From a rich pool of dedicated physician advocates, this year’s Texas Medical Association board of trustees was installed at TexMed 2026 to implement House of Delegates policy, manage the association's business and financial affairs, and monitor TMA's councils and committees.
In addition, former TMA Board of Trustees chair Kimberly E. Monday, MD, was voted president-elect, and will assume presidency in April 2027 after the tenure of current TMA President Bradford W. Holland, MD.
Dallas public health physician John T. Carlo, MD, now steps into the chair position, alongside Vice Chair Joseph Valenti, MD, a Denton gynecologist (and 2024-25 board chair). Austin internist Tony Aventa, MD, was re-elected and will serve as secretary.
While many trustees are returning to their roles, the TMA House of Delegates newly elected Ezequiel “Zeke” Silva III, MD, a San Antonio radiologist, for his first three-year term. Dr. Silva is the immediate past chair of TMA’s Council on Legislation and has served organized medicine for over 33 years, including as a past president of the Bexar County Medical Society and member of TMA’s Council on Socioeconomics, as well as at the federal level as a Texas delegate to the American Medical Association and in leading the AMA’s RVS Update Committee, which contributes medicine’s voice to Medicare payment discussions.
Little Elm internal medicine specialist John G. Flores, MD, and Dallas palliative care physician Mark A. Casanova, MD, were reelected to speaker and vice speaker of TMA’s House of Delegates, respectively. Keller family physician Gregory M. Fuller, MD, retained his spot on the board and will serve a second three-year term at TMA secretary/treasurer.
Other members who will continue to serve on the TMA board in 2026 are:
- Fort Worth radiologist Tilden L. Childs III, MD,
- Houston otolaryngologist Bradford S. Patt, MD,
- Dallas pediatric cardiologist Lee Ann Pearse, MD,
- Houston general surgeon Dexter G. Turnquest, MD, and
- Amarillo family physician Rodney B. Young, MD.
Three section representatives report to the Board of Trustees:
- Newly elected Houston obstetrician-gynecologist Zishan Hirani, MD, as the TMA Young Physician Section representative;
- Houston internal medicine physician Christopher K. Wong, MD, as the TMA Resident and Fellow Section board representative; and
- Anne Burnett Marion School of Medicine at Texas Christian University fourth-year medical student Natalie Barnett as the board’s Medical Student Section representative.
Looking ahead, Dr. Monday, a Houston neurologist, has no shortage of experience, having served as the Harris County Medical Society president and been a member of TMA’s Councils on Legislation and Socioeconomics.
She serves on the Memorial Hermann Physician Network Board of Directors and is an associate professor and vice chair of clinical operations in the department of neurology at Houston’s McGovern Medical School at UTHealth.
Whether in these positions or her prior experience running an independent practice, “in each role, I have seen the consistent thread of external control erode the physician-patient relationship,” she said on her election. “I will advocate fiercely for physicians in every practice setting and every region of our state.”