Bill Frist

Senator Bill Frist is both a nationally recognized heart and lung transplant surgeon and former U.S. Senate Majority Leader. Senator Frist represented Tennessee in the U.S. Senate for 12 years where he served on both Health and Finance committees responsible for writing health legislation. He was elected Majority Leader of the Senate, having served fewer total years in Congress than any person chosen to lead that body in history. His leadership was instrumental in passage of prescription drug legislation and the historic and unprecedented funding to fight HIV/AIDS at home and around the world. Today Senator Frist is focused on domestic health reform, the basic science of heart transplantation, global health policy, economic development in low-income countries, healthcare disparities, medical mission around the world, the health of the mountain gorilla, and HIV/AIDS.

Senator Frist majored in health policy at Princeton University’s Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs before graduating with honors from Harvard Medical School. Dr. Frist completed surgical training at Massachusetts General Hospital and Stanford under transplant pioneer Dr. Norm Shumway.