Debra Houry, MD, MPH

Dr. Debra Houry is a nationally recognized physician and public health leader with nearly three decades of experience guiding health care and public health strategy across federal government, health systems, and academia. A board-certified emergency physician, she brings the perspective of frontline care together with proven experience leading complex organizations, shaping national policy, and driving results at scale.

Dr. Houry is a senior advisor to governors, states, and regional organizations on health policy and access, data modernization, preparedness, and incorporating technology into health systems. Previously, Dr. Houry served as Chief Medical Officer and Deputy Director for Program and Science at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), where she oversaw nine national centers and the Office of Science with a combined budget of more than $6 billion. She also served as Acting Principal Deputy Director, the agency’s most senior leader after the CDC Director, where she co-led the Moving Forward initiative—restructuring CDC’s 12,000 staff and $8 billion budget to strengthen preparedness, data, and laboratory systems. Previously, as Director of CDC’s National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, Dr. Houry guided dramatic growth in resources and impact, advancing national strategies on opioid use, suicide prevention, and mental health. Earlier in her career, she was the Vice Chair for Research in Emergency Medicine at Emory University, where she built the department into the top NIH-funded emergency medicine program in the country.

Dr. Houry has served on multiple boards, including as President of both the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine and the Society for Advancement of Violence and Injury Research, and on the boards of the Emory University Alumni Association, the Georgia State University School of Public Health, and FutureVerse. An elected member of the National Academy of Medicine, Dr. Houry has been recognized with numerous honors including the American Medical Association Award for Outstanding Government Service, Atlanta Business Chronicle Public Healthcare Hero Award, and American Public Health Association Jay Drotman Award.

She received her BS from Emory University, her MD and MPH. from Tulane University, and completed her emergency medicine residency at Denver Health Medical Center.