "Roberts faces Christine for state Senate District 15". Hoover Sun. Retrieved 15 May 2026.
  12. Emby, Neal (25 May 2022). "Roberts wins Republican primary for state Senate District 15 seat". Hoover Sun. Retrieved 15 May 2026.
  13. Emby, Neal (8 May 2023). "Brian Christine running for District 5 seat on Jefferson County Commission". Hoover Sun. Retrieved 15 May 2026.
  14. Emby, Neal (31 May 2023). "Brian Christine withdrawing from Jefferson County Commission race". Hoover Sun. Retrieved 15 May 2026.
  15. Levien, Simon (24 July 2025). "HELP Committee recommends Brian Christine for top HHS post". Politico Pro. Retrieved 15 May 2026.
  16. Taylor, Caleb (8 October 2025). "U.S. Senate approves Alabama Trump nominees Brian Christine and Lynda Blanchard". 1819 News.
  17. Fogel, Apryl (15 December 2025). "RFK Jr. praises Mountain Brook doctor Admiral Brian Christine during pinning ceremony". 1819 News.
  18. Stockton, Ben (15 May 2026). "The penile implant specialist leading the US's hantavirus response". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 15 May 2026.