Top Jewish Heart Surgeon Leaving Montreal As Sources Cite Antisemitism Fears

Dr. Emmanuel Moss, chief of cardiac surgery at Montreal’s Jewish General Hospital, has tendered his resignation and plans to move to Atlanta in September, according to the Montreal Gazette. Sources close to Moss said rising antisemitism in Montreal and frustration with Quebec’s health-care system were factors in his decision.

Moss, who has worked at the Jewish General for the past 10 years, declined to be interviewed and has not publicly explained his reasons for leaving. People close to him said he and his family had grown disillusioned by what they viewed as a worsening climate for Jews in Montreal and a lack of sufficient action by authorities.

The departure comes after several years of antisemitic incidents in the city, including physical assaults on Jews, vandalism of Jewish-owned businesses, firebombings at synagogue entrances and gunfire targeting a yeshiva, according to the Gazette report. Sources said Moss was particularly disturbed by images from a recent anti-Israel protest in Montreal showing mock hangings of effigies, including one that appeared to depict Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir wearing a kippah.

Canadian lawmaker Anthony Housefather condemned the display, saying, “Hanging an image of a Jew wearing a kippah in effigy is disgusting, antisemitic, and a clear incitement to hatred.”

Moss’s planned move also comes as Canada’s antisemitism crisis has become a national issue. Prime Minister Mark Carney recently announced a federal advisory council to combat antisemitism, saying, “The crisis of antisemitism in Canada today is specific, it’s severe, and it demands a targeted response.” B’nai Brith Canada has reported record levels of antisemitic incidents in the country, including thousands of cases documented in 2025.

At the same time, Moss had raised concerns about the state of cardiac care in Quebec. In April, he warned that a shortage of perfusionists, the technicians who operate heart-lung machines during surgery, was placing the Jewish General’s cardiac surgery program in jeopardy.

His departure also lands amid a broader Canadian health-care shortage. The Canadian Medical Association has cited a deficit of nearly 23,000 family doctors nationwide, while Health Canada has warned that the country has underproduced doctors for decades. In Quebec, cardiac specialists have said the system is already under pressure from limited resources and long wait times.

Dr. Louis Perrault, president of the Quebec Association of Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgeons, described Moss’s departure as a serious loss. 

“He’s 45 and he’s ultra-specialized in robotic surgery,” Perrault said. “He’s in the prime of his career and he’s leaving for personal reasons and obviously for resources reasons.”

Moss is also director of McGill University’s cardiac surgery residency training program and a graduate of McGill’s medical school. He completed an advanced fellowship in minimally invasive and robotic cardiac surgery at Emory University in Atlanta and helped launch robotic cardiac surgery at the Jewish General.

McGill says Moss is one of the only surgeons in Canada routinely performing both robotic mitral valve and coronary bypass surgeries. His specialties also include aortic and cardiovascular surgery.

Dr. Lawrence Rosenberg, chief executive officer of the west-central Montreal health authority, said the hospital has been preparing for the possibility that Moss could leave and is working to prevent disruptions for patients.

“When he departs, we will have a plan in place to offset any potential negative impact to our cardiac surgery program, with a view of maintaining timely access to high-quality care,” Rosenberg said.

Moss is the second high-profile Montreal Jew this spring to announce a move to the United States. Concordia University professor Gad Saad said last month that he had accepted a post at the University of Mississippi after facing threats and pressure as a public Jewish supporter of Israel.

“I’m now leaving in large part because it became difficult for me, if not impossible, to be a high-profile Jewish professor who supports the right of Israel to exist,” Saad said during an appearance on the Joe Rogan Experience podcast.

Moss’s move is expected to be felt both inside Montreal’s Jewish community and across Quebec’s cardiac surgery system. For the hospital, the immediate concern is patient coverage. For the wider community, his departure adds to fears that rising antisemitism and strained public institutions are pushing prominent Jewish professionals to leave.