UPDATED: Thursday, April 6 at 3:30 p.m. ET
Earlier this week, your votes crowned Aledade CEO Farzad Mostashari as the winner of our #FierceMadness tournament.
For his part, Mostashari isn't quite sure how we got here. When I caught up with him Thursday afternoon following his win, he turned the question back to me. And while I'm not sure there's any one answer as to why he won, a couple of replies on Twitter may highlight some of the factors.
For instance, Brian Chiglinsky, who's on the communications team at Aledade, tweeted, "People are hungry for real disruption in healthcare, particularly disruption that is guided by a mission that doesn't leave anyone behind. Congrats to a boss who sincerely represents that."
Or, maybe it's just the power of a good bow tie, as several people noted.
Regardless, Mostashari told me that he views his role in leading healthcare transformation as being able to show what's possible.
Aledade, which supports physician groups in transitioning to value-based care, was founded in 2014 and since then has averted nearly 100,000 hospitalizations, reduced cost of care by an average of 6% and drove $1 billion in funding to community primary care practices.
It reached those achievements with just 5% market share, so there's still plenty of room to grow, but the results so far have made people in the industry sit up and take notice, Mostashari said.
"I'm really proud that there's a number of folks who said, 'We're going to do that, too,'" he said.
Aledade is also an example of finding success within existing regulatory frameworks, as having models to emulate is key to drive change, he said.
"We need examples of how people can operate within the current policy," Mostashari said. "Figure out what business you create within the policy framework, where if you win, they win. That’s what we have done, and so the more we win, the more the country benefits and the more they align policies toward the shared mission and objective."
Mostashari said that he's been lucky to "surround myself with people who are phenomenal at execution" at Aledade, who have all played a crucial part in the company's success to date. As a leader, he's then able to identify "what building we should be leaning our ladders up against," and thereby enabling the team to push toward transformation.
So far this year, Aledade has secured a 10-year partnership with Medicare Advantage giant Humana on value-based care, as well as agreements with CareFirst and Cigna. Clearly, the company is meeting a need in the market that's drawing plenty of interest.
"I think it resonates with something, that is work that is meaningful," Mostashari said.
To quote Mostashari's Twitter followers: #InFarzadWeTrust.
UPDATED: Monday, April 4 at 6:30 p.m. ET
After several weeks and hundreds of votes, we have our champion!
Aledade CEO Farzad Mostashari was a newcomer to this year's bracket, and his run in the competition was slow to start. In our opening round, he took down Kaiser Permanente CEO Greg Adams by securing 58% of the vote, and in the Sweet 16, defeated Centene CEO Sarah London with 64% of the vote.
His tightest margin of victory came in the Elite Eight, where he beat CVS Health CEO Karen Lynch by earning 54% of the vote.
However, in the Final Four and championship rounds, Mostashari took a stranglehold on the competition. He advanced to the championship round by defeating Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Administrator Chiquita Brooks-LaSure with 90% of the vote.
And in our championship match, he dominated Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra, earning a staggering 94% of your votes. This is despite his own suggestion on Twitter that you go with Becerra over him.
Mostashari is correct in saying that Becerra, as the head of HHS, is the ultimate industry "influencer." However, Mostashari, a physician, has played no small part in driving transformation within healthcare.
During his time as the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology, Mostashari is credited with driving the design and rollout of stage I meaningful use. And after founding Aledade in 2014, he's at the forefront of the industry's drive toward value-based care.
Tune in later this week to hear from Mostashari directly on his perspective on changing healthcare.
Was he your pick to take the crown? Let us know on Twitter at @FierceHealth.
UPDATED: Friday, March 31 at 6:30 p.m. ET
We have our championship competitors, and we've lost one of the strongest performers through the first rounds of our bracket.
Aledade CEO Farzad Mostashari has established himself as the one to beat, defeating Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Administrator Chiquita Brooks-LaSure by securing 90% of the vote. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra also advances to the final round after beating Google Health's Karen DeSalvo in a much tighter match.
Becerra secured 55% of the votes to reach the championship.
DeSalvo was a force through the first several rounds of voting, storming her way into the Final Four. Her path to this round included a revenge win over Oracle Health's David Feinberg. Maybe 2024 will be her year if she improves performance each time!
So, who do you want to see as our victor? Get your votes in by 6 p.m. ET on Tuesday to help us determine a winner!
