Symposium sponsored by:

Johns Hopkins Center for Civilian Biodefense Studies

Department of Health and Human Services

Infectious Diseases Society of America

Professional Biography
Margaret A. Hamburg, M.D., is the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation at the Department of Health and Human Services. Nominated by President Clinton in August 1997, she was confirmed by the Senate in October 1997.

The Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation serves as the principal policy advisor to the Secretary of Health and Human Services. Dr. Hamburg's responsibilities include policy formulation and analysis, the development and review of regulations and/or legislation, budget analysis, and strategic planning, as well as the conduct and coordination of policy research and program evaluation.

Dr. Hamburg has a distinguished record of scientific accomplishments and outstanding public service. Prior to joining the Clinton Administration, Dr. Hamburg served for almost six years as the Commissioner of Health for the City of New York. Appointed Commissioner in 1991, Dr. Hamburg was the third woman and youngest individual to assume this demanding position.

As chief health officer of the nation's largest city, Dr. Hamburg's many accomplishments included: the design and implementation of an internationally recognized tuberculosis control program that produced dramatic declines in tuberculosis cases; the development of initiatives that raised childhood immunization rates to record levels, including a city-wide immunization registry, public-private partnerships and outreach campaigns; reductions in infant mortality to the lowest rate in New York City history; and the creation of the first weapons-related injury surveillance system in the nation.

Dr. Hamburg began her service in the Department of Health in June 1990 as Deputy Commissioner for Family Health Services. Prior to this, Dr. Hamburg was the Assistant Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) of the National Institutes of Health, where she played a major role in research administration and policy development. Dr. Hamburg's federal experience also includes several years in the Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Office of the Assistant Secretary of Health.

Dr. Hamburg is a graduate of Harvard College and Harvard Medical School. She completed her internship and residency in Internal Medicine at the New York Hospital/Cornell University Medical Center and is certified by the American Board of Internal Medicine. Dr. Hamburg has held academic appointments as Adjunct Assistant Professor of Medicine at Cornell University Medical Center, Assistant Professor of Clinical Public Health at Columbia University School of Public Health, Guest Investigator at Rockefeller University, and Clinical Instructor, Department of Medicine at Georgetown University School of Medicine.

She has been elected to membership in the Institute of Medicine, the New York Academy of Medicine, the Council on Foreign Relations, and is a Fellow of the American Association of the Advancement of Science.

Dr. Hamburg has served on the Boards of many organizations, including the New York City Health and Hospitals Corporation, the Nathan Cummings Foundation, Drug Strategies, Mother's Voices, the Primary Care Development Corporation, the National Council on Women's Health, and The Board of Scientific Counselors for the National Center for Infectious Diseases of the Centers for Disease Control. Her international interests have led to positions in several international organizations, including the Advisory Board for the Medunsa Trust, Medical University of Southern Africa, and the Board of Directors of the University of Capetown Fund.

She has served on numerous national committees and task forces, including the Defense Science Board Task Force on Gulf War Syndrome, the National Advisory Committee for Health Steps for Young Children Program of the Commonwealth Fund, and several Institute of Medicine Study Committees. She has served on the editorial board of Current Reviews in Public Health and The Bulletin of the New York Academy of Medicine.

Dr. Hamburg has an extensive and diverse research background, including research in the biology of addictions, AIDS, behavioral sciences, and child development. She is the author of numerous scientific articles, and lectures frequently to both professional and lay audiences. Dr. Hamburg is the recipient of several notable awards for public service and outstanding achievement.