Andover physician named to top U.S. health post

A strong advocate of strict control of tobacco and an innovator in the 
early detection of melanoma from Andover is a current assistant secretary of 
health in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

Dr. Howard K. Koh, a native of Korea who was an associate dean for 
public health practice and the Director of Public Health Practice at Harvard 
School of Public Health, was named to the federal post in March of 2009 by 
President Obama and confirmed in June. Dr. Koh oversees the country’s major 
health agencies, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the 
U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the National Institutes of Health.

He was also appointed by President Clinton to the National Cancer 
Advisory Board and served as the Massachusetts Commissioner of Public Health 
from 1997-2003, overseeing four public hospitals with a staff of more than 
3,000 professionals. In Lawrence, he was involved with the mayor’s health task 
force and was instrumental in creating the mammography unit at Greater 
Lawrence Family Health Center.

A former colleague at Harvard, Robert Blendon, described Dr. Koh as an 
“outstanding singer.” Dr. Koh was raised in Connecticut and was graduated from 
Yale University and Boston University.

In 2003, the Boston Red Sox designed Dr. Koh as a “Medical All-Star” 
for his efforts in the early detection of melanoma and invited him to toss the 
first pitch at Fenway Park.

Dr. Koh is married to Lawrence ophthalmologist, Dr. Claudia Arrigg-Koh.
They have three children and commute between Washington and Andover.

-- Leo Chabot