For Immediate Release
June 15, 2026
Contact: Vito Grasso, Executive Vice President at 518-469-5237/ vito@nysafp.org
New York City Family Physician Awarded NYS Academy of Family
Physicians’ 2026 Advocacy Ambassador Award
The New York State Academy of Family Physicians (NYSAFP) announced recently the winner of an award for excellence in advocacy in New York. The NYSAFP’s Advocacy Ambassador Award recognizes Heather Paladine, MD, Past President, and Family Medicine Education Consortium Board President-elect, for her leadership and steadfast dedication to advancing NYSAFP priorities.
Whether it be Medical Aid in Dying (MAID), reproductive health and justice, and several other issues, Dr. Paladine is always willing to volunteer her time to join advocacy meetings with lawmakers, attend and speak at press conferences, and go the extra mile in providing her expertise to strategize and ensure policies are as effective as they can be. She also deserves a special accolade for her unrelenting efforts on MAID which was signed into law by Governor Hochul earlier this year and will take effect in August: this measure will have a profound, lasting impact on New Yorkers.
The Academy owes her tremendous gratitude for her advocacy work and were so pleased to honor her with the 2026 Advocacy Ambassador Award at NYSAFP’s Congress of Delegates held in Albany on May 16th.
NYSAFP represents nearly 6,000 family physicians, residents and students across the State. NYSAFP Family Physicians are board-certified and specialize in family medicine. Family physicians focus on the whole patient providing care throughout their lifetime. They provide comprehensive healthcare services to treat diseases and injuries in all age groups from newborns to the geriatric population and across all medical fields. Family Physicians focus on prevention, wellness and overall care coordination for patients and family medicine is the only specialty to focus on the care of the entire family unit. Family Physicians are also a main source of primary health care in New York and across the country.