Washington, DC—Jeff Hild, JD, has been named Senior Vice President for Advocacy at the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), where he will lead the organization’s Washington, DC office and provide strategic oversight and leadership on all AAP advocacy initiatives. Hild will oversee AAP’s work with Congress and the Administration on regulatory and legislative issues affecting infants, children, adolescents, young adults, and pediatricians.
Hild comes to AAP from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), where he currently leads the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) as the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary and the senior official performing the delegable duties of the Assistant Secretary for Children and Families. He has served in various leadership roles at the agency since he joined the Biden Administration in 2021 and was chief of staff at ACF from 2014-2017. From 2017-2021, Hild served as policy director at the Redstone Global Center for Prevention and Wellness at the George Washington University School of Public Health, where his work focused on advancing health equity and addressing adverse childhood experiences through policy change.
“Jeff has an impressive track record of strong leadership on many critical issues and programs important to child health and to the mission of the AAP,” said Mark Del Monte, JD, CEO/Executive Vice President of AAP. “He will lead a dedicated team of professionals in Washington, DC and our headquarters in Itasca, Illinois, at a time when so much is at stake for children and pediatricians. The Academy is fortunate to have a leader like Jeff to ensure children are prioritized at the highest levels of government.”
At ACF, Hild leads the second largest operating division at HHS and is responsible for carrying out the agency’s human services priorities, including providing executive leadership for the agency’s regulatory agenda. Hild helped create two new offices during his tenure - the Office of Family Violence Prevention Services and the office of the Chief Equity Officer - to reduce domestic violence and promote equity - and managed the care, safety and well-being of unaccompanied children referred to the Office of Refugee Resettlement.
“It is an honor to join AAP and have the opportunity to lead an amazing team to advance policies that support the health and well-being of all children,” said Jeff Hild. “AAP has a long history of effective advocacy on behalf of children and pediatricians, and I am looking forward to working each day to further that legacy.”
Before his service at HHS, Hild was the legislative director for U.S. Representative Beto O’Rourke (D-Tex.), where he managed the day-to-day operations of the legislative office with a focus on issues impacting the U.S.-Mexico border. Previously he served as the legislative director and counsel for U.S. Representative Pete Stark (D-Calif.), with a focus on poverty, child welfare, health care and Social Security. Before that, Hild was a staff attorney at the Homeless Persons Representation Project in Baltimore, representing indigent clients in public benefits, housing and civil rights matters.
Born and raised in Maryland, Hild is a member of the Maryland Bar and a graduate of Saint Mary’s College of Maryland and the University of Baltimore School of Law. He currently resides in Washington, D.C., with his wife and daughter.
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The American Academy of Pediatrics is an organization of 67,000 primary care pediatricians, pediatric medical subspecialists and pediatric surgical specialists dedicated to the health, safety and well-being of infants, children, adolescents and young adults.