Congressman Joe Crowley Addresses Einstein on Healthcare and Research Funding

On Monday, September 18, 2017, 150 faculty, physicians, students, and staff from Einstein and Montefiore gathered for a special event with Congressman Joe Crowley (D-NY, 14th District). The congressman, who is chair of the House Democratic Caucus, came to Einstein at the invitation of the division of health promotion and nutrition research in the department of epidemiology & population health to discuss the future of healthcare and research funding.

Pictured with Congressman Crowley (from left): Dr. Alyson Moadel-Robblee, who emceed the Q&A; Dr. Judith Wylie-Rosett, division head of health promotion and nutrition research; Dr. Thomas Rohan, chair of epidemiology & population health; Dr. Steven Safyer, president and CEO of Montefiore; and Dr. Allen M. Spiegel, the Marilyn and Stanley M. Katz Dean at Einstein.

After a warm introduction by Dr. Steven M. Safyer, president and CEO of Montefiore, Rep. Crowley delivered prepared remarks and answered questions from the audience. A longtime supporter of federally funded research for Einstein and Montefiore, he told the audience that he strongly advocates for continued funding for the National Institutes of Health, noting, “Your research speaks volumes and it speaks to the value of your work.” In 2016, the College of Medicine received more than $160 million in grants from the NIH.

Rep. Crowley also talked about the ongoing battle to protect access to quality healthcare, Medicaid, and the Affordable Care Act. He spoke passionately about his support for “DREAMers,” undocumented immigrants who came to the United States as children and who are facing uncertainty surrounding the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) executive order.