Dr Shah has served his community, first saving lives as an emergency physician for over 15 years, and since 2019 representing districts in the Phoenix area as a member of the Arizona House of Representative
Indian American doctor and state representative, Amish Shah, recently announced his intention to run for the US Congress as a Democratic candidate.
Dr Shah has served his community, first saving lives as an emergency physician for over 15 years, and since 2019 representing districts in the Phoenix area as a member of the Arizona House of Representatives, according to a press release.
The US House of Representatives currently has five Indian American Democrats including Ami Bera, a physician; Ro Khanna; Raja Krishnamoorthi; Pramila Jayapal and Shri Thanedar.
In the press release, Dr Shah said that he knew how important it was to meet people where they were and had made a name for himself with his unique brand of door-to-door campaigning, having visited over 15,000 households.
He also said that he had honed his ability to find common ground with colleagues in any party to produce legislation that would improve the lives of constituents.
The Democratic primary for election to the US House to represent Arizona’s 1st Congressional district, from where Shah is running, is scheduled on August 6, 2024.
“I am running for Congress because I have seen the difference a single person can make within government to improve people’s lives. Serving in Congress is an opportunity to make an even greater positive impact on issues affecting Arizona,” Shah said in his press release.
“Giving back is a core value for me. And because of the sacrifices of my parents, who both came to this country from India to pursue a better life, I was able to become a doctor, work on field with the NFL [National Football League], and be the first Indian-American to serve in the Arizona legislature. We need to try to understand each other and navigate our differences if we hope to tackle vital issues facing our country such as public education, quality affordable health care, climate change, and voting rights. It would be an honour to address these issues on behalf of Arizonans in the US Congress,” Dr Shah said in the release.
In the Arizona legislature, where he last assumed office on January 9, 2023, Shah has had several Bills signed into law and has received over a dozen awards for the quality of his service.
Shah’s career experience includes working as an attending physician with Mayo Clinic, Dignity Health, and IASIS Healthcare; the chief medical officer of Urgent Consult; and an airway management physician with the New York Jets In the US mid-term elections last year, two Democrat physicians of Indian origin – Dr Anita Somani as state representative from Ohio and Dr Arvind Venkat for the Pennsylvania House of representatives –won their seats
He has voted against every Bill that sought to restrict ease of voting and obstruct access to the ballot.
In Congress, he will continue this diligent engagement with Arizonans, taking their problems and ideas straight to Washington to create meaningful change, he said.
In the Arizona state legislature, Shah has been a champion for public schools and teachers.
The doctor has leveraged his medical expertise to become a steadfast voice for improving health care for all Arizonans and has advocated for increasing access to care and improving Arizona’s healthcare workforce.
Shah was named 2022 Women’s Health Care Champion Legislator of the Year by the American College of Obstetrics and Gynaecology for his work protecting reproductive rights.
Last year, he also received the Nursing Hero Award from the Arizona Nurses Association, and the President’s Award for Mental Health Advocacy from the Arizona Psychiatric Society.
Shah was born in Chicago, Illinois and earned a BA in economics from Northwestern University in 1997, an MD from Northwestern University in 2001, and an MPH from the University of California at Berkeley in 2003.
His career experience includes working as an attending physician with Mayo Clinic, Dignity Health, and IASIS Healthcare; the chief medical officer of Urgent Consult; and an airway management physician with the New York Jets In the US mid-term elections last year, two Democrat physicians of Indian origin – Dr Anita Somani as state representative from Ohio and Dr Arvind Venkat for the Pennsylvania House of representatives –won their seats.
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