About this talk
Former Senate Majority Leader and surgeon Bill Frist believes that having a healthy society helps to ensure a stable society. In his work as a legislator and a doctor, Bill found that medical care was a foundation on which he could build peace and trust.
From his work healing people living amidst the violence and destruction of Sudan’s civil war to his successful efforts to pass PEPFAR (the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief), Bill’s decades of work in the medical, humanitarian, and legislative communities have helped demonstrate why the United States should play a lead role in improving global health. Tune in to Bill’s 2017 TEDMED Talk to learn more about his ambitious efforts to use health and medicine as instruments for global peace.
About Bill Frist
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William Frist is a highly accomplished individual who has combined a career as a heart and lung transplant surgeon with a distinguished public service career. He served as a former U.S. Senate Majority Leader and is a nationally recognized expert on healthcare policy. As a surgeon, Bill performed over 150 heart and lung transplants and founded the Vanderbilt Multi-Organ Transplant Center. His unique background in medicine gave him a powerful perspective in politics, where he led the passage of key legislation. He was instrumental in creating the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), a historic bill that has saved millions of lives worldwide. He also helped pass the Medicare Modernization Act. After his time in the Senate, Bill continued his work in health care. He is an adjunct professor of cardiac surgery at Vanderbilt University and the chairman of the Distinguished Executives Council for the healthcare firm, Cressey & Company. He is also the founder of the global health organization Hope Through Healing Hands. His career is a testament to his dedication to improving health both inside and outside the operating room.
