Alister Martin, MD, MPP

Dr. Alister Martin is the Commissioner of the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. An emergency physician and Assistant Professor at Harvard Medical School, Dr. Martin served as a senior advisor in the office of Vice President Kamala Harris as a White House Fellow, and previously as a health policy advisor to Governor Peter Shumlin of Vermont and Congressman Raul Ruiz of California.

As CEO of A Healthier Democracy, he built public health programs that mobilized tens of thousands of health care providers and reached millions of patients. From running vaccination campaigns, to helping patients in health care settings register to vote, to connecting families with cash assistance benefits, to shaping public health policy at the highest levels of federal and state government, his career has been defined by operating at the intersection of clinical care and public health.

He earned his MD from Harvard Medical School as a Presidential Scholar and his Master in Public Policy from Harvard Kennedy School. Born in New York City, he spent his early childhood in Jackson Heights, Queens, and now returns home to serve as Health Commissioner.