Concepción Quiñones de Longo is a Puerto Rican pediatrician and government official. She was the interim

Secretary of Health of Puerto Rico The Secretary of Health of Puerto Rico ( es, Secretario de Salud de Puerto Rico) leads the Department of Health of Puerto Rico and all efforts related to health in Puerto Rico Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), ...

in March 2020 and had previously served as the

undersecretary Undersecretary (or under secretary) is a title for a person who works for and has a lower rank than a secretary (person in charge). It is used in the executive branch of government, with different meanings in different political systems, and is al ...

Rafael Rodríguez Mercado Rafael Rodríguez Mercado is a Puerto Rican neurosurgeon and military officer. He was the Secretary of Health of Puerto Rico from 2017 until his resignation in 2020. Rodríguez Mercado previously served as chancellor of the University of Puerto ...

. Quiñones de Longo is a former faculty member of the University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine.

Education

Quiñones de Longo completed a bachelor's degree in premedical studies at the

Interamerican University of Puerto Rico The Inter American University of Puerto Rico (Spanish: ''Universidad Interamericana de Puerto Rico''; often abbreviated to ''UIPR'' or ''Inter'') is a private Christian university with its main campus in San Germán, Puerto Rico. It also has c ...

. She completed a doctor of medicine at the University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine. She completed a

residency Residency may refer to: * Domicile (law), the act of establishing or maintaining a residence in a given place ** Permanent residency, indefinite residence within a country despite not having citizenship * Residency (medicine), a stage of postgrad ...

in pediatrics at the University District Hospital in San Juan.

Career

Starting in 1973, Quiñones de Longo worked as a pediatrician instructor at the University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine. She was a faculty member at the school of medicine and the University Pediatric Hospital for 36 years. In the 1980s, Quiñones de Longo assisted the

Puerto Rico Department of Health The Puerto Rico Department of Health (PRDOH) is one of the Cabinet-level agencies directly created by Article 4, Section 6 of the Constitution of Puerto Rico. It is headed by a Secretary of Health, appointed by the Governor of Puerto Rico and re ...

with pediatric centers for children with

special needs In clinical diagnostic and functional development, special needs (or additional needs) refers to individuals who require assistance for disabilities that may be medical, mental, or psychological. Guidelines for clinical diagnosis are given in ...

and hospital accreditation. From 2008 to 2012, she served as the

to the

. While serving as undersecretary in 2020, Quiñones de Longo reported Department irregularities to Secretary

. Following Rodríguez Mercado's resignation on March 13, 2020, she served as the interim Secretary of Health for two weeks before resigning on March 26, 2020. Quiñones de Longo was succeeded by

Lorenzo González Feliciano Lorenzo González Feliciano is a Puerto Rican psychiatrist. He previously served as Secretary of Health of Puerto Ricofrom March 28, 2020 to January, 2021 He previously also served as Secretary of Health under Governor Luis Fortuño. Education ...

. She expressed concerns about how contracts for

COVID-19 tests COVID-19 testing involves analyzing samples to assess the current or past presence of SARS-CoV-2. The two main types of tests detect either the presence of the virus or antibodies produced in response to infection. Molecular tests for viral p ...

were awarded. In April 2020, Quiñones de Longo was questioned by the

House of Representatives of Puerto Rico The House of Representatives of Puerto Rico ( es, Cámara de Representantes de Puerto Rico) is the lower house of the Legislative Assembly of Puerto Rico, the bicameral state legislature (United States), territorial legislature of Puerto Rico. ...

where she stated that Marisol Blasco, an assistant to the Governor, and the

Chief of Staff of Puerto Rico The Chief of Staff of Puerto Rico ( es, Secretario de la Gobernación de Puerto Rico) is the highest-ranking officer in the executive branch of the government of Puerto Rico after the governor and the secretary of state. The Chief of Staff lead ...

, Antonio Pabón, both called her to request that she quickly sign a contract.

Personal life

From 1971 to 1973, Quiñones de Longo resided in the

contiguous United States The contiguous United States (officially the conterminous United States) consists of the 48 adjoining U.S. states and the Federal District of the United States of America. The term excludes the only two non-contiguous states, Alaska and Hawaii ...

before returning to Puerto Rico. She is the mother of lawyer and government official Dennise Longo Quiñones.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Quiñones de Longo, Concepción Living people Year of birth missing (living people) Place of birth missing (living people) Interamerican University of Puerto Rico alumni University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine alumni University of Puerto Rico faculty Puerto Rican pediatricians Puerto Rican women physicians 20th-century American physicians 21st-century American physicians Women pediatricians Secretaries of Health of Puerto Rico Women government officials Caribbean women physicians 20th-century American women American women academics 21st-century American women New Progressive Party (Puerto Rico) politicians

Education

Career

Personal life

See also

References