Dr. Michael Stocker to Lead New York City HHC Board of Directors

Michael Stocker, M.D., a member of the Albert Einstein College of Medicine Board of Overseers, has been appointed by Mayor Michael Bloomberg as Chairman of the Board of the New York City Health and Hospitals Corporation (HHC). HHC is the largest municipal hospital and health care system in the country, serving 1.3 million New Yorkers annually. Jacobi Medical Center, one of Einstein's major affiliates, is part of the HHC system.

This appointment makes it necessary for Dr. Stocker to step down from the Board of Overseers of Einstein. Ruth L. Gottesman, Ed.D., chairperson of the board said, "Since his election to our board in 1999, Michael has provided invaluable service to the college. Though we are thrilled to have "one of our own" assume the key position of chairman of the HHC board, we will surely miss the wisdom, guidance and personal warmth he brought to our institution." A member of the Einstein's executive committee and a benefactor, he has also served as chairperson of the hospital affiliation committee, and as a member of the ad hoc governance and nominating committees.

Dr. Stocker has an impressive, wide-ranging career spanning the field of health care. Most recently, he served as corporate executive vice president of WellPoint Inc. Before WellPoint absorbed Empire Blue Cross and Blue Shied, he was Empire's chief executive officer. Prior to joining Empire, Dr. Stocker held the positions of president of Cigna Health Plans and general manager of the New York area of U.S. Healthcare. Before moving to New York, Dr. Stocker was a practicing physician in Chicago, serving as associate chairman of the department of family practice at Cook County Hospital in Chicago (the area's public hospital) from 1975 to 1980. He also served as medical director of Anchor Organization for Health Maintenance at Rush Presbyterian St. Luke's Medical Center in Chicago from 1980 to 1985.

Dr. Stocker's voluntary activities complement his professional career. In addition to his service to Einstein, he is a board member of the Arthur Ashe Institute for Urban Health. His expertise in healthcare administration has made him a valued member of oversight and good government organizations such as the Citizens Budget Commission of New York and The Partnership for New York City, Inc. He served as a member of the New Jersey Governor's Health Care Cost Reduction Advisory Committee and the National Committee for Quality Assurance.

Dr. Stocker was educated at the University of Notre Dame and received his M.D. from the Medical College of Wisconsin in 1968. He received his postgraduate training at the Mayo Clinic and the University of California and is board certified in Internal Medicine and Family Practice. Dr. Stocker also holds a Master's degree in Public Health received from the University of Michigan in 1987. He lives in New York City with his wife Louise, and his son, Luke.

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