University of Vermont College of Medicine alumnus Vito Imbasciani, M.D.’85, has been appointed Secretary of the California Department of Veteran Affairs (CalVet) by California Governor Jerry Brown. He was sworn in on September 25, 2015.

Imbasciani is president-elect of the Los Angeles County Medical Association and worked at the Southern California Permanente Medical Group as director of governmental relations since 2005, and as a urologic surgeon since 1997. In 2014, he and his spouse, George DiSalvo, M.D., made a generous gift to the College of Medicine to establish the Imbasciani-DiSalvo Lectureship Endowed Fund at the University of Vermont College of Medicine. The Lectureship aims is to ensure the preparation of culturally-competent physicians who can provide medical care and prevention services that are specific to LGBTQ populations.

“I’m honored to serve the great state of California and will work diligently to provide my best counsel to ensure CalVet serves our veterans and families with dignity and compassion in order to help them achieve their best quality of life,” said Imbasciani in a press release issued by the LACMA.

CalVet serves nearly two million California veterans and their families by increasing their access to and utilization of state and federal benefits and services through advocacy and education.  

In addition to his work with the Permanente Medical Group and LACMA, Imbasciani’s past positions include service as State Surgeon for the California Army National Guard from 2006 to 2014 and as a surgeon in the U.S. Army Medical Corps from 1986 to 2014. He is also a member of the California Medical Association’s Board of Trustees and the California Association of Physician Groups Board of Directors.

In addition to his UVM medical degree, Imbasciani also holds Doctor of Philosophy and Master of Arts degrees in musicology from Cornell University.