…in his career, which has spanned six decades, Dr. Young has made his mark as both a local and national leader; bringing visionary thinking and thoughtful solutions to the health care debate, underscoring the connection between health rights and civil rights and, through his longtime role as medical commentator on WBEZ, giving powerful voice to the need for health system reform.
From 1952 until March of 2008, Dr. Young practiced internal medicine in Hyde Park. He is a Clinical Professor of Preventive Medicine and Community Health at the University of Illinois Medical Center.
He graduated Northwestern Medical School in 1948 and completed his residency in Internal Medicine at Cook County Hospital in Chicago. From 1972-1981, he served as Chairman of the Department of Medicine at Cook County. From 1943-1945, he served in the U.S. Army and later in the U.S. Public Health Service.
In addition to his long career as a practicing physician, Dr. Young has been a local and national leader in public health policy and medical and social justice issues for more than fifty years. In 1951 he was a founder of the Committee to End Discrimination in Chicago Medical Institutions. In the 60’s he served as National Chairman of The Medical Committee for Human Rights. He has also been an American Medical Association member since 1952.
In 1980, Dr. Young founded the Chicago based Health & Medicine Policy Research Group, a group that addresses the health needs in Illinois; he is currently Chairman. Dr. Young volunteers as the National Coordinator of Physicians for a National Health Program (PNHP), a national research and education organization with more than 14,000 members representing every state and specialty. PNHP was founded in 1987 and has physician spokespeople across the country who advocate for a single-payer national health program.
In 1983, Mayor Harold Washington appointed Dr. Young President of the Chicago Board of Health. In 1997, Young was inducted as a Master of the American College of Physicians. In 1998, he served as President of the American Public Health Association. He also served on the American College of Physicians’ Health and Public Policy committee and chaired its subcommittee on Human Rights and Medical Practice. Since 1981 he has been featured regularly as the medical commentator on WBEZ, Chicago Public Radio. In January of 2010, Dr. Young was appointed by Illinois Governor Pat Quinn as the nation’s first state Public Health Advocate.
