Shereef Elnahal
Under Secretary for Health, US Department of Veterans Affairs
Dr. Shereef Elnahal was nominated to serve as Under Secretary for Health at the United States Department of Veterans Affairs by President Joseph R. Biden and confirmed by the United States Senate on July 21, 2022. As the Under Secretary for Health, Dr. Elnahal oversees the delivery of care to more than 9 million enrolled Veterans, including the over 600,000 Women Veterans enrolled in VA care. Dr. Elnahal is physician leader who served as President and Chief Executive Officer University Hospital in Newark, NJ from 2019-2022, which served as a model for urban hospital and regional model for response efforts during the COVID-19 public health emergency. Prior to his time at University Hospital, Elnahal served as New Jersey’s 21st Health Commissioner, where he worked closely with First Lady Tammy Murphy to drive improvements in infant and maternal health outcomes. This is his second tour of service to Veterans at VA, having begun his healthcare leadership career at VA as a White House Fellow prior to serving as VA’s Assistant Deputy Under Secretary for Health for Quality, Safety, and Value from 2016 through 2018.
