Health Commissioner Vows No New Sugar Tax
Monday, January 24, 2011 - 06:44 PM
New York's newly annointed Health Commissioner said he was commited to not implementing the controversial sugar tax.
Dr. Nirav Shah, a 38-year-old Buffalo native who ran a rural health system in Pennsylvania, echoed Governor Andrew Cuomo's sentiment after he was sworn in by the State Senate Monday afternoon and said he does not intend to implement any new taxes to promote health.
"We have talked about pediatric obesity and other approaches to combating this very important disease," Shah said. "We have committed to no new taxes at this time."
Shah's predecessor, Richard Daines, supported the controversial sugar tax.
Shah, who was confirmed unanimously, was previously an internist at Bellevue Hospital, and an academic who's published over 90 peer-reviewed articles.
Reporting contributed by Richard Yeh
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