Dr. David Persse, longtime Houston medical leader, dies at 66

Tributes are pouring in for Dr. David Persse, a longtime Houston physician and former chief medical officer who died Monday at age 66.

Persse suffered a severe spinal injury while swimming at a beach in California on Saturday, according to reports. He was hospitalized after the incident but later died Monday.

Persse spent more than three decades serving the City of Houston and was a longtime leader in emergency medical services and public health. He served as Houston’s EMS director beginning in 1996 and was appointed the city’s Public Health Authority in 2004. During the COVID-19 pandemic, he became the city’s chief medical officer.

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Throughout his career, Persse played a key role in Houston’s response to major emergencies and public health crises, including hurricanes and other natural disasters, the H1N1 outbreak, Ebola and the COVID-19 pandemic.

He also served as a tactical physician with the Houston Police Department’s SWAT team and was a professor at Baylor College of Medicine and the University of Texas Medical School at Houston.

The Houston Fire Department mourned Persse’s death, describing him as a pioneer, mentor and friend.

City leaders and colleagues have also remembered Persse for his decades of service, leadership and commitment to emergency medicine and public health.

Persse retired from his city position in April 2026 after a career spanning more than 30 years.

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