Howard A. Zucker | |
---|---|
Commissioner of the New York State Department of Health | |
In office 2015–2021 | |
Governor | Andrew Cuomo Kathy Hochul |
Preceded by | Nirav R. Shah |
Succeeded by | Mary T. Bassett |
Personal details | |
Born | Bronx,New York,U.S. | September 6,1959
Alma mater | McGill University (B.S.) George Washington University School of Medicine &Health Sciences (M.D.) Fordham University Law School (J.D.) Columbia University Law School (LL.M) London School of Hygiene &Tropical Medicine |
Occupation | Medical administrator |
Profession | Physician |
Howard A. Zucker (born September 6,1959) served as the 16th commissioner of the New York State Department of Health from 2015-2021. He was appointed to the position by Governor Andrew Cuomo in 2015 and had served as Acting Commissioner the prior year after the abrupt resignation of Nirav Shah. [1] [2]
During the COVID-19 pandemic,he appeared frequently in media as the ultimate expert on the status of the pandemic in the State of New York. [3]
In January 2021,the New York Attorney General’s office released a report showing that the New York Department of Health under-counted statewide nursing home deaths by as much as 50%. [4] Both Governor Cuomo and Zucker were blamed for the under-count. [5]
During the presidency of George W. Bush,Zucker was a White House Fellow and latter Deputy Assistant Secretary of Health in the Department of Health and Human Services under Tommy Thompson. Afterwards,he served as the assistant Director-General of the World Health Organization. [6]
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