For Professionals

Daniel Lorber, MD, FACP, CDE, is an endocrinologist in Queens, N.Y., with an impressive medical resume. He currently serves as the director of endocrinology and associate director of the Lang Center for Research and Education at New York Hospital Queens, clinical associate professor of medicine at the Weill Medical College of Cornell University, and the medical director of the Diabetes Control Foundation and the Diabetes Care and Information Center of New York, a multidisciplinary diabetes practice and research center.

Dr. Lorber’s dedication to providing quality care to individuals with diabetes earned him the Association’s Outstanding Physician Clinician in Diabetes Award in 2009. But his commitment to people with diabetes extends beyond the clinic to the world of legal advocacy. As a member of the Association’s Legal Advocacy Subcommittee since 2004, Dr. Lorber has helped prevent discrimination against people with diabetes in the workplace, public accommodations, and the criminal justice system, among other areas.

Dr. Lorber is often called upon to consult with governmental agencies and professional associations to ensure that their rules and guidelines affecting people with diabetes are based on a sound understanding of the science and medicine of diabetes. For instance, he had a hand in shaping the U.S. Department of Transportation’s rules and guidelines on the licensing of commercial truck drivers and noncommercial drivers with diabetes. He also helped develop the medical evaluation guidelines for the employment of law enforcement officers and firefighters with diabetes issued by, respectively, the American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine and the National Fire Protection Association.  This work has directly led to fairer policies that safeguard the rights of people with diabetes.

Within the Association, Dr. Lorber took part in revising the position statement on “Diabetes and Employment” and chaired the group that developed the Association's first comprehensive position statement on "Diabetes and Driving". These documents provide general guidelines for evaluating individuals with diabetes for employment and driver's licenses, respectively. He also chaired the joint Association-National Commission on Correctional Health Care committee that developed the Association’s comprehensive position statement on diabetes management in correctional institutions.

With respect to individual cases, Dr. Lorber has provided key medical testimony or case file review on employment discrimination cases involving U.S. Foreign Service officers, commercial truck drivers, firefighters and law enforcement officers, among other matters. He has also consulted on cases dealing with criminal justice issues ranging from access to care while in police custody to prosecution for combative behavior during a severe hypoglycemic event. 

Dr. Lorber brings great passion to his legal advocacy work and strongly encourages other health care professionals to become legal advocates. Of his own experience, Dr. Lorber says, “Legal advocacy work exposed me to a whole new world: a different way of using science and medicine to help people with diabetes. It has brought new patients to my clinical practice and provided interesting opportunities to apply my medical expertise to the law. Whether I’m serving as a volunteer or paid consultant, the work is both challenging and rewarding.”