Hochul: Harvard professor named next NY Health Commissioner

ALBANY, N.Y. (WHEC) — There will be a new face in the lead spot of New York’s Department of Health, Gov. Kathy Hochul announced Wednesday.

In a release, Hochul said Dr. Mary T. Bassett will become the next Commissioner of the DOH. She will replace incumbent commissioner Dr. Howard Zucker, who submitted his resignation last week.

Bassett currently serves as director of the François-Xavier Bagnoud Center for Health and Human Rights at Harvard University and is also a Professor of the Practice of Health and Human Rights in the Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.

She was commissioner of the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene from 2014 to 2018.

Her appointment is effective Dec. 1. Zucker will remain in his role until then.

Her full bio can be found here.

Trillium Health released the following statement on Bassett’s appointment:

“Trillium Health applauds Governor Hochul’s appointment of Dr. Mary T. Bassett as the Commissioner at the NYS Department of Health. Dr. Bassett’s commitment to addressing health disparities, global HIV equity, and harm reduction is closely in line with our mission, vision, and values. Throughout her career, she has demonstrated her commitment health equity, spending 17 years in Zimbabwe focused on the prevention of HIV/AIDS, and most recently, serving as the director of the François-Xavier Bagnoud Center for Health and Human Rights at Harvard University (an HIV equity organization for children with AIDS). We look forward to working with Dr. Bassett to address health inequities among the most vulnerable populations, and continuing Trillium Health’s legacy in the fight against HIV.”