Dr. William "Bill" Michael Johnson

William Michael Johnson, M.D., 85, passed away from appendicitis on January 29, 2026, in Asheville, North Carolina, surrounded by his family. He was a devoted husband, father, grandfather, friend, physician, public health advocate, and lifelong learner.

Bill loved travel – visiting forty-nine countries – along with politics, history, genealogy, geography, music, dogs, and eating out. Above all, he loved being with his family. He was known for his kindness, intellectual curiosity, and honesty, and for a life shaped by a strong moral compass. Throughout his career, he remained deeply invested in worker health, testified before Congress, and published widely in medical journals.

In the early 1970s, while serving at the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), Bill played a pivotal role in exposing deadly workplace conditions that had long been tolerated by industry and government. Just out of Harvard, he helped uncover and document evidence showing preventable exposures – most notably asbestos – were causing irreversible disease and unnecessary death among workers. Bill insisted the findings be documented, shared, and acted upon, even when doing so brought professional risk. A journalist writing at the time described him putting down his fork at dinner and shaking his head as he spoke about what he saw as a moral crisis facing occupational medicine: a field that too often valued institutional convenience above human life. Rather than “sit back and fit into the mold,” Bill chose to act. His work was later described as helping to crack “the cornerstone of the medical-industrial complex of company doctors and industry consultants.” It challenged the notion that illness was an acceptable cost of production, and it helped drive lasting changes in worker safety, standards, and accountability – from many cancers and black lung disease to poor ventilation faced by anesthesiology nurses.

Born on November 20, 1940, in Olean, New York, and growing up in Saranac Lake, Bill earned his Bachelor of Arts in Economics and Doctor of Medicine from Stanford, followed by a Master of Public Health and Master in Industrial Hygiene from the Harvard School of Public Health. Board certified in internal medicine, pulmonary disease, occupational medicine, and general preventive medicine, his career spanned clinical practice, research, teaching, and public service. He served as Deputy Director of Field Studies and Clinical Investigations at NIOSH and held faculty appointments at the University of Washington and the Medical College of Georgia. Bill was a Colonel in the U.S. Army while Chief of Pulmonary Diseases at Eisenhower Hospital at Fort Gordon, Georgia. Until retirement, he cared for veterans at the Department of Veterans Affairs in Augusta, Georgia.

As a physician, Bill treated patients with empathy and respect, believing firmly in caring for the whole person. He took time to understand patients’ daily lives, work, and family history, and he pressed the VA to institute PTSD screening. His hospital commander at Eisenhower wrote that families felt Bill had rolled out the red carpet in their honor and that he often returned to the ward in the evenings or on weekends to make sure his patients were well cared for. Bill was grateful to have access to a body of knowledge that could make a difference.
Away from work, Bill loved spending time with his family and the many friends he made throughout his life. Many will remember him merrily singing along to “The Twelve Days of Christmas” at his family’s annual Christmas party, enjoying his “video club,” having dinner with friends, and relaxing with his grandchildren and extended family at lakeside cabins at the Thousand Islands in Canada. He would transform into “Wild Bill” on the dance floor at family weddings. He loved trains. Bill was an avid reader who loved to dig into topics ranging from politics to world history, geology to geography, and so much more. To his four children, he was like a walking encyclopedia. While he had a quiet demeanor, he maintained strong convictions for justice and equality. His family will always remember him for his empathy, sense of justice, and willingness to indulge their intellectual curiosities.

In 2020, Bill was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. Throughout its progression, he remained gentle, kind, and sweet: qualities that defined him long before his memory loss. He adapted with the love and patience of his wife and the support of family and friends. The family extends heartfelt thanks to Bill’s caregivers, volunteer drivers, and the staff at Mountain Care, Elder Club, and Mountain Mobility for their compassion and for giving him a sense of belonging.

Bill is survived by his wife of 60 years, Marlene Elsie Brill Johnson; his children, Michael Scott Johnson, Susan Johnson, Amy Marlene Johnson-Ely (Mike Ely), and Linda Marie Johnson (Steve Florence); and his grandchildren, Luke Michael Johnson, Kate Elizabeth Johnson, and Mia Elsa Grace Ely, as well as extended family. He was preceded in death by his parents, Loren Edward Johnson and Anna Elizabeth Van Dyke, and his brother, Robert Loren Johnson.

A celebration of Bill’s life will be held on Saturday, February 7 at noon at New Hope Presbyterian Church, 3070 Sweeten Creek Road, Asheville, NC 28803, followed by lunch. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to Doctors Without Borders, P.O. Box 5030, Hagerstown, MD 21741-5030 or the charity of one’s choice.

Bill spent his life fighting for justice, and we are better for it. His life is reflected in the words of Oliver Wendell Holmes: “At the grave of a hero who has done these things, we end, not with sorrow at the inevitable loss, but with the contagion of his courage; and with a kind of desperate joy, we go back to the fight.”

Groce Funeral Home at Lake Julian is assisting the family.