READ HERE for an update on Aetna.

Locations and Appointments

Insurances Accepted

Please contact the doctor's office to verify that your insurance is accepted.

  • HMO
  • Medicare
  • PPO
  • EPO/POS
  • CHP
  • Blue Access
  • Blue Connection
  • EPO
  • HMO
  • Mediblue (Senior)
  • PPO
  • CBP
  • Medicaid
  • Medicare
  • Freedom
  • Liberty
  • Medicare Advantage
  • Metro/Core/Charter
  • Community Plan
  • Medicare
  • HMO
  • Medicare
Biographical Info

Dana Leifer, MD graduated from Harvard College summa cum laude and received his M.D. cum laude from Harvard Medical School. He also received an M. Phil. in Biochemistry from Cambridge University as a Fulbright Scholar. After completing an internship in medicine and a residency in neurology at the Massachusetts General Hospital, Dr. Leifer joined the staff of the Stroke Service there and served as Assistant Professor of Neurology at the Harvard Medical School. He subsequently moved to the Yale University School of Medicine as a member of the Cerebrovascular Center. In 1997, Dr. Leifer became Chief of Vascular Neurology at North Shore University Hospital and Associate Professor of Neurology at NYU. In 2005, Dr. Leifer joined Weill Cornell Medical College as Director of the Stroke and Neuroscience Step-Down Unit and Director of the Neurovascular Ultrasound Laboratory. He is board certified in Neurology and is one of the first neurologists to receive subspecialty certification in Vascular Neurology.

Dr. Leifer's research interests include cellular and molecular studies of neuronal growth and regeneration and immunohistochemical studies of stroke and other neurological diseases. His research has focused on the development of new treatments for stroke patients and functional MRI studies of brain activity during recovery from stroke. In 2010, he co-authored a clinical advisory sponsored by both the American Heart Association and the American College of Cardiology about the role for genetic testing in choosing appropriate antiplatelet therapy to prevent strokes and heart attacks -- one of the first practical applications of personalized genetic medicine.

Dr. Leifer also serves as an advisor to the New York State Department of Health and the American Heart Association on the development of guidelines for the certification of stroke centers and on the evaluation of stroke center performance. He is the lead author of a 2011 American Heart Association Scientific Statement establishing procedures for monitoring the quality of care at comprehensive stroke centers.

Board Certifications
American Board of Psychiatry & Neurology (Neurology)
American Board of Psychiatry & Neurology (Vascular Neurology)
Clinical Expertise
Stroke
AVM (Arteriovenous Malformation)
Carotid Artery Disease
Transcranial Doppler
Neurovascular Disease
Aneurysm
Carotid Ultrasound
Cerebral Aneurysm
Cerebral Vascular Disease
Doppler Ultrasound
Subarachnoid Hemorrhage
Transient Ischemic Attack (TIA)
Languages
English
Education 
  • M.D.
    Harvard Medical School
    1985
Appointments 
  • Associate Professor of Neurology
    Weill Cornell Medical College, Cornell University
  • Associate Attending Neurologist
    NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital

Relationships and collaborations with for-profit and not-for profit organizations are of vital importance to our faculty because these exchanges of scientific information foster innovation. As experts in their fields, WCM physicians and scientists are sought after by many organizations to consult and educate. WCM and its faculty make this information available to the public, thus creating a transparent environment.

Consultant: 
Atheneum Partners
Gerson Lehrman Group (GLG)
Guidepoint Global LLC
Professional Services: 
Anzalone Law Offices, LLC
Feldman Shepherd Wohlgelernter Tanner Weinstock Dodig LLP
Finz & Finz
Harry S. Cohen & Associates, P.C.
Kennedy Johnson Schwab & Roberge
Locks Law Firm, LLC
McCormick Law Firm
Medical Excellence, Inc
Post & Schell, P.C.
Ross Feller Casey, LLP
Salenger Sack Kimmel & Bavarro LLP
THE AHEARNE LAW FIRM, PLLC
The Cochran Firm, DC & Baltimore
The Steiner Law Firm, PLLC
Wicker Smith O'Hara McCoy & Ford, PA