Welcome to this week's Chutes & Ladders, our roundup of hirings, firings and retirings throughout the industry. Please submit the good news—or the bad—from your shop, and we will feature it here at the end of each week.
Trinity Health
(Trinity Health)
Daniel Isacksen Jr., has been tapped as the new executive vice president and chief financial officer of Trinity Health.
Starting July 4, he will be leading all of the system’s financial functions and those of its health mnistries. This includes financial enterprise development, treasury, financial reporting, payer strategies and revenue excellence.
Isacksen spent the last eight years at Illinois’ Loyola Medicine, also part of Trinity. He most recently held the role of executive vice president and regional chief financial officer and is credited with the system’s strategic and operational turnaround. He’s been active in Catholic healthcare organizations for roughly 25 years.
Isacksen is succeeding Cynthia Clemence, who was set to retire but extended her time as interim chief financial officer through the pandemic.
Tufts Health Plan and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care
(Tufts Health Plan and
Harvard Pilgrim Health Care)
Cain Hayes has been named as the new CEO of Tufts Health Plan and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care.
Currently the president and CEO of Pittsburgh-based managed care organization Gateway Health, Hayes has also had stints as president and COO of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota’s health business as well as president of various Aetna divisions.
Hayes is joining in the wake of the two nonprofit health insurance and services companies’ merger, announced on Jan. 1. He replaces Tom Croswell, who held the position since that time and will transition into an advisory role until the end of July.
Hayes’ appointment is effective July 5 and follows the Massachusetts payer’s nationwide search for a new chief executive.
Mayo Clinic Health System
(Mayo Clinic
Health System)
Prathibba Varkey, M.B.B.S., will step into the role of president at Mayo Clinic Health System on Aug. 16, the system announced.
Varkey was previously with the organization as a practitioner at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, during which the organization said she led quality improvement, faculty development and medical education initiatives.
In 2013 she left to become CEO of Seton Clinical Enterprise and followed that up with a run as the president and CEO of Northeast Medical Group within Yale New Haven Health.
In her upcoming role, she’ll work alongside Chief Administrative Officer Mary Jo Williamson to head the system’s strategy and operations. She succeeds Bobbie Gostout, M.D., who retired late last year.
CVS Health
(CVS Health)
Shawn Guertin was named this week as the next chief financial officer of CVS Health, effective May 28.
He will report to CEO Karen Lynch while leading the company’s financial strategy and operations, including investor relations, accounting and financial reporting, mergers and acquisitions and capital planning.
Guertin already has eight years at the now-merged Aetna under his belt. There he held titles including chief financial officer and chief enterprise risk officer until departing in 2019.
Guertin previously held leadership positions at Coventry Health Care, UnitedHealthcare and The Travelers. He also recently served on the boards of TriNet and DaVita Kidney Care.
He will succeed Eva Boratto, who was with CVS Health for 11 years.
> Commure, a care delivery software company, has tapped Ashwini Zenooz, M.D., as president and chief medical officer.
> MelroseWakefield Healthcare will lose CEO Susan Sandberg, who plans to step down in July.
> Lirio, the maker of a behavior change AI platform, has brought Marten Den Haring on board as its new CEO.
> The Institute for Healthcare Improvement has added four to its board of directors: Tosan Boyo, Yvonne Coghill, Rebekah Gee, M.D., and Kara Odom Walker, M.D.
> Hygieia, a digital insulin therapy management company, has named William Pruitt to the newly created vice president of sales position.
> Dina, an AI at-home care platform, has brought on Robert Maluso as chief growth officer.
> Signify Health has named Tracey Scraba as deputy counsel and Lisa Wagamon as head of network development.
> Illumina, a genome sequencing health and life sciences company, has appointed Susan Tousi as chief commercial officer and Alex Aravanis, M.D., as chief technology officer and head of research and product development.
> Intelligent Medical Objects, a healthcare data enablement company, has hired Dale Sanders as chief strategy officer.
> BaytechIT, a managed service provider and value-added reseller, added Fred Mills as its new vice president of sales.
> Dream Foundation, an organization that fulfills end-of-life requests from the terminally ill, has added Alexandria Cherry to its board of directors.
> Alveo Technologies, a diagnostics company, has appointed Neil Gunn to its board of directors.