Freeman, Harold P.

Harold Paul Freeman (March 2, 1933 – August 11, 2026) was an American physician. He was an authority on race, poverty and cancer. In his work in Harlem, Freeman identified the impact of poverty and cultural barriers on rates of cancer incidence and cancer-related death, in economically disadvantaged and under-served communities. He also pioneered Patient Navigation (or nurse navigation) in the field of breast cancer. In navigation programs, trained personnel work with patients to identify and overcome barriers to their obtaining timely treatment as they move through the medical system. Freeman was a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons and a member of the National Academy of Science's Institute of Medicine. He served as President of the American Cancer Society from 1988–1989, leading the society's initiative on Cancer in the Poor. Freeman has argued for the involvement of scientists in policy formation. His work led to the passage of the Patient Navigator Outreach and Chronic Disease Prevention Act (H.R. 1812) of 2005, and to the creation of billing codes for patient navigation services in Medicare and Medicaid Services as of 2024.