Graça Freitas
Maria da Graça Gregório de Freitas GCM (born 26 August 1957) is a Portuguese physician and public health specialist who was the Director-General of Health and inherently the chief medical officer and leading spokesperson on matters of public health in Portugal, between 2018 and 2023. She has work published in the fields of vaccination, prevention and control of communicable diseases, public health emergencies, and health communication.
Graça Freitas GCM | |
|---|---|
| Director-General of Health | |
| In office 1 January 2018 – 1 August 2023 | |
| Appointed by | Adalberto Campos Fernandes |
| Preceded by | Francisco George |
| Succeeded by | André Peralta Santos |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Maria da Graça Gregório de Freitas 26 August 1957 Nova Lisboa, Portuguese Angola |
| Alma mater | University of Lisbon |
| Signature | |
Before her appointment to the Directorate-General, she served as Deputy Director-General under her predecessor Francisco George, and coordinated several public health programmes, most notably, since 1996, the Portuguese National Vaccination Programme. She is also a member of the Management Board of the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control, of the World Health Organization Expanded Program on Immunization, among other international groups.
Due to her prominent national role during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic in Portugal, Graça Freitas was included in Jornal de Negócios's list of 50 Most Powerful People of 2020, which included both Portuguese and international personalities.