A Message from the Senior Vice President and Provost (interim), and the Senior Vice President and Dean, School of Public and Population Health

Dear colleagues,

We are pleased to announce that Neil K. Mehta, PhD, MSc, MA, will be the inaugural Chair of the Department of Epidemiology in the School of Public and Population Health on July 1, 2025.

Dr. Mehta joined UTMB in 2020 as a faculty member in the Department of Preventive Medicine and Population Health. He joined the Department of Epidemiology when it was established as part of UTMB’s new School of Public and Population Health in 2022.

Dr. Mehta’s research focuses on the demography and epidemiology of older adults with a focus on trends in health, functioning, and mortality. He is currently engaged in several projects related to life expectancy in the United States and the rising burden of cardiovascular disease risk factors, all funded by the National Institute on Aging. His recent published work has identified adverse trends in U.S. cardiovascular disease mortality as the principal cause of the recent stagnation in U.S. life expectancy. His earlier work has contributed to our understanding of the effects of obesity and cigarette smoking on national mortality and disability levels, immigrant health, and socioeconomic differences in health.

Dr. Mehta was a Robert Wood Johnson Health & Society Scholar at the University of Michigan and previously served on the faculties of Emory University and the University of Michigan. Dr. Mehta also serves as the Associate Dean for Research in the School of Public and Population Health as well as the Director for the newly established UTMB Center for Health and Clinical Outcomes Research. We are delighted that he is leading this cornerstone department. 

Sincerely,