Dr. Felix was born in Kansas, received his M.D. from the University of Colorado (1930), interned at Colorado General Hospital and received a Commonwealth Federal Fellowship. He spent his two year residency at the Colorado Psychopathic Hospital in Denver.
In 1933, Dr. Felix joined the U.S. Public Health Service (PHS) and spent two years at the Federal Prisoners Medical Center in Springfield, Missouri, then moved to the U.S. PHS Hospital in Lexington, Kentucky. In 1941, he received a Rockefeller Foundation Fellowship, earned a Master’s Degree in Public Health at Johns Hopkins University and was later appointed Senior Medical Officer at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy.
In 1944, Dr. Felix became Chief of the Bureau of Mental Hygiene of the U.S. Public Health Service and later the first Director of NIMH. He remained in that position for 18 years. Under his direction, NIMH became a major resource for practicing and funding research, as well as funding for mental health and training programs for several mental health disciplines. Dr. Felix was a professor at both George Washington and Georgetown Medical Schools and received many awards during his career as a leader in mental health in the U.S. He retired in 1986 to Arizona.
His awards include the Rockefeller Public Service Award (1961), the Lewis Award, the Strecker & Salmon Medals (1963), the Braufman Prize (1964), the Rubin Award (1965), the Distinguished Service Medal from U.S. DHS (1965), and the University of Colorado Award (1966).
Dr. Felix served as President of the American Psychiatric Association (1960–61).