Commander Luis O. Rodriguez Elected to NSF Council of Public Health Consultants

ANN ARBOR, Mich. – In a unanimous vote, the NSF Council of Public Health Consultants (CPHC) has elected Luis O. Rodriguez, Commander of the U.S. Public Health Service, to a three-year term. The NSF CPHC is an independent council responsible for overseeing and ratifying NSF’s consensus national standards.

The NSF CPHC also helps establish operating philosophies and environmental health programs. Founded in 1946, the council comprises distinguished public health professionals from government, academia and associations with expertise in various aspects of environmental and public health.

"The NSF CPHC is a world-class, public health standards oversight group that relies on the advice and counsel of dedicated and accomplished career public health professionals,” said Doug Farquhar, Chair of the NSF CPHC and Director of Government Affairs at the National Environmental Health Association (NEHA). “Commander Rodriguez is a wonderful addition to the CPHC. His unique U.S. Public Health Service knowledge and experience will strengthen our oversight of national standards."

Commander Rodriguez is a commissioned officer in the U.S. Public Health Service currently assigned to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). As an environmental health specialist, he works to strengthen environmental health programs and services and advance environmental health practice, primarily at the state, tribal, local and territorial levels. Commander Rodriguez has worked extensively in CDC’s Vessel Sanitation Program, which helps the cruise ship industry to prevent and control the spread of gastrointestinal illnesses on cruise ships. He also serves as a member of the NSF Joint Committee on Commercial Food Equipment.

Before his work at CDC, Commander Rodriguez served as a consumer safety officer at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). He has national and international experience in public health capacity building, cooperative agreements, emergency response, training, inspections and investigations. He holds a master’s degree in environmental health and a bachelor’s degree in science and education from the University of Puerto Rico, and a Ph.D. in public health from Walden University.

NSF is a standards development organization (SDO) accredited by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) for the development of consensus national standards. Standards are developed by joint committees—balanced stakeholder groups of public health, industry and user representatives—prior to submission to the CPHC for final review and approval. The CPHC serves as an independent, public health ratification step at the end of the standard development process, ensuring all NSF standards protect public health.

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About NSF

NSF is an independent, global organization that facilitates the development of standards, and tests and certifies products for the food, water, health sciences and consumer goods industries to minimize adverse health effects and protect the environment. Founded in 1944, NSF is committed to protecting human health and safety worldwide. With operations in 110 countries, NSF is a Pan American Health Organization/World Health Organization (WHO) Collaborating Center on Food Safety, Water Quality and Indoor Environment.