Howard Markel, M.D., Ph.D. is an American physician, author, professor and a medical historian. Markel has written many books, such as "Quarantine!", "When Germs Travel", "The Kelloggs", and others. He has given advice to governments about how to manage epidemics and diseases. In January 2020, he wrote an article for the New York Times criticizing the Chinese government's actions about the 2019–20 coronavirus pandemic.