[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 134 (Friday, August 9, 2019)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1044-E1045]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      TRIBUTE TO DR. HUGHES MELTON

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. H. MORGAN GRIFFITH

                              of virginia

                    in the house of representatives

                         Friday, August 9, 2019

  Mr. GRIFFITH. Madam Speaker, I pay tribute to Dr. Hughes Melton of 
Bristol, Virginia, a military veteran, public servant, and 
compassionate physician who most recently was Commissioner of the 
Virginia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services. 
Dr. Melton passed away on August 2, 2019, at the age of 52 following a 
car wreck.
  Dr. Melton was born in Florida but made Virginia his home. After 
studying at Washington and Lee University and the University of 
Virginia School of Medicine, he served in the United States Army. 
Following his time in the service, he opened a practice in Lebanon, 
Russell County. There, he focused intently on the needs of his rural 
community and developed a specialty for treating addiction. His medical 
skill and care for his patients earned him recognition by the American 
Academy of Family Physicians as the Family Physician of the Year in 
2011.
  He eventually took on work as an administrator, first as Chief 
Medical Officer for Mountain States Health Alliance's Virginia 
facilities and then as Vice President of Medical Education for its 
northeast and northwest markets. Among his objectives as an 
administrator, he recognized the need for more physicians to serve 
Southwest Virginia. To that end, he helped to start a family medicine 
residency. During his time at Johnston Memorial Hospital in Abingdon, 
he won the Servant's Heart Award and furthered his education with a 
Master's in Business Administration from the University of Virginia's 
Darden School of Business.
  After serving as Deputy Commissioner of the Virginia Health 
Department, he was appointed Commissioner of the Department of 
Behavioral Health and Developmental Services in 2018. As Commissioner, 
Dr. Melton was able to apply his considerable talent and deep empathy 
to addressing the mental and

[[Page E1045]]

behavioral health challenges facing Virginians. He traveled the state 
and worked with public officials, medical professionals, and all 
invested in our Commonwealth to find answers. Before the tragic car 
accident, he had been in Harrisonburg attending a conference of 
advocates for Virginians with intellectual and developmental 
disabilities, where he gave a speech and talked with the attendees.
  In addition, Madam Speaker, I knew him and talked to him over the 
years about health challenges in our home of Southwest Virginia, 
including the opioid crisis. As was typical, I last saw him 
volunteering his time alongside his wife Dr. Sarah Melton at the Remote 
Area Medical clinic in Wise on June 29. It is a loss for all the 
Commonwealth of Virginia and particularly Southwest Virginia.
  He is survived by Sarah, daughters Maggie and Claire, and his father 
Howard. My prayers are with them. As they grieve the loss of their 
family member, Virginia grieves the loss of an outstanding public 
servant.

                          ____________________