Mayor-elect Adams Names Dr. Ashwin Vasan as City’s New Health Commissioner

By Yehudit Garmaise

 

Mayor-elect Eric Adams today named Ashwin Vasan, MD, Ph.D., to serve as the city’s new health commissioner.

 

Dr. Vasan is a national leader in mental health, who currently serves as the president and CEO of Fountain House, a national nonprofit organization that aims to improve health, increase opportunities, and reduce social and economic isolation for people with serious mental illnesses.

 

A practicing physician, epidemiologist, and an assistant professor at Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health, Dr. Vasan will serve as a senior advisor for Public Health in New York City, until March 15, 2022, when Dave A. Chokshi, MD, the city’s current health commissioner steps down.

 

“For the next three months, as we get through this surge, Dr. Chokshi will continue the excellent work he is doing now to increase testing capacity, promote vaccinations and boosters, and stop the spread of this virus,” Mayor-elect Adams said. “The appointments will ensure continuity and a seamless transition of leadership as New York City continues to combat the surge in COVID-19 cases due to the Omicron variant.”

 

Yesterday, New York City’s COVID positivity rate stood at 10.2%, and the US Center for Disease Control and Prevention reported yesterday that the Omicron variant now accounts for 92% of sequenced COVID cases in New York and New Jersey, although few of those cases are resulting in serious illnesses and only among the unvaccinated.

 

“Overwhelming,” Mitch Katz, MD, the CEO of NYC Health + Hospitals said, “the patients who are in our ICUs, who are on ventilators with COVID are the unvaccinated.” 

 

As Omicron continues to drive up case positivity rates, Mayor-elect Adams stressed the importance of a seamless transition that allows the City's COVID response to remain effective.

 

“Serving as New York City's Health Commissioner has been a privilege of a lifetime, and I'm grateful for the opportunity,” said Dr. Chokshi with his usual humility. “I feel a deep sense of duty and care for our city, and I’m committed to our City’s COVID response, as I have been for the past two years. New York City can count on me to see us through another winter," 

 

Just as Dr. Chokshi did so capably and so articulately for Mayor Bill de Blasio, Dr. Vasan will serve as a key leader and advisor to Mayor Adams on all of the city’s policies that relate to the COVID-19 pandemic.

 

"I am deeply honored and humbled to join Mayor-elect Adams' administration to help New Yorkers fight back against COVID-19, and I am grateful to Dr. Chokshi for his tireless work on behalf of our city,” Dr. Vasan said. “Make no mistake: we will stop the spread of this virus. We will also deliver on the Mayor-elect's public health priorities by fixing our broken mental health system and ensuring equitable access to clean air, clean water, healthy food, and affordable healthcare.”

 

 Credit: Flickr