Dive Brief:
- Dr. Jaewon Ryu is stepping down from the CEO role at Risant Health, Kaiser Permanente’s subsidiary created to acquire and run nonprofit hospitals, in order to spend more time with his family, the company announced Wednesday.
- Dale Maxwell, the former chief executive of Presbyterian Healthcare Services, is stepping out of retirement to become the interim CEO while Risant’s board conducts a national search, according to a press release.
- Executives at Kaiser stressed that the leadership change did not represent a strategic shift for Risant. “We are confident in the organization’s leadership, its momentum, and its future,” Kaiser CEO Greg Adams said in a press release.
Dive Insight:
Ryu has led Risant since its formation in 2024. As its first CEO, Ryu helped formulate Risant’s operating model, which involves acquiring and investing into nonprofit health systems.
So far, Risant has acquired Geisinger and Cone Health — two acquisitions that Ryu also helped oversee. Previously, Ryu was the chief executive at Geisinger, which Kaiser acquired at the same time it created Risant.
Kaiser says Risant’s acquisitions improve care quality and affordability for patients. But they’ve also proved a financial windfall for Kaiser, adding $12 billion of operating revenue to the health system’s balance sheet last year.
Now, Maxwell will become the interim leader for Risant. The former hospital executive, who retired in 2024, has over two decades of leadership experience at New Mexico-based Presbyterian Healthcare Services.
Risant said they would conduct a national search for Ryu’s replacement.
