Draft:Robert W. Amler

Robert W. Amler is an American public health physician, pediatrician, and epidemiologist. Amler served as the Regional Health Administrator in the United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) under President George W. Bush for Region II, which encompasses a population of 32 million in New York, New Jersey, and the Caribbean territories of Puerto Rico and U.S. Virgin Islands. He was the senior U.S. Public Health Service officer in Region II and served as Commanding Officer for Public Health and Medical Services (ESF-8) in Region II under the National Response Plan established after the September 11 attacks.

Amler was the Chief Medical Officer at the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR, an Operating Division of HHS), where he conducted and oversaw public health investigations in communities located near hazardous chemical sites in all 50 states. Amler conceptualized and secured funding for the network of Pediatric Environmental Health Specialty Units (PEHSU) that clinically manage children’s exposures to toxic substances.

Early Life and Education
Amler grew up in New York City. He graduated from Dartmouth College and Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, completing residencies in Pediatrics at Bellevue Hospital and The Roosevelt Hospital and in Preventive Medicine at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). He is board-certified in Pediatrics and in Preventive Medicine. He earned an M.B.A. at New York University (NYU) with post-graduate studies at Harvard Business School.

Professional Career
Amler was chosen for CDC’s Epidemic Intelligence Service during the national campaign to eliminate measles. His study of “imported” cases demonstrated that secondary transmission could be contained with sufficiently high immunization levels. His meta-analysis across 17 medical disciplines, conducted in collaboration with former President Jimmy Carter at the Carter Center, attributed roughly 60% of U.S. deaths to preventable risk factors. He created a desktop health risk assessment utility that became an industry standard for worksite wellness programs in private and public sectors.

Amler supervised ATSDR’s field investigations near Superfund hazardous waste sites and co-chaired the implementation council of President Clinton’s Task Force on Children’s Environmental Health Risks and Safety Risks. He also secured supplemental Medicaid funding for the Children’s Health Insurance Program in Region II (CHIP, Child Health Plus, NJ Family Care).

Amler was appointed Dean of the School of Public Health at New York Medical College, where he is also Vice President for Government Affairs and Professor of Public Health, Pediatrics, and Environmental Health Science. He created the multidisciplinary Institute of Public Health with centers of excellence in Children’s Environmental Health, Disability and Health, Disaster Medicine, and Long-Term Care. He led the Center for Disaster Medicine in an emergency medical mission to Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria 2017.

Amler was Chairman of New York’s Berger Commission Regional Council. He secured Empire State Development sponsorship for BioInc, the region’s first biotechnology incubator. He secured additional support for the Touro College of Dental Medicine and a clinical skills training facility with standardized patients. He also is Adjunct Professor of Pediatrics at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences in Bethesda, Maryland.

Amler published more than 200 articles, abstracts and book chapters including a preventive medicine monograph (with Assistant Surgeons General Bruce Dull and William Foege): ''Closing the Gap: The Burden of Unnecessary Illness'’.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Amler conducted more than media interviews and professional briefings in which he brought public attention to the proper administration of vaccines and booster doses. He practices pediatrics and environmental medicine at Boston Children’s Health Physicians in New York.

Awards and decorations
Amler received awards and decorations (partially listed) from the Office of the Secretary of Health and Human Services, United States Public Health Service, United States Coast Guard, professional and service organizations. Among his awards from professional organizations are the Edwin W. Crawford Award for Innovation in Government Advocacy from the Council for Advancement of Schools and Education (CASE),24 Doctor of Distinction: Medical Entrepreneur of the Year from the Westchester Business Journal and Westchester County Medical Society, Honorary Paul Harris Fellow from Rotary International, Distinguished Alumnus of the Year from Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, Outstanding Achievement Award from the American Academy of Pediatrics, and “Dr. Robert W. Amler Day” declared October 24, 2013 by New York State Senate President (pro tem) and Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins.