A leading official at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention was chosen to lead one of the nation's premier public health advocacy organizations.
John Auerbach, the CDC's associate director for policy, will take over as the new president and CEO of Trust for America's Health beginning the first of next year.
Auerbach has been at the CDC since 2014. In his role, Auerbach focused on promoting the importance of public health and preventive health as pathways to healthcare and payment reform. Auerbach also serves as acting director for the CDC's Office for State, Tribal, Local and Territorial Support, which oversees the nation's public health departments.
Auerbach previously was a professor of practice in health sciences and director of the Institute on Urban Health Research and Practice at Northeastern University in Boston.
Auerbach's career in public health spans 35 years and includes serving from 2007 to 2012 as commissioner of public health for Massachusetts. He's also been executive director of the Boston Public Health Commission and served as president of the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials in 2010.
He's been a part of developing programs that address racial and ethnic gaps, address chronic disease and champion healthcare reform.
“John is a true innovator in public health and we cannot be more pleased to have him as the new head of TFAH,” said Gail Christopher, board chair of the Trust and vice president for policy and senior adviser at the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, in a written statement. “His work embodies a transformative approach to improving health—thinking beyond medical care to support opportunities for better health in our daily lives. We share a vision where every American has the chance to be as healthy as they can be.”
Auerbach is expected to assume his new role Jan. 1. He replaces interim President and CEO Richard Hamburg, who will become executive vice president and COO at the Trust, as well as former executive director Jeffrey Levi, who now serves as professor of health policy and management at the Milken Institute School of Public Health at George Washington University.
