Source: United States Senator for Louisiana Bill Cassidy
BATON ROUGE – Today, U.S. Senator Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA) participated in Xavier University’s 95thcommencement ceremony at their convocation center. Cassidy spoke to graduates from their College of Pharmacy and was joined by University President C. Reynold Verret, Provost Anne McCall and College of Pharmacy Dean Kathleen Kennedy.
“In your career, you will not know if someone is rich or poor, but they will need your professional skills to restore them to good health,” said Dr. Cassidy. “We are part of a ministry that is mentioned in the Bible from Genesis to Revelation. You enter a noble profession of healing.”
Cassidy also thanked parents for supporting today’s graduates, and gave examples from his own career on how graduates can effect change beyond the practice of medicine. One example was his successful effort to pass legislation that would ban “pharmacy gag clauses” previously used by health insurers to hide prices from pharmacy patients.
Before speaking, Cassidy received an honorary degree from the University, given by Dr. Verret.
“We appreciate Senator Cassidy’s support of Xavier University,” said Dr. Verret. “He has been an ally of historically black colleges and Universities, and we appreciate him securing the assistance we need to fulfill our mission.”
Before becoming a Member of Congress, Cassidy was a practicing physician who treated patients at the Earl K. Long Charity Hospital in Baton Rouge. He also co-founded the Greater Baton Rouge Community Clinic, and created a public-private partnership to vaccinate 36,000 children in the Greater Baton Rouge area from Hepatitis B.
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