[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 152 (2006), Part 17] [Senate] [Pages 21871-21872] [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]TRIBUTE TO DR. ROBERT LIPSON Mr. ISAKSON. Mr. President, simultaneous with my remarks tonight at Kennesaw University Convocation Center in Cobb County, GA, there is a memorial service where thousands of my fellow citizens are paying tribute to the life, the times, and the contributions of Dr. Robert Lipson. On Saturday night, Dr. Lipson, leaving Kennestone Hospital, was killed in a tragic automobile accident with a motorcycle just two or three blocks from the health care facility to which he had dedicated the majority of his life. Dr. Lipson was just not any ordinary doctor; he was an extraordinary human being. Dr. Lipson was president and CEO of WellStar Health Systems, the owner and operator of five hospitals in metropolitan Atlanta, in Cobb, Douglas, and Paulding Counties, the employer of hundreds of doctors and thousands of caregivers, and one of the true leaders in modern health care today in our State. Dr. Lipson, in his time at Kennestone Hospital, did a $68 million capital improvement with an 84-bed residential tower. He brought an open-heart surgical unit to Kennestone Hospital, and at the time of his tragic loss, Dr. Lipson's emergency room at Kennestone Hospital was the second largest emergency room in the State of Georgia and one of the largest in the United States, serving victims of tragic trauma throughout the metropolitan area. But it wasn't only his leadership as the head of WellStar Health Systems. [[Page 21872]] For 25 years prior to his appointment, he had a practice in internal medicine in our community. He was a leader in his synagogue, Etz Chaim, and brought to that leadership tremendous involvement in our community. He was a gifted photographer. In fact, only 8 weeks ago--8 weeks before his death--his photography was displayed at Kennesaw University for all to see because of his great insight, his great talent, his credibility, and the way he had captured not only our community but all the special places in the world he visited. So tonight on the floor of the Senate, on behalf of myself and thousands and thousands of citizens in my State, I extend to his wife, his mother, his son, and his daughter our sympathy in this tragic loss but also our pride and joy in the great contributions of Dr. Robert Lipson to the betterment of the health of countless thousands of citizens and the betterment and the health of our community. I yield the floor. I suggest the absence of a quorum. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll. The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll. Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered. ____________________