Xavier Becerra vs. Farzad Mostashari
Xavier Becerra is the secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services.
Farzad Mostashari is the CEO of Aledade and former coordinator for health information technology at HHS.
UPDATED: Tuesday, March 28 at 6:30 p.m. ET
One of our strongest competitors through the first few rounds has officially been toppled.
CVS Health CEO Karen Lynch was a force to be reckoned with early on this year's bracket, but fell in the Elite Eight to Aledade CEO Farzad Mostashari, who secured 54% of the vote.
Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra also won in a close matchup with Elevance Health CEO Gail Boudreaux, defeating the insurance executive by earning 53% of votes submitted in our poll for this round.
The other two pairings, meanwhile, were a little more lopsided.
Karen DeSalvo, Google's Chief Health Officer, has also ridden a hot streak through the early rounds of the bracket, and now gets her revenge on Oracle's David Feinberg, who defeated her last year. DeSalvo secured 68% of the vote and cruised to victory, unfortunately putting my bracket out of its misery in the process.
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Administrator Chiquita Brooks-LaSure also scored an easy win, taking down Epic chief Judy Faulker with 69% of the vote.
That sets up two pairings that are pretty interesting within the context of industry trends, pairing a top regulatory leader against an industry disrupter, though DeSalvo and Mostashari are both veterans of government work as well. It also sets up the potential for an HHS vs. CMS smackdown for the crown.
Who do you have making it to our championship round? Voting closes at 6 p.m. ET on Friday. Submit your picks using the poll below.
Karen DeSalvo vs. Xavier Becerra
Karen DeSalvo became Google's Chief Health Officer in 2019.
Xavier Becerra is the secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services.
Chiquita Brooks-LaSure vs. Farzad Mostashari
Chiquita Brooks-LaSure is the administrator for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.
Farzad Mostashari is the CEO of Aledade and former coordinator for health information technology at HHS.
UPDATED: Friday, March 24 at 6:30 p.m. ET
My bracket narrowly remains intact, though, unfortunately, we can't say the same for the entire Fierce Healthcare team.
Oracle's David Feinberg — my champion pick — emerged victorious in another tight matchup, defeating 23andMe CEO Anne Wojcicki by just one vote. Epic CEO Judy Faulkner also won in a close vote over Morgan Health's Cheryl Pegus, winning by 10 votes.
Gail Boudreaux, Elevance Health CEO, will also advance to the Elite Eight, which keeps reporter Anastassia Gliadkovskaya's bracket in play. Boudreaux beat Homeward CEO Jennifer Schneider by 24 votes and will meet Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra in the next round.
Becerra has had a pretty comfortable run through the competition so far, defeating Walgreens Boots Alliance CEO Rosalind Brewer by securing 64% of the vote. Brewer's loss officially busts Heather Landi's bracket, as she picked the pharmacy giant's chief to go all the way.
Google's Karen DeSalvo and CVS Health's Karen Lynch have also had dominant runs so far, and both advance to the Elite Eight.
DeSalvo will meet Feinberg for another rematch in the third round. She lost that duel last year, so we'll see if her fortunes reverse this time.
Submit your votes to determine the Final Four now, and polls will close at 6 p.m. ET on Tuesday. Click the poll below to make your picks, and scroll down for a look at this round's matchups.
Karen DeSalvo vs. David Feinberg
Karen DeSalvo became Google's Chief Health Officer in 2019.
David Feinberg is the chairman of Oracle Health and the former CEO of Geisinger.
Chiquita Brooks-LaSure vs. Judy Faulkner
Chiquita Brooks-LaSure is the administrator for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.
Judy Faulker is the CEO and founder of electronic health record company Epic.
Gail Boudreaux vs. Xavier Becerra
Gail Boudreaux is the CEO of Elevance Health, formerly Anthem.
Xavier Becerra is the secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services.
Karen Lynch vs. Farzad Mostashari
Karen Lynch is the CEO of CVS Health and an Aetna veteran.
Farzad Mostashari is the CEO of Aledade and former coordinator for health information technology at HHS.
UPDATED: Tuesday, March 21 at 6:30 p.m. ET
My bracket was nearly busted in round one following a very close matchup between Oracle's David Feinberg and last year's winner Marc Harrison — an early rematch that was one of two decided by a very slim margin.
