Courtesy of Cheryl Pegus, M.D., M.P.H.

Curiosity Expert: Cheryl Pegus, M.D., M.P.H.

Former Chief Medical Officer, Walgreen Co.

• TEDMED
• TEDMED Talk
• Cardiovascular Disease Urban Intervention Research
• Oral Chemotherapy Program Research

Cheryl Pegus, M.D., M.P.H., is the chief medical officer for Walgreen Co. and is responsible for Clinical Affairs, Outcomes and Analytics, Employee Health and Wellness and Clinical Sales. Dr. Pegus has more than 18 years of clinical practice and industry experience. Previously, she was General Manager and Chief Medical Officer for SymCare Personalized Health Solutions, Inc., a J&J company which provides innovative care management solutions utilizing remote monitoring. Prior to joining SymCare in 2007, she was the head of clinical products for Aetna's Medical Products business unit, responsible for developing, prioritizing and articulating the company's clinical product strategy. Former positions at Aetna include national medical director, clinical program development/design and marketing for Aetna's Member Advantage programs, and national medical director for Women's Health.

Until 2001, she was medical director for the Cardiovascular Risk Factors Group at Pfizer Pharmaceuticals in New York. She is a member of the board of directors of the Care Continuum Alliance and the Founder's Affiliate of the American Heart Association. In addition, Dr. Pegus is a member of the Dean's Circle at Weill Cornell Medical College and sits on the editorial advisory board of Disease Management Advisor.

Dr. Pegus has worked diligently to improve health disparities throughout her career.

She served as chair of the American Heart Association's health disparities taskforce. In addition, her efforts at Aetna included personalized disease management offerings according to gender, age and ethnicity as well as the introduction of new programs that impacted conditions affecting women across their lifespan. These initiatives included efforts to address health disparities in maternity, mammography and heart disease resulting in a Disease Management Association of America's Health Plan Leadership Award in 2004 and a NCQA Innovative Practices Award in 2007.

Dr. Pegus is a board-certified physician with subspecialty training in cardiology. She received an M.P.H. from Columbia University School of Public Health, an M.D. from Cornell University Medical College and completed her internal medicine residency and cardiology fellowship at New York Hospital-Cornell. She has published many peer reviewed studies and in 2000 she established a scholarship fund at her medical school to provide scholarships for minority students pursuing a career in medicine.