Jesse M. Ehrenfeld, MD, MPH President | Official website
As a retired cardiothoracic surgeon with 30 years of practice, Senator Richard Briggs understands the benefits of insurance coverage for patients. Since 2010, he has been advocating for the expansion of Medicaid in Tennessee, one of the ten states yet to expand this program.
"Sen. Briggs is the very embodiment of a public servant," stated AMA Board Chair Michael Suk, M.D., JD, MPH, MBA. "Through his military service, government service, and three decades of dedicated service to patients in and around Knoxville, Sen. Briggs has improved lives and the communities he's touched. Over the past few months, we've heard the same things about him, over and over, from people of all backgrounds and across the political spectrum: he's collaborative and accessible, he listens, and he's always open to authentic dialogue, even when he disagrees. For his tireless advocacy and for the very real impact he has made on the lives of patients—his own and otherwise—it is an honor to present Sen. Richard Briggs with the AMA Award for Outstanding Government Service."
Senator Briggs earned his undergraduate degree from Transylvania University in Lexington, Kentucky. He obtained his medical degree from the University of Kentucky College of Medicine before entering active military service with the U.S. Army for training in general and cardiothoracic surgery.
After leaving active duty with the Army, Senator Briggs joined the Jarvik artificial heart transplant team in Louisville. He was recalled to active duty during Operation Desert Storm in 1990 and received a Bronze Star for combat operations in southern Iraq. Following September 11th attacks in 2001, Sen. Briggs was called again to serve at a Combat Support Hospital in northeast Afghanistan. In 2005, he deployed to Baghdad as Senior Trauma Surgeon in Iraq's Green Zone. Throughout his 38 years of active and reserve military service, he also served peacetime tours in Korea, South America, and Egypt.
Elected to the Tennessee state senate in 2014, Sen. Briggs recently began his 11th legislative session in Nashville. As chairman of the State and Local Government Committee, he oversees both the Tennessee National Guard and Department of Veteran Services. His academic roles have included appointments at universities such as Texas-San Antonio, Louisville, and Tennessee-Knoxville. Dr. Briggs is a former president of Knoxville Academy of Medicine and served on Tennessee Medical Association's Board of Trustees.
