Andre Pennardt

Dr. Andre (Andy) Pennardt is FEMA’s Chief Medical Officer (CMO). In addition to serving as CMO, he serves as Chief of FEMA’s Medical Branch overseeing the work of contact tracers, epidemiologists, nurses and licensed clinicians.

Dr. Pennardt is board certified in emergency medicine and emergency medical services. He earned his Doctor of Medicine (MD) from the State University of New York at Syracuse, a Master of Science (MS) in fire and emergency sciences/emergency management from the University of Florida, and a Bachelor of Arts (BA) in biology/biotechnology from the University of Rochester. He completed a fellowship in Austere and Wilderness Medicine, specializing in providing lifesaving services in remote and extreme environments.

Dr. Pennardt retired as a Colonel from the United States Army after 23 years of active duty during which he was assigned to a variety of special mission, weapons of mass destruction counterproliferation, and other special operations units. He deployed overseas on numerous sensitive, high-risk missions and served over three years on the battlefields of Afghanistan and Iraq. His assignments included medical squadron commander for the 1st Special Forces Operational Detachment-DELTA, chief medical officer for the Combined Joint Special Operations Task Force-Arabian Peninsula, command surgeon for Special Operations Command-SOUTH, and deputy command surgeon for Joint Special Operations Command. While on active duty, he also participated in hurricane relief missions and provided humanitarian assistance in the Kurdish region of Iraq.

His contributions to military medicine were recognized by awarding him the Order of Military Medical Merit, Aeromedical Order of Merit, Distinguished Member of the Army Medical Department Regiment, and The Surgeon General “A” Proficiency Designator in Emergency Medicine.

Dr. Pennardt is an internationally recognized expert in operational and tactical medicine. He previously served as a regional medical director for wildland firefighting and emergency services for the United States Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management. He is a sworn Florida Deputy Sheriff, SWAT officer, tactical flight officer, and Rescue Task Force instructor, and has provided medical support/oversight for multiple federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies. He serves as the chairman emeritus of the United States Special Operations Command Curriculum and Examination Board, tactical medical director of the Board for Critical Care Transport Paramedic Certification and International Board for Specialty Certification, and a member of the national high-threat guidelines committee for the Committee on Tactical Emergency Casualty Care (C-TECC).