NYC Health Commissioner Resigns Amid COVID-19 Pandemic

New York City’s top doctor, Oxiris Barbot, who’s served as health commissioner the light the corona virus pandemic, has resigned on Tuesday morning.

Dr. Barbot announced her resignation in a letter to her colleagues at the Department of Health, NY1 reported.

“This morning I submitted my formal resignation to Mayor de Blasio,” she wrote in the letter. “As I shared with the Mayor, your world class skills are what make this agency so respected around the globe. Your experience and guidance have been the beacon leading this city through this historic pandemic and that to successfully brace against the inevitable second wave, your talents must be better leveraged alongside that of our sister agencies.”

Barbot has faced criticism during the height of the pandemic for a heated argument over personal protective equipment for police officers. The mayor called her comments “inappropriate” and she issued an apology days later.

 Credit: Ed Reed/Mayoral Photography Office.