Although hospital and health system chief medical officers touch different corners of the nation, many agree on one core issue: improving the patient experience. COVID-19 hospitalizations have fallen 11 percent as of Sept. 6, according to HHS data tracked by The New York Times, allowing CMOs to shift their attention elsewhere.

Medical chiefs from four of US News & World Report's best hospitals or health systems recently spoke with Becker's Hospital Review about the best advice they've received. 

The CEO of Duly Health and Care, a medical group with more than 1,000 physicians, is exiting and a new leader has been appointed. 

Physicians are turning to peers for help treating COVID-19 patients amid the absence of detailed federal guidance, Politico reported Sept. 7. 

The University of Colorado School of Medicine in Aurora named Jay Lemery, MD, as its inaugural endowed chair in climate medicine Sept. 8. It is the first position of its kind in the nation. 

The American health system must creatively use limited resources to meet the aging population’s needs. Every day, more than 10,000 seniors age into Medicare, and by 2030, one in five Americans will be 65 years or older. Brick-and-mortar hospitals lack the resources to meet those growing numbers.

As payers look to address health disparities post-pandemic and CMS shifts toward measuring health equity compliance, the insurance industry is laying the groundwork to improve demographic data collection from its members.

It's been just under a month since Kelly Bruno-Nelson was named executive director of Medi-Cal and CalAIM at CalOptima, a public health insurance agency in Orange County, Calif. that serves low-income children, adults, seniors and people with disabilities. 

Lotus Mallbris, MD, PhD, leads the global clinical development and medical affairs teams supporting Eli Lilly and Company’s immunology portfolio. She is a dermatologist with experience treating patients who have alopecia areata, an autoimmune disorder that attacks hair follicles and causes well-defined, coin-shaped patches of nonscarring hair loss. Alopecia areata is commonly dismissed as a cosmetic inconvenience, but is a serious disease that recently found its way into national headlines.

An employer-built health plan. It may not be a concept you've ever heard of, but those that build and use them will tell you they're the best kept secret in the world of health insurance. Becker's decided to explore more about these custom plans that promise to cut out commercial payers altogether and greatly reduce employers' annual expenses on employee health benefits.

As payers look to improve care outcomes across racial and ethnic lines within the communities they serve, many have recently added a new role to their C-suite lineup: the health equity executive.

Michael Neidorff, the longtime CEO of Centene, has died at the age of 79. 

Payer are setting a double standard for patient care that both pushes for centralized, coordinated care and pulls patients away from receiving care in one place, according to Tim Maloney, vice president of payer relations at UC Health in Cincinnati (Ohio). 

Centene Chairman and CEO Michael Neidorff will be taking a medical leave of absence, effective Feb. 24. 

For providers and payers to maintain the momentum in forming value-based agreements, insurers need to have their "feet planted squarely in two areas, according to Lisa White, Director of value-based partner transformation at Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey. 

Michael Neidorff, Centene's CEO and chairman, doesn't just have his fingerprints all over Centene's history — his influence expands well across the payer landscape. 

Humana is adding two independent directors to its board as it braces for a leadership refresh through 2022. 

UnitedHealth Group's C-suite draws experience from across the payer's portfolio and around the world. 

The widespread adoption of telehealth is what UnitedHealth Group CMO Margaret-Mary Wilson, MD, calls "one of the most dramatic changes" in healthcare, but the next step is using that development to drive health equity. 

Ethan Berke, MD, UnitedHealth Group chief public health officer, said any COVID-19 strategy should follow three steps: take a deep breath, step back and follow the science.