For Immediate Release
Washington, D.C. (June 13, 2018) – Each year, the Eye Bank Association of America (EBAA) awards individuals and organizations that dedicate their time and expertise to restore sight to the blind and visually impaired.
EBAA is proud to announce that Rear Admiral Kenneth P. Moritsugu, MD, former Acting Surgeon General of the United States (2006 – 2007) and donor father and husband, will give the keynote presentation at the EBAA 57th Annual Meeting in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Dr. Moritsugu of Rockville, Maryland became an ambassador for organ and tissue donation after the tragic loss of his wife, Donna Lee Jones, in an auto accident in 1992, and his daughter, Vikki Lianne, in a separate auto accident in 1996. Both were organ and tissue donors. Since then, Dr. Moritsugu has been an active participant in the National Donor Family Recognition Programs in Washington, D.C. He has been a member of the Board of Directors of the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS), secretary/treasurer and Board member of the Washington Regional Transplant Community (WRTC) and member of the National Advisory Board for MOTTEP. He has also been a past member of the Board of Trustees of the National Kidney Foundation, the Executive Committee of the National Donor Family Council, and the Washington Regional Transplant Community’s Donor Family Council, Public Affairs Committee and Minority Affairs Committee. In recognition of his continuing efforts in this field, in 2007, the International Congress on Organ Donation named him its inaugural International Ambassador for Organ and Tissue Donation.
“We were honored to have Dr. Mortisugu as the keynote speaker. We applaud and appreciate his leadership in both the transplant and the broader medical community, culminating with his position as Acting Surgeon General of the United States. His remarks to our members will tie those strands together to illustrate how a thriving eye, organ and tissue community enhances the health of our entire country”, said EBAA President & CEO Kevin Corcoran.
Dr. Moritsugu was the Acting Surgeon General of the United States from July 2006 until his retirement from the Commissioned Corps of the U.S. Public Health Service in September 2007, after 37 years of active duty. Since 1998, he also served as the Deputy Surgeon General of the U.S., the principal assistant and advisor to the Surgeon General as well as acting Surgeon General.
Dr. Moritsugu will give the keynote presentation, “Donation and Transplantation – Everyone’s Opportunity, Everyone’s Responsibility,” at the 57th EBAA Annual Meeting on Friday, June 8, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania at the Loews Philadelphia Hotel.