Pediatrician, preventive medicine and public health physician Aletha Maybank MD, MPH, has taken on the task of leading the AMA’s new Center for Health Equity, which the AMA House of Delegates directed the Association to create as part of sweeping policy on health equity adopted at the 2018 AMA Annual Meeting.

Dr. Maybank comes well-prepared for her new position. She was founding director of the New York City health department’s Center for Health Equity. In that role, she led changes in the culture and public health practice of the health department by building the capacity of staff to better understand how their work advances or exacerbates health equity.

She also oversaw the rebranding of local district public health offices as Neighborhood Health Action Centers, renewing the agency’s commitment to neighborhood-based work and enhancing coordination of these efforts. In addition, she oversaw one of the first place-based community health worker efforts in New York City public housing.

Dr. Maybank took some time to answer three big questions about her role—and the AMA’s—in the struggle to ensure that all Americans have access to high-quality, affordable health care.

The lede to my latest article for the AMA. The whole shebang.