Vice President of Regional Programs for the Americas
Americares Vice President of Regional Programs for the Americas Eric Jovan Pérez-López, MPH, is responsible for designing, implementing and directing innovative health programs that increase access to medicine, medical supplies and health services for low-income populations in the United States, Central and South America and the Caribbean. He is also responsible for overseeing Americares programs transitioning from response to recovery in the region, implementing projects that meet survivors’ long-term health needs and directing initiatives that strengthen health systems in vulnerable communities.
Pérez-López also serves as a member of Americares senior Leadership Team, supporting the CEO in implementing the strategy and achieving the mission of the global health and disaster relief organization.
Based in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Pérez-López brings nearly a decade of experience in public health and humanitarian response to this key regional leadership position. Most recently, he served as Americares Puerto Rico country director and interim senior director of Latin America and Caribbean programs, where he oversaw the organization’s health initiatives on the island and provided strategic and technical support for programs throughout the region. In 2021, Pérez-López played a key role in Americares response to the COVID-19 pandemic in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, leading a successful U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention-funded project to reinforce COVID-19 vaccine confidence among health care personnel in federally qualified health centers and professional health care associations.
Prior to joining Americares in 2017, he worked as a contractor for the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in San Juan, where he served as a public health advisor and as the deputy lead of partnerships in Puerto Rico during the CDC’s Zika response. During that time, he also served as secretary for the Puerto Rico Public Health Association.
Pérez-López earned a Master of Public Health degree from the Ponce School of Medicine and Health Sciences in Ponce, Puerto Rico, and a bachelor’s degree in general science from Pontificia Universidad Católica de Puerto Rico. He is fluent in English and Spanish.
