Newly released U.S. Justice Department records show that Dr. Mehmet Oz, who serves as administrator of the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), emailed an invitation to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein for a Valentine’s Day event in 2016.
The email, dated Feb. 1, 2016, was sent from Oz and his wife to Epstein and carried the subject line "Mehmet and Liza Oz’s Valentine’s Day Celebration." The message included a link to a digital invitation, according to the released files. The Justice Department made the documents public in recent weeks to comply with a bipartisan act of Congress directing disclosure of Epstein-related materials.
The released records have surfaced fresh details about Epstein’s connections to a range of well-known figures in politics, finance, business and academia. Within that corpus, Oz appears multiple times.
One additional entry in the files is an email that appears to have been sent from an account under Oz’s name to Epstein on Jan. 1, 2016. The subject line of that message is recorded as "Dr oz," but the body of the email is fully redacted in the version released.
The files also show that Dean Ornish, founder of the nonprofit Preventive Medicine Research Institute, extended an invitation to Epstein for a 2014 event that featured Oz as a speaker; the record indicates Epstein did not attend. Separately, Oz’s name appears on a 2012 list titled "updated yes list for tomorrow evening" contained in an email with the subject line "Sunday, Dec. 9th Les Mis."
The documents note that Oz sent the 2016 Valentine’s Day invitation nearly a decade after Epstein’s first public sex crime charges surfaced in July 2006. Epstein later died by suicide in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges.
Officially, Oz is not accused of any wrongdoing in relation to the Epstein matter. The Department of Health and Human Services did not reply to a request for comment on the records and the entries that reference Oz.
Oz, 65, rose to national prominence as a cardiothoracic surgeon and as a television personality, hosting The Dr. Oz Show for more than a decade, where he provided medical advice to a broad audience. The Justice Department’s disclosure of millions of files has brought to light previously unreleased correspondences and lists that include a number of prominent individuals; several of the items referencing Oz are either partially or fully redacted in the public release.
Summary
Justice Department records published under congressional mandate show an email sent Feb. 1, 2016 from Dr. Mehmet Oz and his wife inviting Jeffrey Epstein to a Valentine’s Day celebration. Oz is referenced elsewhere in the released files, including a redacted Jan. 1, 2016 email and his inclusion on a 2012 event attendance list. Oz is not accused of any crimes related to Epstein; authorities did not provide comment through the Department of Health and Human Services.
Key points
- Documents include a Feb. 1, 2016 email from Oz and his wife to Jeffrey Epstein containing a link to a digital Valentine’s Day invitation - sectors affected: politics, legal.
- Oz appears in other Epstein-related files, including a Jan. 1, 2016 email with a fully redacted body and a 2012 attendance list - sectors affected: healthcare administration, public affairs.
- The Justice Department released millions of files after a congressional directive; some entries are partially or fully redacted - sectors affected: legal, government transparency.
Risks and uncertainties
- Redacted materials limit the public’s ability to assess the full content and context of communications - impact on legal and political sectors.
- The released files are extensive but incomplete in places, leaving unanswered questions about the nature of some contacts - impact on government oversight and public affairs.
- Official silence from the Department of Health and Human Services leaves institutional response and potential follow-up unclear - impact on healthcare administration and public trust.
Disclosure
None.