Dr. Dara Kass
Demystifying healthcare policy while making clinical medicine easier to understand.
"Healthcare doesn't need more noise, it needs a translator. I turn policy into strategy, and strategy into impact."
— Dr. Dara Kass
Credentials Backed by Passion
With a commitment to gender equity and the advancement of women in medicine, Dr. Kass has been a vocal advocate for creating equitable workplaces. Her insights and leadership were particularly instrumental during the COVID-19 pandemic, where she focused on policy and public communication, emphasizing the pandemic's impact on communities and families.
As a Regional Director at the US Department of Health and Human Services, based in New York City, Dr. Kass worked tirelessly to advance crucial health initiatives, including reproductive rights, mental health, and explaining the expanded Medicare benefits of the Inflation Reduction Act to seniors all over her region. Her role encompassed engaging with local stakeholders and disseminating vital information to over 30 million residents across New York, New Jersey, the Caribbean U.S. territories, and several Tribal Nations.
The Mission: Simplifying Healthcare
Dr. Kass is committed to breaking down the complexities of healthcare for the average person. She understands how charged conversations about healthcare have become, and works to set bias aside in favor of clarity and honest understanding. She's not just someone you might have seen on TV, she's a practicing emergency physician who sees firsthand how healthcare policy plays out in people's real lives.
Areas of Expertise
Public Messaging
Dr. Kass excels in Public Messaging, where she brings healthcare discussions to life for the general public. Through TV appearances, media interviews, radio and podcast discussions, and op-eds, she makes complex healthcare topics relatable and understandable. Her talent lies in storytelling, weaving the impact of healthcare policies into everyday life.
Dr. Kass is a skilled educator, capable of translating medical jargon into language that resonates with everyone. Whether it's speaking on national platforms or engaging with local communities, she aims to empower people with knowledge, helping them understand how healthcare affects their lives. Dr. Kass's expertise in public messaging is ideal for networks and organizations seeking to amplify their healthcare communication, providing validation and a voice to essential health topics.
Strategic Consulting
In her Strategic Consulting, Dr. Kass focuses on creating sustainable impact in healthcare through advocacy and innovation, with a particular expertise in reproductive health care. She has worked extensively on policy, legislative strategy, and expanding clinical care - much of which as been done through her work at FemInEM and at the AIM lab at Brown University. She specializes in building organizations that address immediate healthcare needs while paving the way for long-term solutions, bringing together public and private resources to improve healthcare delivery.
Her strategic consulting spans partner development, community organizing, and messaging strategy. Dr. Kass identifies critical healthcare problems, pinpoints the right stakeholders across state and local government, and pivots strategy to engage groups for mutually beneficial outcomes. She acts as an accelerator, pushing forward innovative solutions in healthcare, including efforts to protect and expand reproductive health access nationwide.
In the media
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When the System Breaks Our Hearts and Blames Us At The Same Time
This weekend has been especially hard for those of us in emergency medicine. We show up everyday, trying to the best for every patient we see. Yet, this week, we find ourselves gaslit by an administration that suggests we are responsible for the long wait times and overcrowding plaguing our nation’s emergency departments because we care for people regardless of their ability to pay.
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The chilling effect of politicizing TylenolNew List Item
I watched Monday’s White House press conference with alarm. There was President Donald Trump, flanked by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and others, suggesting that Tylenol use during pregnancy might be linked to autism. “There's no harm,” he insisted, “in discouraging its use.”
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Why Aren't More EDs Prescribing Medication for Elective Abortion?New List Item
Access to reproductive healthcare, especially for those seeking medication abortion for management of miscarriage or termination of pregnancy, has become a highly politicized issue, distracting from its critical importance in reproductive healthcare. With looming threats to mifepristone (Mifeprex) dispensing, it's more crucial than ever that we examine how emergency departments (EDs) can play a key role in ensuring safe, timely access to care, particularly in rural or remote areas.
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2024 brings big drug cost savings for Medicare seniors
When was the last time your medical costs went down? This is what is happening for seniors on Medicare Part D, because of President Biden’s lower cost prescription drug law – the Inflation Reduction Act.
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I have Narcan in my house. Now you can, too.
“Do you know where I can get Narcan? I am going on the senior trip, and I want to take some with me,” a fellow…
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“They Ignored the Warning Signs”: A New York City ER Doctor Explains What She’s Up Against
Dara Kass is a doctor but she is also a public speaker, a political activist, and a Park Slope mother of three…
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Another Voice: Get these fall immunizations for protection and peace of mind
This fall, in addition to the Covid-19 and flu vaccines, FDA-approved RSV (respiratory syncytial virus) immunizations are now available for the first time.
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Donating an Organ to My Son
Sammy was born small and had a hard time gaining weight. When he was 2 months old we learned he had a rare…
Advocacy and Innovation at the Forefront
A firm believer in the need for more advocates for healthcare innovation and expansion, Dr. Kass is committed to accelerating these processes. Her approach is not about following trends but creating sustainable impacts through strategic consulting and public messaging.
Dara Kass, MD
A renowned physician, educator, and advocate, bridges the gap between healthcare and the public, translating clinical medicine and healthcare policy into language that is accessible and informative for people of all backgrounds.
Who is Dr. Dara Kass?
Dr. Kass is not just a physician; she's a mom, a wife, and a daughter, deeply connected to the community she serves. Her journey in medicine began at SUNY Downstate College of Medicine, followed by an Emergency Medicine residency at Kings County Hospital in Brooklyn, NY. Her career has spanned various roles - from resident education at Staten Island University Hospital to NYU and Columbia University Medical Centers and now, her current role seeing patients in the Bronx at Lincoln Hospital, part of the NYC Health + Hospitals System.
Together, we can create sustainable impact in healthcare through collaboration and innovation.
Let’s connect
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