Howard Zucker

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	(1959-09-06) September 6, 1959 Bronx, New York, U.S.
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 6 September 1959) is a U.S. physician and lawyer.

Education

Howard Zucker received his medical degree from the George Washington University School of Medicine & Health Sciences, and his Doctor of Law degree from the Fordham University School of Law.

Career

During the presidency of George W. Bush, Zucker was a White House Fellow and later Deputy Assistant Secretary of Health in the Department of Health and Human Services under Tommy Thompson. Afterward he served as the assistant Director-General of the World Health Organization.

From 2015 to 2021, Zucker served as the 16th commissioner of the New York State Department of Health. 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.

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.

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%. Both Governor Cuomo and Zucker were blamed for the under-count.

Publications

• Howard Zucker, M.D., "Where Have All the Doctors Gone? Physicians quitting medicine: It's a crisis that's shaking our health care system. Here's how you can protect yourself", AARP Bulletin, vol. 66, no. 1 (January/February 2025), pp. 7–8, 10–12, 14–15. "The current shortage of physicians, combined with a number of other factors, has placed such an intense strain on doctors that many ... are choosing to [p. 8] switch professions or ... retire early. ... In 1980, a U.S. government report [had] predicted a surplus of 70,000 physicians by 1990... In response, medical schools [had] established what became a 25-year moratorium on increasing class size... [Meanwhile, since 1980 the U.S. population has grown by] 110 million. By 2005, as the ... potential for a severe physician shortage emerged, [medical-school class sizes were increased. Nevertheless, by 2036] a shortage of up to 86,000 physicians [is predicted]. Becoming a doctor is expensive. ... Two-thirds of newly minted doctors are choosing to become specialists, which allows them ... salaries ... twice what a primary care physician ... make[s]. [Yet m]any people ... are required to see a [primary care physician] before they can [see] specialists... [Moreover] 50 percent of medical students and residents surveyed preferred to pursue careers that do not involve direct patient care, such as research or teaching... One in 4 contemplate dropping out of medical school altogether, citing overwork, financial stress and mental health concerns. ... Part of what's driving [medical-student and physician dissatisfaction] is the growing trend of private equity firms ... purchasing hospitals ... private [medical] practices ... home health centers and surgival centers. [In 2024 almost] 80 percent of all doctors were employed by hospitals or corporations... [Such] for-profit ... corporate entities [seek to maximize their profits and] often allow... just 15 minutes per [patient] visit, a situation that isn't healthy for either the doctor or the patient. [p. 10] And then there's the paperwork. For every hour seeing patients, the average doctor now spends two hours doing administrative tasks... A primary driver of paperwork: the electronic health record. ... [I]ts primary focus is documenting for regulators and billing for insurers. [p. 11] [Thus it is increasingly difficult for people to find a physician who is accepting new patients, especially within the patient's home area, while m]ore than 300 [harried] doctors now [annually] suicide, a rate twice that of the general population." (p. 12.)

See also

• Healthcare in the United States
• Healthcare reform in the United States

External links

• Mary T. Bassett, M.D., M.P.H.