In her resignation letter, Dr. Angell — who, early in the pandemic, spoke about the state’s efforts to identify disparities in the pandemic’s toll on Latino and Black communities in particular — did not say why she was stepping down, effective immediately. “Not one of our staff has gone untouched by the changes that have occurred. She signed the note, “In Solidarity.”State officials said that Sandra Shewry, a veteran public health official, would be appointed as acting director of the department, while Dr. Erica Pan would take on the role of acting state public health officer. [Read about how public health officials have faced death threats in the pandemic.] “We’re not going to just use this as an episodic issue — Band-Aid this,” he said.

Source: New York Times August 11, 2020 12:45 UTC