He obtained with honors the Bachelor of Arts at the Polytechnic of San Germán and a doctorate in Medicine at the University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine, carved with the highest honor of being the first of its class.
[4] In the years following the election, he helped the governor Pedro Rosselló to initiate the reform of Puerto Rico's health system.
[4] Since 2005, he has published numerous columns for The San Juan Star newspaper, many of them documenting Puerto Rico's medical history.
The Puerto Rico Senate recently passed a bill naming the Puerto Rico Medical Center's University Hospital after Dr. Maldonado, the only medical doctor to have held the post of UPR President.
A native of the mountain town of Adjuntas, he is married to Mary Anne Maldonado, a well known feminist and social activist, and has several grown-up children.