Feinberg, M.D., my pick to win it all, toppled returning champion Harrison by just two votes. Epic CEO Judy Faulkner also advances to the Sweet 16, defeating Mass General Brigham CEO Anne Klibanski by only one vote. Morgan Health's Cheryl Pegus also wins in the opening round, earning 53% of the vote to beat Jaewon Ryu, the CEO of Geisinger.
Some of our opening matchups were far from nailbiters, however. Google's Karen DeSalvo took out Amazon's Neil Lindsay for the second time in round one, securing 75% of the vote. Anne Wojcicki, the CEO of 23andMe, secured the largest margin of victory, earning 79% of the votes and beating out Zus Health CEO Jonathan Bush.
In addition, some of the industry's most influential people, including UnitedHealth Group CEO Andrew Witty and Kaiser Permanente CEO Greg Adams, are early outs in round one.
Overall, there were fewer blowouts to be had, though, in the early stages of our bracket. Last year, powerhouses like CVS Health's Karen Lynch absolutely dominated the competition through multiple voting rounds. So we may have a few more close victories on our hands in the weeks to come!
In another matchup we had circled as one to watch, Homeward CEO Jennifer Schneider defeated Transcarent CEO Glen Tullman with 58% of the vote. Tullman, for his part, is likely to take the loss graciously, as he was rooting for Schneider on LinkedIn this week.
"Smarter, savvier, and a business so good both Lee Shapiro and I invested in it," Tullman wrote.
Polls for our Sweet 16 voting round will close Friday at 6 p.m. ET. Click the survey below to submit your votes, and scroll down for a look at the new matchups.
Karen DeSalvo vs. Toyin Ajayi
Karen DeSalvo became Google's Chief Health Officer in 2019.
Toyin Ajayi is the CEO and co-founder of Cityblock Health, which launched in 2017.
Anne Wojcicki vs. David Feinberg
Annie Wojcicki is the CEO of genetic testing company 23andMe.
David Feinberg is the chairman of Oracle Health and the former CEO of Geisinger.
Chiquita Brooks-LaSure vs. Mark Cuban
Chiquita Brooks-LaSure is the administrator for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.
Mark Cuban is an entrepreneur and television personality who co-founded the Mark Cuban Cost Plus Drug Company.
Judy Faulkner vs. Cheryl Pegus
Judy Faulker is the CEO and founder of electronic health record company Epic.
Cheryl Pegus is a veteran healthcare executive and investor currently serving as a managing partner at Morgan Health, JPMorgan Chase's healthcare arm.
Gail Boudreaux vs. Jennifer Schneider
Gail Boudreaux is the CEO of Elevance Health, formerly Anthem.
Jennifer Schneider is the CEO of Homeward and the former president of Livongo.
Xavier Becerra vs. Rosalind Brewer
Xavier Becerra is the secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services.
Rosalind Brewer is the CEO of the Walgreens Boots Alliance.
Karen Lynch vs. Bonnie Castillo
Karen Lynch is the CEO of CVS Health and an Aetna veteran.
Bonnie Castillo is the executive director of National Nurses United.
Farzad Mostashari vs. Sarah London
Farzad Mostashari is the CEO of Aledade and former coordinator for health information technology at HHS.
Sarah London is the CEO of the government insurance company Centene.
LAUNCHED: Monday, March 20 at 6 a.m. ET
The NCAA basketball tournament is officially underway, and that means the Fierce Healthcare team is back with another bracket competition as well.
One year ago, we asked our readers to determine the biggest power players in four sectors of the industry: providers, payers, health tech and policy. Then, the winners of each of our "divisions" met in the Final Four before we crowned a winner: then-Intermountain Healthcare CEO Marc Harrison.
This year, we're doing this a little bit differently. We've done away with the divisions and have seeded the bracket at random, which makes for some very interesting matchups. We also asked you to weigh in on who should make our list of 32 leaders, allowing us to mix up the inclusions and add plenty of new faces.
Because the pairs were randomly set, the initial matchups includes multiple face-offs that cross sectors of the industry, which kickstarted an internal debate for the Fierce Healthcare team. What criteria should we use to determine "power" and "influence"? Is it based on sheer financial reach or size? Likeability? Innovative thinking?
The jury is still out for us, but let us know on Twitter at @FierceHealth how you made your picks. I often make my selections for the actual March Madness brackets based solely on the appeal of mascots, so there are no wrong answers.
