ALBANY, N.Y. — The New York State Department of Health is marking its 125th anniversary.
According to the department, it was founded in 1901 and has led efforts to fight diseases, expand access to vaccines, track health statistics and promote health equity for all residents.
The Department highlighted milestones such as pioneering food and drink sanitation standards in 1914, responding to the 1918 influenza pandemic and administering the Salk polio vaccine to more than 500,000 children in 1955.
Other achievements include identifying Lyme disease in 1979, expanding newborn screening programs, establishing the AIDS Institute in 1983 and leading the response to the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.
State Health Commissioner Dr. James McDonald said, “We have guided New York through pandemics, epidemics, world wars all while advancing the public’s health, as well as science and discovery.”