Lester Martínez-López, M.D., M.P.H.
Major General (Retired), U.S. Army
Dr. Martínez-López retired from the U.S. Army with the permanent rank of Major General as the first Hispanic to head the Army Medical Research and Materiel Command at Fort Detrick, Maryland. His responsibilities included directing the Army’s worldwide medical research, acquisition, and logistics program. He oversaw a vast research portfolio that included cancer, trauma, infectious diseases, biodefense, chemical defense, nutrition, environmental health, aviation medicine, and telemedicine research. He also directed the premier national biological and chemical defense laboratories and research program and led the development of the National Biodefense Campus at Fort Detrick, MD. Prior to these duties he was the Commanding General of the Center for Health Promotion and Preventive Medicine at Edgewood, Maryland. In this assignment he directed a worldwide public health organization, responsible for preventive medicine, health promotion and wellness, global medical surveillance, occupational and environmental health, and health risk communication. During his earlier military career he was the commander of three distinct hospitals, oversaw the military health support during Hurricane Mitch in Central America, and served as the Chief Medical Officer of the United Nation’s Mission in Haiti.
Dr. Martínez-López is now the President of Martinez Medical Consulting, LLC, a firm that provides consulting services in the health care industry. Since 2015 he has served as the President of the Medical Technology Enterprise Consortium, an organization that fosters research and development collaboration between the U.S. Army, industry, and academia. Previously he was the Chief Medical Officer at Brandon Regional Hospital in Brandon, Florida. There he provided leadership in optimizing medical staff performance and participation in quality, efficiency, and patient safety initiatives for a 407 bed hospital. In 2006, he was the Senior Vice-President & Administrator of the Lyndon B. Johnson General Hospital in Houston, Texas where he directed a 332 licensed-bed acute care teaching hospital.
Dr. Martínez-López was born in Puerto Rico. In 1978, he graduated from the School of Medicine in the University of Puerto Rico and later on completed his Master of Public Health from Johns Hopkins University. He is a diplomat of the American Board of Family Practice and the American Board of Preventive Medicine.
His awards include the U.S. Army Distinguished Service Medal, the Legion of Merit with Three Oak Clusters, The Defense Meritorious Service Medal, the Army’s Meritorious Service Medal with three oak clusters, the Senior Flight Surgeon Badge, the U.S. Surgeon General’s Medal, and the Woodrow Wilson Award for Distinguished Government Service from Johns Hopkins University. He was awarded a Doctor in Education (Honoris Causa) degree from the Caribbean University in Puerto Rico.