Almost exactly 5 years ago, I wrote an article about the newly nominated Surgeon General of the United States, Vivek Murthy—and why I didn’t support his nomination or think it was appropriate that he serve in that position. My reasoning was that he was the least accomplished, and more importantly, most political person in history to hold the title of America’s Top Doctor. He had essentially become a nationally known figure as a political organizer for candidate Barack Obama, after which he was appointed by the then President. Under 2 years later, he was out of favor, let go, and followed by 2 fine medical professionals: Sylvia Trent-Adams (a nurse by training) and Dr Jerome Adams (an anesthesiologist).

Since his departure, Vivek Murthy has undertaken a number of activities, including writing a book. When the new administration took the reigns of power, he was nominated again by President Biden to return as Surgeon General. His confirmation hearings are taking place shortly. Scrutiny of all financial activities is part of the nominating process for any top government official, and over the last several days the extent of Vivek Murthy’s private sector consulting work in 2020, has raised a few eyebrows. You can read the full story here, but in a nutshell: Murthy has made over 2 million dollars since last March giving COVID “consulting” advice to a number of companies, including Carnival Cruises and Airbnb. Some of his short speeches on the topic have garnered hundreds of thousands of dollars!

I must say, I am a capitalist at heart and America is a free country. If people want to make a ton of money in the private sector in an honest and fair way, I say good luck to them. But such a blatant recent conflict of interest must be called out here for a potential high-ranking public servant. And what’s worse, it’s coming from a political side that traditionally (used to anyway) rail against corporate interests and be all about public service in the name of the common good. One of the reasons President Donald Trump won so much initial support was his promise to “drain the swamp” and root out government corruption. That may not have happened over the last 4 years, but nothing could be more “swampy” than Dr Vivek Murthy now being put back in the position of Surgeon General. It’s totally inappropriate and an affront to what America’s “role model doctor” is supposed to be about. Only a few short weeks after being written cheques worth unthinkable amounts of money to most people, he will now be in a position to be shaping public health policy in the very same area that companies were paying him for. Whether or not he allows his swollen bank account to affect his future judgment, we cannot know or presume. But we have financial disclosures and Senate hearings for a reason in this country.

It’s very likely the problem of doctors and scientists who have significantly gained financially as a result of COVID goes much deeper than Murthy anyway. They may represent a tiny minority of the nation’s hardworking and deserving professionals, but they are among the most powerful and influential. Among the more famous, Dr Anthony Fauci recently won a million dollars from an Israeli organization for “services to humanity” and is all set for a glittering consulting and public speaking career if and when the pandemic wanes. Lots of doctors have become household names in their local areas with constant TV news appearances, while some have become social media superstars. Other less-known physicians and scientists have done well too, more under the radar—including a Chicago-area Emergency Room doctor who has raked in vast profits from opening COVID testing centers. Again, these examples represent a minute number of total doctors and scientists in America, most of whom have gone above and beyond during the last 12 months—with absolutely no monetary or status gain.

This doesn’t mean that the extremely financially successful doctors of 2020, like Murthy, are not sometimes dispensing good advice and doing things that help people, but I urge every reader to ask this question: If you were making millions from any situation in life, would you want that situation to end? It’s called human nature, and nobody is above it.

I only ask that they spare a thought for the 99 percent, who have suffered great personal, financial, and emotional ruin from the pandemic—and would do anything to bring this chapter to a close. And I hope that wherever Dr Vivek Murthy is when this happens, that he’s not the Surgeon General of the United States, and the Senators voting this week do the right thing and block his confirmation.

Suneel Dhand is a physician, writer, and YouTuber. He is Founder at MedStoic Lifestyle Medicine and DocsDox . Follow him on YouTube and Instagram