BETHESDA, MD – Kyu Rhee, MD, MPP has been named President and CEO of the National Association of Community Health Centers (NACHC). Dr. Rhee will lead the organization in advancing health equity and supporting the mission of community health centers, which provide high-quality, affordable, transdisciplinary primary care services to more than 30 million people at over 14,000 sites across the nation.
“We are thrilled to have Dr. Rhee join NACHC,” said Michael A. Holmes, Chair of the NACHC Board of Directors and CEO of Scenic Rivers Health Services. “Dr. Rhee will provide critical, strategic, visionary leadership to the organization and the Community Health Center Movement, as we navigate through unprecedented funding and workforce challenges at this transformative moment,” said Holmes.
Dr. Rhee’s selection is the result of a nationwide search conducted in partnership with Diversified Search Group, the largest woman-founded and woman-led executive search firm in the U.S. Diversified Search Group is an industry leader in recruiting diverse, inclusive, and transformational leadership for clients across all industries and sectors.
Dr. Rhee most recently served as Senior Vice President and Aetna Chief Medical Officer at CVS Health. Prior to that, he was Chief Health Officer at IBM for a decade. Before IBM, Dr. Rhee was Chief Public Health Officer at the Health Resources and Services Administration, the primary federal agency for improving access to health care services for people who are uninsured, isolated, or medically vulnerable. Dr. Rhee also previously served as director of the Office of Innovation and Program Coordination at the National Institutes of Health, the primary federal agency for medical research. Prior to his public service, Dr. Rhee practiced as a primary care physician for the National Health Service Corps and served as Chief Medical Officer for Unity Healthcare and Baltimore Medical System, community health centers in the Washington, DC/Baltimore area.
As a purpose-driven physician executive, scientist, teacher, and entrepreneur, Dr. Rhee has a reputation that is synonymous with leadership, innovation, and transformation across and within the nonprofit, public, and private sectors. Throughout his career, Dr. Rhee has actively worked to advance primary care, public health, and health equity for underserved populations, achievements that align with NACHC’s strategic priorities and mission. “Over nearly 60 years, community health centers have become the best part of our health system, delivering high quality, affordable primary care and health equity for communities across our nation,” said Dr. Rhee. “I look forward to building on NACHC’s history, vision and mission, and to partnering for an even brighter future for the more than a quarter of a million people who serve and the more than 30 million people they serve.”
Dr. Rhee will officially join NACHC on August 16, 2023.