Marc Eckstein, MD, MPH, is a nationally recognized leader with over 30 years of experience in Emergency Medicine and EMS. Dr. Eckstein is double board-certified in Emergency Medicine and Emergency Medical Services. He has built an international reputation as a physician, leader, academician, and innovator.
After obtaining his Bachelor of Science Degree with Distinction from Cornell University, Dr. Eckstein obtained his Doctor of Medicine from the Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York. He completed his residency training in Emergency Medicine at the Los Angeles County/University of Southern California Medical Center, where he served as Chief Resident. He earned a Master’s Degree in Public Health (MPH) with a Concentration in Homeland Security from American Military University.

Dr. Eckstein is a Professor of Emergency Medicine at the Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California. Dr. Eckstein has published over 200 peer-reviewed articles, abstracts, and book chapters, and lectures around the world on Emergency Medical Services, Emergency Medicine, and disaster preparedness topics. He serves as the Chief of the EMS Division within the Department of Emergency Medicine at USC and is the Director of the EMS Fellowship. He is the recipient of numerous awards, including the EMS Achievement Award from the California Chapter of the American College of Emergency Medicine (CAL-ACEP); the EMS Medical Director of the Year Award from the National Metropolitan EMS Medical Directors Consortium; the Meritorious Service Award for Exceptional Leadership and Contributions in EMS from the California State EMS Authority; the EMS Innovator Award by the Journal of Emergency Medical Services (JEMS); the Clinical Excellence in EMS Award from the California State EMS Authority; the Healthcare Leadership Award from the Los Angeles Business Journal; the Community Service Leadership Award from Firehouse Expo, and was one of only 50 Emergency Physicians recognized in a book honoring the 50th anniversary of the specialty of Emergency Medicine. In March 2020, he was deputized by Mayor Eric Garcetti as the Physician Leader of the COVID-19 Testing for the City of Los Angeles, which has tested over 2 million individuals to date.

Dr. Eckstein has served as the Medical Director of the Los Angeles Fire Department since 1996. He was appointed the Commander of the Los Angeles Fire Department EMS Bureau in 2016, where he created and implemented many innovative and life-saving programs. Dr. Eckstein created the first Mobile Integrated Health Unit in any urban fire department in the US. He successfully implemented Advanced Provider Response Units (APRUs) in the field, which are staffed by a Nurse Practitioner or Physician Assistant along with a paramedic, and he also created the nation’s first mobile Sobriety Emergency Response Unit (SOBER Unit). He implemented a Dispatch-Initiated Telemedicine Program in early 2020 and has now launched Field-Initiated Telemedicine. All of these programs leverage technology and innovation to provide patient-centered care, conserve emergency resources, and navigate low acuity patients to Treatment in Place or transport to Alternate Destinations such as Mental Health Urgent Care Centers or Sobering Centers.