Beloved Physician Dr. Lois J. Copeland Passes at 81

With the heaviest of hearts, much love, and deep sorrow, the family of Dr. Lois J. Copeland announces her passing.

Lois Jacqueline Copeland was born to U.S. Army 1st Lt. Arnold Copeland and his loving wife, Ann, in Massachusetts, joining her sister, Susan in their suburban Boston home. As a young child, she developed a deep connection to animals and nature and a passion for literature, art and classical music. After several post-war relocations, the family settled in New Jersey, where she graduated valedictorian from Pascack Valley High School at age 16. She attended Cornell University on full scholarship. She majored in zoology, studying hematopoiesis in the hibernating bat myotis lucifugus for her honors work. She believed all life was sacrosanct, famously saving a classroom lab rabbit from a fate of animal testing and adopting it as a pet. She was elected to Phi Beta Kappa and Phi Kappa Phi, and graduated magna cum laude with distinction in all subjects in 1964, earning a full academic scholarship to Cornell University Medical College (now Weill Cornell). After graduating in 1968, she completed a residency in Internal Medicine at The New York Hospital, a fellowship in Hematology-Oncology at the NYU Medical Center, and a cancer chemotherapy fellowship at Memorial Sloan Kettering. She was often seen walking her rescued rabbit in Central Park.

She married Dr. Richard A. Sperling, a reconstructive plastic surgeon and classmate from Cornell Med., in 1970. They established their home and medical practices in Bergen County, NJ. Their marriage lasted 37 years and produced four children: Mark, Larissa, Lauren, and Lorraine.

Dr. Copeland maintained a thriving private internal medicine practice in Hillsdale, NJ, for 44 years. A remarkable and renowned diagnostician, patients came from as far away as California, Florida and Greece to seek her care. She balanced a busy schedule treating patients and making hospital rounds, with raising her children and caring for a menagerie of exotic birds and beloved pets of all kinds. She held admissions privileges at several hospitals and was widely lauded for her genuine commitment to patient care and unwavering advocacy on her patients’ behalf. She even saved the life of her own father by fighting for a triple bypass against incredible odds, gifting him 14 more years. Her steadfast commitment to the Hippocratic Oath led to her involvement in the politics of medicine in the early 1990s due to incursion by the federal government into the physician - patient relationship and the effective prohibition on providing charity care to patients with Medicare. Dr. Copeland's solution was to embark on parallel crusades: pursuing private insurance alternatives to Medicare and protecting the rights of senior citizens to privately contract with their physicians.

Dr. Copeland was referred by the AMA to the Medical Society of New Jersey and was appointed Chairman of an ad hoc committee on Medicare. She contacted insurers, but was met with skepticism. Resolute, Dr. Copeland joined with the Association of American Physicians and Surgeons, three Board members of the Medical Society of New Jersey and patient, Libertarian activist and longtime friend, Joan Kennedy Taylor, to form The Freedom of Choice Lawsuit, Stewart vs. Sullivan. In the lawsuit, Dr. Copeland and five of her senior citizen patients sued the federal government for the right to contract privately outside of Medicare, effectively winning validation that any policies forbidding such contracts would be a violation of rights.

Dr. Copeland was appointed to the President's Council of Cornell Women and the Steering Committee of Heritage Foundation Physician's Council (1993), elected President of the Association of American Physicians and Surgeons (1994), and served as a vocal advocate for patients’ rights. Her frequent media appearances included popular programs on FOX, CNN, CNBC, and local networks. Her work was published in the Wall Street Journal, Policy Review, and The New York Times, and she often served as a speaker for the Cato Institute, Foundation for Economic Education, the Foundation for Free Enterprise, for which she was appointed to the Board, Ramapo College’s Distinguished Lecturer Program, the Libertarian Party of Pennsylvania and Bergen Community College. She was also actively involved in The Heritage Foundation and The Mises Institute. In an essay she wrote entitled “Cry the Beloved Profession”, she lamented:

“Perhaps my battle to create an alternative – a private safety valve – will be remembered and eventually come to fruition. Along with a market for private medical insurance for senior citizens, some advocate a means-tested “safety net” of government subsidized insurance for those who cannot afford private policies. But the best safety net is still a respected system of charity care. It worked in the past, and needs to become popular again.”

After retiring in 2019, Dr. Copeland enjoyed painting, photographing nature, caring for her cherished pets, and traveling extensively with her family. She passed away peacefully in New Jersey at the age of 81.

She is survived by her children: Mark (Brooke) Sperling, Larissa Sperling, Lauren (Jason) Sperling-Gross, and Lorraine Sperling, seven grandchildren, and her sister: Susan (Allan) Greenberg.

A celebration of her remarkable life and legacy is being planned for a later date. Colleagues, friends, patients, and their pets will be welcome! Please contact the family at drcopelandlegacy@gmail.com for more information and details.