Medical Center CEO Appointed Chair of Prestigious Board

Mark Laret, chief executive officer of UCSF Medical Center and UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital, has been named chair of the California Hospital Association (CHA) Board of Trustees. The appointment of Laret, a 32-year veteran of health care management and a national leader in quality, safety, and reform, was announced this week. His term runs through December 2014.

“I am honored to lead this distinguished group during a challenging period,” Laret said. “And, I am optimistic about our abilities, working together, to build an even healthier hospital and health care delivery system in California over the next year.”

CHA provides public policy development and health policy leadership, advocating for the interests of California hospitals, patients and communities at the state and federal level.

CHA President/CEO C. Duane Dauner called Laret’s appointment “an outstanding choice.”

“(Mark’s) visionary leadership and commitment to improving access to high-quality patient care will be crucial in the year ahead,” Dauner said.

Since his arrival at UCSF in 2000, Laret has transformed UCSF Medical Center from a financially challenged institution to an economically viable one that consistently ranks among the nation’s best hospitals, according to U.S. News & World Report.

He previously served at UCLA Medical Center from 1980 to 1995 in a variety of leadership positions, and from 1995 to 2000, he was CEO of UC Irvine Medical Center.

“Hospitals are an essential part of the fabric of every community, yet they can easily be taken for granted,” Laret said. “Today’s health care environment is placing tremendous strains on the viability of these institutions, and we must do everything we can to ensure that whenever a child is sick or someone needs care, we are there to provide it.”

Based in Sacramento and Washington, D.C., CHA represents nearly 400 hospitals and health systems.