Meet the eight people who are helping Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan make coronavirus decisions

When Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan decides to close nonessential businesses, bars and restaurants and limit public gatherings, he isn’t doing so all on his own.

Hogan has a team of eight public health specialists that he consults as he figures out how to grapple with the coronavirus pandemic.

Maryland is currently under a stay-at-home order issued by Hogan and all non-essential businesses like sit-down restaurants, movie theaters, hair salons and bars, among many others.

The eight specialists have all been key in helping advise Hogan on decisions to make, spokesman Mike Ricci said, and were selected because the “governor wanted the best public health minds at the table to help lead this fight.”

Here are the people helping Hogan behind the scenes:

Dr. Tom Inglesby, director of Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security

Inglesby rose to public prominence Monday night after a Twitter thread went viral of him being critical of President Donald Trump talking about walking back social distancing measures. Inglesby is also a professor at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and the school of medicine, according to an online biography. Inglesby’s role at the Center for Health Security is to lead staff and help study the organizations, policies, systems and tools intended to prevent and respond to epidemics and other major public health crises, the bio said. The center’s mission is to help protect people from epidemics and disasters through independent research, policy analysis, and program assessment.

Dr. Wilbur Chen, associate professor of medicine at the University of Maryland, Baltimore

Chen is an adult infectious disease physician-scientist with a specific interest in clinical vaccinology, an online bio said. His research focuses on two areas of “global health importance": developing vaccines for infectious diseases in economically disadvantaged populations and countries, as well as improved vaccines for the elderly, who are more susceptible to infections. The University of Maryland School of Medicine says he is the chief of the adult clinical studies section within the Center for Vaccine Development and Global Health and director of the UMB Travel Medicine Practice.

Dr. David Marcozzi, associate professor and chair of population health, Department of Emergency Medicine at the University of Maryland School of Medicine

Marcozzi is the assistant chief medical officer for acute care at the University of Maryland Medical Center and is the deputy medical director for mobile integrated health care for the Baltimore City Fire Department. According to his online bio, he also serves as an associate adjunct professor in the Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, University of Maryland School of Medicine. Marcozzi served in the federal government as a senior leader and expert on health delivery, emergency care, and emergency preparedness, working in both the Department of Health and Human Services and White House. He has received numerous military and civilian awards, and responded to multiple disasters including the Sept. 11, 2001, World Trade Center attacks.

Dr. Lisa Maragakis, Johns Hopkins Health System senior director of infection prevention

Maragakis is responsible for the conceptualization, planning, implementation, and development of the Johns Hopkins Health System’s infection control and prevention program. She researches epidemiology and prevention and control of health care-acquired infections, among other things, according to an online bio. She is also an associate professor of medicine at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and serves on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Healthcare Infection Control Practices Advisory Committee.

Dr. Steve Evans, executive vice president for medical affairs and chief medical officer, MedStar Health

Evans is the executive vice president for medical affairs and chief medical officer at MedStar Health. According to an online bio, he leads the strategic operations of a health system made up of 20 hospitals and 10 additional health-related facilities in Maryland and the Washington region. Evans received his medical degree from the University of South Florida College of Medicine and serves as director of the American Board of Surgery.

Dr. Linda Singh, interim executive director and CEO of TEDCO; major general (retired), Maryland National Guard

Singh is interim executive director and CEO of TEDCO, a state-backed organization that assists startups, according to an online bio. She is a retired major general in the Maryland National Guard and in 2015 became the first female and African American adjutant general of the Maryland Military Department. She received a bachelor’s degree in business, a master’s of busines administration, a master’s in strategic studies and a Ph.D. in industrial and organizational psychology. Singh served over 20 years at Accenture Federal Services, including managing director of the Health and Public Service North America operating unit. In this role, she oversaw operational activities for a budget of more than $3 billion.

John Loome, senior vice president for medical affairs and geriatrician, Genesis Healthcare

Loome is senior VP for medical affairs at Genesis Healthcare and a geriatrician, a physician specializing in treating conditions that affect older patients. He oversees about 70 nursing facilities in six states, according to an online bio. Loome received his medical degree from the Georgetown University School of Medicine. He is a member of multiple medical organizations, including the American College of Physicians, The American Medical Directors Association, and The American Geriatrics Society. Loome has also presented on topics to Geriatric Medicine for Baylor College of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, the American Geriatric Society and the American Medical Association.

Scott Gottlieb, former Commissioner of Food and Drug Administration

Gottlieb served as the Food and Drug commissioner from May 2017 to April 2019. He is a physician, medical policy expert and public health advocate, according to an online bio. Currently, Gottlieb is a fellow at a public policy think tank, American Enterprise Institute, and a partner at global venture capital firm New Enterprise Associates. Gottlieb is also an CNBC contributor. He previously served as the FDA’s deputy commissioner for medical and scientific Affairs and before that, was a senior adviser to the FDA commissioner. Gottlieb has also worked as a senior adviser to the administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, supporting policy work focused on new medical technologies. He has also worked on the Federal Health Information Technology Policy Committee, advising the Department of Health and Human Services on healthcare information technology.