Who is PhillyHealth Cares?

Dr. Marc Altshuler is a Professor in Family Medicine and the Residency Program Director for the Department of Family and Community Medicine at Thomas Jefferson University.  In 2007, he founded the Jefferson Center for Refugee and Immigrant Health, in collaboration with the Nationalities Service Center (NSC) to create a medical home model for refugees resettled in Philadelphia.  He also worked closely with Nationalities Services Center (NSC) to create the Philadelphia Refugee Health Collaborative which brought together 3 existing refugee resettlement agencies with many academic medical centers in Philadelphia.

Dr. Altshuler also has a collaborative relationship with the Center for Disease Control (CDC) and has been recognized nationally and internally for his work, including the Jefferson’s designation as a Center of Excellence for Refugee Care since 2016.  In 2021, Dr. Altshuler founded the Wyss Wellness Center in South Philadelphia in partnership with SEAMAAC, a dedicated health center for the larger immigrant community throughout Philadelphia.

Dr. Cheryl Bettigole served as the Health Commissioner for the City of Philadelphia from 2021-2024, where she oversaw the development of a five-year strategic plan that included centering equity in the department’s work, improving access to primary care, and preparing for future public health emergencies. Dr. Bettigole led the department’s efforts to respond to multiple mass displaced person events, including Afghan and Ukrainian evacuees and migrants bussed from the southern border, collaborating with local, state, and federal partners to create new models of care for migrant populations. She worked with the Board of Health and the Air Pollution Control Board along with community leaders to pass innovative public health policies including a groundbreaking air toxics regulation. She is a practicing. board-certified family physician.

Dr. Maura Sammon has spent over 20 years practicing humanitarian medicine in Philadelphia and abroad. She has served as Medical Director for refugee clinics in northern Mexico and supported medical education in Cambodia, India, Sierra Leone, and Iraq.

In Philadelphia, she has led major public health efforts, including serving as Medical Director for Operation Allies Welcome, where she coordinated care for Afghan evacuees and initiated a lasting partnership with the Department of Homeland Security. She also co-directed the COVID Surge Facility at the Liacouras Center and has been active in racial justice and voting rights advocacy.

Board certified in Emergency Medicine, Dr. Sammon is dedicated to clinical excellence, public health leadership, and advancing health equity.