The U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps: A Need for Engineers

Abstract

In 1798, President John Adams signed the bill creating the Marine Hospital Service to medically care for U.S. merchant seamen. That agency is known today as the U.S. Public Health Service (PHS). In 1918, the PHS Commissioned Corps commissioned sanitary engineers in the Reserve Corps, and in 1930, President Herbert Hoover signed the Parker Act authorizing sanitary engineers to be part of the regular Commissioned Corps. During the world war years, PHS engineers were detailed to improve sanitation for military bases in the United States and abroad. In the 1960s, most PHS engineers served in the Indian Health Service, upgrading sanitation facilities for American Indians and Alaskan Natives. During the 1970s, PHS engineers were involved in providing an integrated and coordinated attack on environmental issues. Today, PHS engineers are involved with many aspects of public health protection and have been detailed around the world to provide emergency assistance in the wake of disasters.