The 2021 New York City 40 Under 40 features Rachel Kagan - Operations Manager, Communications and Government Relations at Physician Affiliate Group of New York
Oct 28, 2021
Rachel Kagan’s interest in politics began as an intern in state Sen. Liz Krueger’s office in high school. It was during her first summer working in her office that then-Gov. George Pataki vetoed a bill that would have raised the minimum wage in New York – a veto that the state Senate later overruled. To Kagan, the experience vividly illustrated the importance of state and local politics.“I love the idea that even when big change happens on the national level, it’s always up to the states and localities to really implement that change,” Kagan said.
Kagan went on to work in the state Senate and the state attorney general’s office before attending law school. She eventually worked in the New York City Council, where she helped support and craft criminal justice legislation, such as exploring nonmonetary forms of bail.
Now at Physician Affiliate Group of New York, Kagan ensures that doctors and health care professionals employed at New York City’s public hospitals through the organization get the support they need to continue to aid patients.
“Throughout it all, I’ve done a lot of criminal justice, a lot of economic justice, and I think of my role here as being an extension of that because of the people that we serve,” she says. “There’s so much work that I’ve done in the past that is relevant to assisting vulnerable communities that our hospitals and providers are working to help.”