What I do know is there are a couple of matchups to watch during our opening round: a first-round rematch between Google's Karen DeSalvo and Amazon's Neil Lindsay; an early face-off between our 2022 finalists Harrison and Oracle's David Feinberg; and a Livongo vs. Livongo executive pairing between Homeward's Jennifer Schneider and Transcarent's Glen Tullman.
Here's how the voting will work: the poll is now open for our initial round, and voting will close Tuesday at 6 p.m. ET for this round. We'll update the bracket and reopen the polls for Wednesday, and then will close voting on Friday at 6 p.m. ET.
We'll continue that pattern until we crown our eventual winner on April 4. The team will then sit down with the winning leader to chat about their leadership style, how they're thinking about innovation in the industry and the advice they'd have for their peers.
Click the image above to download your own bracket and tweet us your picks. We'll be sharing our own selections as we go, too, and we want to hear from you. Bookmark this page and keep an eye out for our Sweet 16 later this week!
Check out the poll below to submit your vote, and we'll break down all the matchups for you here, too.
Karen DeSalvo vs. Neil Lindsay
Karen DeSalvo became Google's Chief Health Officer in 2019.
Neil Lindsay is senior vice president for Amazon Health Services and has led the retailer's health efforts since 2021.
Toyin Ajayi vs. Wright Lasseter
Toyin Ajayi is the CEO and co-founder of Cityblock Health, which launched in 2017.
Wright Lasseter became CEO of CommonSpirit Health in 2022 after a stint at Henry Ford Health.
Anne Wojcicki vs. Jonathan Bush
Annie Wojcicki is the CEO of genetic testing company 23andMe.
Jonathan Bush is the CEO of Zus Health and a co-founder of athenahealth.
Marc Harrison vs. David Feinberg
Marc Harrison is the CEO of General Catalyst-backed Health Assurance Transformation Corp. and the former CEO of Intermountain Healthcare.
David Feinberg is the chairman of Oracle Health and the former CEO of Geisinger.
Chiquita Brooks-LaSure vs. Dan Liljenquist
Chiquita Brooks-LaSure is the administrator for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.
Dan Liljenquist is the chief strategy officer at Intermountain Healthcare.
Bruce Broussard vs. Mark Cuban
Bruce Broussard is the CEO of Medicare Advantage giant Humana.
Mark Cuban is an entrepreneur and television personality who co-founded the Mark Cuban Cost Plus Drug Company.
Anne Klibanski vs. Judy Faulker
Anne Klibanski is the CEO of Mass General Brigham.
Judy Faulker is the CEO and founder of electronic health record company Epic.
Jaewon Ryu vs. Cheryl Pegus
Jaewon Ryu is the CEO of Geisinger and a member of Medicare Payment Advisory Commission.
Cheryl Pegus is a veteran healthcare executive and investor currently serving as a managing partner at Morgan Health, JPMorgan Chase's healthcare arm.
Gail Boudreaux vs. David Carmouche
Gail Boudreaux is the CEO of Elevance Health, formerly Anthem.
David Carmouche is senior vice president for omnichannel care offerings for Walmart.
Jennifer Schneider vs. Glen Tullman
Jennifer Schneider is the CEO of Homeward and the former president of Livongo.
Glen Tullman is a veteran entrepreneur and the CEO of Transcarent. He's the founder and former CEO of Livongo.
Xavier Becerra vs. David Cordani
Xavier Becerra is the secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services.
David Cordani is the CEO of the Cigna Group, including Cigna Healthcare and Evernorth.
Rosalind Brewer vs. Andrew Witty
Rosalind Brewer is the CEO of the Walgreens Boots Alliance.
Andrew Witty is the CEO of UnitedHealth Group, which includes UnitedHealthcare and Optum.
Karen Lynch vs. Kim Keck
Karen Lynch is the CEO of CVS Health and an Aetna veteran.
Kim Keck is the CEO of the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association.
Bonnie Castillo vs. Jason Gorevic
Bonnie Castillo is the executive director of National Nurses United.
Jason Gorevic is CEO of telehealth company Teladoc.
Farzad Mostashari vs. Greg Adams
Farzad Mostashari is the CEO of Aledade and former coordinator for health information technology at HHS.
Greg Adams is the CEO of health system giant Kaiser Permanente.
Sarah London vs. Samuel Hazen
Sarah London is the CEO of the government insurance company Centene.
Samuel Hazen is the CEO of HCA Healthcare.