Daniel Abraham Lang

1926 - 2022

July 7, 1926 - November 7, 2022 We are saddened to announce the passing Daniel Abraham Lang, who died after a short illness on November 7th, 2022. Physician, medical leader, bioethicist, author, educator, advocate; beloved father, brother, grandfather, uncle, friend, brother-in-law. He was 96.

Born in Chicago, Illinois in 1926, and a longtime resident of Los Angeles, for the past 13 years he lived at University Village Thousand Oaks (UVTO), California. He was active in its health and wellness committee and Jewish community, and enjoyed bridge and Scrabble, and writing poetry in English and French.

For almost 20 years, Daniel Lang was in private practice as a doctor of internal medicine in West LA. In the mid-1970s, he shifted to focus on the effectiveness of the institutions and systems by which health care is delivered and improved, in California and nationally. This led him to positions as Medical Director at Brotman Memorial Hospital in Culver City and at Valley Presbyterian Hospital in Van Nuys, and to co-found and lead one of the nation's early Professional Standards Review Organizations (Area XXII). As Medical Director of the Hospital Association of Southern California (HASC) and the National Health Foundation in Los Angeles for more than 20 years, he focused on health care quality improvement. Daniel Lang wrote and co-authored four books, consulting frequently throughout the US on such issues as hospital accreditation, bioethics, hospital-medical staff relations, management of impaired physicians. He was also an Assistant Clinical Professor of Medicine at UCLA.

In 1976, Daniel Lang gained national recognition as the spokesperson for the Concerned Physicians for Malpractice Reform, during a strike called by California doctors to draw attention to their cause.

Daniel Lang was proud of his service in the United States Navy. He trained as a doctor during World War II and served on a medical ship during the Korean War. He also valued his two internal medicine residencies with the Veteran's Administration, in Illinois and at Wadsworth VA Hospital in West LA.

He is survived by his daughter Lisa Lang (Jonathan Bush), his son David Lang (Suzanne Bocanegra), and his grandchildren Charlotte Bush (Nelson Pecora), Isabel Bush, Isaac Lang, Theodora Lang and Judah Lang. He is also survived by numerous nieces and nephews, and a sister-in-law, Lynda Weisbard.

He was predeceased by his wives Lois Atlas Lang and June Weisbard Lang, his brother Herbert Eugene Lang, his sister Sylvia Kaplan, and his son Jeremy Lang.

Memorial services will be held at 11 am on Friday, November 11th, at Beth Olam Cemetery in Hollywood, California.