Chief Medical Officer of Horizon NJ Health Receives Drum Major Award in Honor of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

(West Trenton, NJ — January 23, 2006) — During the 19th Annual Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Breakfast, Philip M. Bonaparte, M.D., Chief Medical Officer for Horizon NJ Health was one of the recipients of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Drum Major Award. The program was presented by the Jersey City Medical Center and held at the Monumental Baptist Church, Jersey City, NJ.

The Drum Major Award signifies Dr. King's legacy of helping others and leading the way for service to the community. In February 1968, during a sermon at Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, Georgia, Dr. King spoke about his own death and funeral. He wanted no long eulogy, but stated: "Yes, if you want to say that I was a drum major, say that I was drum major for justice. Say that I was a drum major for peace. I was a drum major for righteousness. And all the other shallow things will not matter. I won't have any money to leave behind. I won't have the fine and luxurious things of life to leave behind. But I just want to leave a committed life behind. And that's all I want to say."

Dr. Bonaparte, who is also an ordained bishop, is a well-respected advocate and spokesperson for the underserved and the publicly insured. As Chief Medical Officer for Horizon NJ Health, Dr. Bonaparte has been a leading advocate for those who face barriers to health care as well as the unique needs of families in New Jersey's Medicaid and NJ FamilyCare programs.

Dr. Bonaparte received his medical degree from St. Georges University School of Medicine in St. Georges, Grenada. He completed residencies and was the class valedictorian at the Jersey City Medical Center in Jersey City, NJ and also at the Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital in New Brunswick, NJ. Dr. Bonaparte is certified in internal medicine and he is licensed to practice medicine in New Jersey and New York.

CONTACT: Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey
Thomas Rubino, 973-466-8755
Thomas_Rubino@horizonblue.com