AFTER 3-YEAR GAP, SURGEON GENERAL'S POST IS FILLED

WASHINGTON -- Pledging to ``live and to share the fundamental values that
my parents instilled in me,'' Dr. David Satcher, the son of poor farmers
from rural Alabama who grew up to become one of the nation's most prominent
doctors, was sworn in at the White House on Friday and became the first
surgeon general in more than three years.

``There's no doubt,'' Vice President Al Gore said as President Clinton and
Satcher's family looked on, ``that from today forward, all Americans will
truly be able to say that the doctor is in.''

After the vice president had administered the oath in the Oval Office,
Satcher, who until Friday was director of the federal Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention, said, ``It is a privilege to have this opportunity
to give back to America what America has given me.''

The ceremony came on the heels of a bitter confirmation battle in which
conservative senators led by John Ashcroft, R-Mo., attacked Satcher for
opposing a ban on ``partial birth abortion'' that did not provide an
exception to protect a pregnant woman's health. A bipartisan coalition
nonetheless won Senate confirmation for the nominee Tuesday, and in his
remarks Friday, Satcher thanked the senators who had supported him.

``I want to especially applaud the Senate for conducting such a lively and
healthy debate,'' he said, drawing laughter. ``I feel good about that.''

Satcher had earlier sailed through his confirmation hearing, and at a brief
news conference after the ceremony he said he had been caught off guard by
the ensuing controversy in the full Senate. He pronounced himself happy to
have ``survived the debate.''

The bearded, bespectacled Satcher wore the distinctive navy blue uniform of
the surgeon general, with its double-breasted jacket, gold buttons and
gold-striped cuffs. It was a particularly triumphant moment for the
56-year-old family-practice physician, sickle-cell expert and medical
school president, who overcame the poverty and segregation of his years as
a black youth in the rural South. He pledged to ``make the greatest
difference for those with the greatest need, regardless of race, color or
creed.''

``The American dream does not end when it comes true,'' he said.
``Achieving this dream presents a new challenge to give others the chance
to achieve their own American dream.''

He quoted Robert Frost -- his wife, Nola, is herself a poet -- saying, ``I
have promises to keep, and miles to go before I sleep.''

The surgeon general's term is five years, and so Satcher should have two
years into the next presidential administration to keep those promises.

Satcher said it was too soon to know what his top priorities would be. He
said he wanted first ``to listen for a while'' to the health concerns of
the American people. But, sounding familiar themes, he said he would spread
awareness of the importance of physical activity, good nutrition, avoiding
drugs and shunning tobacco, ``our leading killer.''

The surgeon general's job has become a political lightning rod, with
incumbents tackling such delicate matters as teen-age sexuality and the
idea of distributing clean needles to drug addicts. The previous surgeon
general, Dr. Joycelyn Elders, was dismissed by Clinton in December 1994 for
making impolitic remarks about masturbation and other matters, including
her suggestion that decriminalization of marijuana be considered.

Satcher, who gamely confessed Friday to having read Dr. Elders'
autobiography, is widely expected to avoid that kind of controversy.
Indeed, when Sam Donaldson, the White House correspondent for ABC News,
tried to bait him into talking about marijuana, Satcher deftly avoided the
decriminalization question.

Donaldson, undaunted, pressed on.

``No,'' the new surgeon general finally said, ``I don't have the
information that would lead me to favor decriminalization.''