Jon Cohen

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Jon R. Cohen, M.D. is an American vascular surgeon and politician from Lake Success, New York. He is currently the Chief policy advisor to Governor of New York David Paterson. Cohen had been a 2006 Democratic candidate for Lieutenant Governor of New York, a role that eventually went to Paterson. In 2004, he served health care policy advisor to the presidential campaign of Massachusetts Senator John Kerry, and filled a similar role in the gubernatorial campaigns of Eliot Spitzer in 2006 and H. Carl McCall in 2002.

Prior to joining the executive chamber, he practiced medicine in Nassau County and has been active in medical management. Cohen was a professor at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine and senior lecturer at Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health, has published over 100 peer-reviewed professional articles and authored two books.

Contents 1 Medical career and background 2 2006 campaign for Lieutenant Governor of New York 3 Senior advisor to Governor Paterson 4 References 5 Bibliography

[edit] Medical career and background

Cohen graduated from the University of Miami School of Medicine and completed his residency in surgery at New York Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center.^[1] He later trained in vascular surgery at the Brigham and Women's Hospital at Harvard Medical School in Boston.^[2]

After time as a surgeon, he became Executive Vice President of the Long Island Jewish Medical Center, as well as Chairman of Surgery and Chief of Vascular Surgery.^[3] In that role, he grew the department to 18 surgeons with positive revenue of $14 million, and provided oversight for a $50 million operating/recovery room expansion.^[1] During this time, he was critical in the merger of North Shore University Hospital and Long Island Jewish Medical Center, two facilities that had been arch rivals.^[4]

He rose to the position of Chief Medical Officer and Senior Vice President of the North Shore-Long Island Jewish Health System, before joining the firm of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP as Managing Director of Health Industries Advisory services.^[2][5]

[edit] 2006 campaign for Lieutenant Governor of New York

See also: Lieutenant Governor of New York#2006 Election and Health care reform in the United States

In 2005, Cohen announced his candidacy for the Democratic nomination for Lieutenant Governor of New York.^[2] His platform centered on health care and health policy issues.^[5] Cohen raised more than $500,000 for his election bid.^[6] He was viewed as front runner in the race which included State Assemblyman Thomas DiNapoli, Wappinger Town supervisor Joe Ruggiero, and Leecia Eve, an aide to Sen. Hillary Clinton.^[4] Although gubernatorial candidates are free to name their running mates, candidates for Lieutenant Governor can still face a potential primary for the ballot line, resulting in unexpected outcomes, such as in 2002 when Carl McCall's running mate Charlie King was defeated by Andrew Cuomo's running mate Dennis Mehiel resulting in a McCall/Mehiel ticket, and Tom Golisano's choice William Neild was beaten by Mary Donohue resulting in Donohue being the running mate to both Golisano and George Pataki.^[7][8]

A primary was averted when the front runner for Governor, Eliot Spitzer, named an undeclared candidate, Harlem State Senator David Paterson as his running mate, and Cohen and other candidates dropped out and quickly coalesced behind his choice.^[9] Spitzer, also of New York City, defied the conventional wisdom by not choosing a lieutenant governor nominee from upstate or the suburbs to balance the ticket.^[10] After exiting the race, Cohen endorsed Spitzer and Paterson and joined their campaign as an unpaid health care policy advisor.^[11]

Cohen's campaign was centered around the single issue of health care reform, and he referred to the health care system as "dysfunctional at every level."^[4] He proposed a solution universal health-insurance coverage linked to economic development, repeating his message that "Health care is a right, not a privilege", which he utilized during Sen. Kerry's 2004 campaign.^[12] He favored setting up an insurance pool backed by private carriers that would spread the risk of health care coverage, making it affordable for small businesses, as well as spearheading state led investment in biotechnology and stem cell research to foster job creation and medical innovation.^[4] Cohen further developed plans to cut fraud and waste from the Medicaid system, whom he blamed for ruining county budgets, stating, "What's happening is, there's too little money left for roads, for senior citizen programs and for schools."^[13]

[edit] Senior advisor to Governor Paterson

In March of 2008, Cohen was tapped as Senior Advisor to David Paterson, who had succeeded Spitzer as Governor of New York early in his term.^[14] Cohen left his position at PricewaterhouseCoopers to become Paterson's top advisor.^[15] Several members of special interest groups, including health care unions, indicated the addition of Cohen to the Governor's staff signaled a softer approach on health policy then the Spitzer administration, a charge which Paterson's office rejected.^[13]

After Spitzer's election, Cohen had initially been considered for the posts of Commissioner of Health (head of the New York Department of Health), and Secretary for Health (the Governor's health policy advisor), although these positions eventually went to Richard F. Daines and Dennis P. Whalen.^[13] According to the Governor's office, Paterson's selection of Cohen does not affect either Daines or Whalen, and Cohen's role will be on policy issues as a "big picture guy".^[5][13]

[edit] References

[edit] Bibliography

• Cohen, Jon R. Vascular Surgery for the House Officer. New York: Williams & Wilkins. 1991. ISBN 0683020528.
• Cohen, Jon R. Vascular Surgery 2000. New York: R G Landes Co. 1992. ISBN 1879702010.