Alex Azar, Pam Kehaly, and Michael Mizeur Join NIHCM Boards

Washington, D.C., October 4, 2022 - The National Institute for Health Care Management Foundation (NIHCM) is pleased to announce that the Honorable Alex Azar II, Pam Kehaly, and Michael J. Mizeur have joined NIHCM's Advisory Board and Board of Directors.

“We are delighted to welcome Alex, Pam, and Michael to NIHCM. They are experienced leaders who bring unique perspectives to our highly-accomplished Board and Advisory Board. Their insights will advance NIHCM’s mission to improve health care for millions of Americans,” said Nancy Chockley, Founding President and CEO of NIHCM.

NIHCM Foundation is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization dedicated to transforming health care through evidence and collaboration.

The Honorable Alex Azar II
24th Secretary
U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services

Alex Azar II has extensive healthcare experience in the senior-most levels of the U.S. government and the private sector. He is currently an advisor to Foresite Capital, an Adjunct Professor of Business and Senior Executive-in-Residence at the University of Miami Herbert Business School, and he is a member of the American Task Force on Lebanon’s Policy Advisory Board. He serves on several corporate boards.

Azar served as the 24th Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS - 2018-2021), leading over 85,000 employees with a budget of over $1.4 trillion. He was the architect of Operation Warp Speed, delivering COVID-19 vaccines and therapeutics and led the historic transformation of the healthcare system and HHS’s response to the unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic. He drove U.S. Government efforts to tackle the opioid crisis, increase private insurance options, bring transparency of price and quality information to healthcare, expand telehealth, and give patients ownership of their health records. Azar also led key public health initiatives, such as banning flavored e-cigarettes, reducing youth tobacco use by nearly one-third in one year, creating and implementing the program to end the HIV epidemic in America in 10 years, responding to public health threats, crafting the first rural health initiative to improve access and quality of care, and launching a program to dramatically reduce maternal mortality.

He was President of Lilly USA, LLC, from 2012 to 2017. Prior to that, Azar was the Deputy Secretary of HHS.

Azar joins an exceptional group of health care experts on the Foundation’s Advisory Board:

• Katherine Baicker, PhD
• Donald M. Berwick, MD
• James C. Capretta, MA
• Michael E. Chernew, PhD
• Karen DeSalvo, MD
• Paul B. Ginsburg, PhD
• Scott Gottlieb, MD
• Robert P. Kocher, MD
• Gov. Mike Leavitt
• Robert Reischauer, PhD
• James C. Robinson, PhD
• Avik Roy

Pam Kehaly
President and CEO
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Arizona

Pam Kehaly is President and Chief Executive Officer of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Arizona (BCBSAZ). With more than 30 years of experience in the health insurance industry, she is leading the 2,700-employee company to inspire health through inventive programs, services, and health insurance products. Kehaly joined BCBSAZ in 2017 and was quickly recognized by the Phoenix Business Journal as one of the state’s “Most Admired Leaders” and made Arizona Business Magazine’s “Most Influential Women in Arizona” list. In 2021, she was named Leader of the Year by Arizona Capitol Times. Through Kehaly's leadership, BCBSAZ has secured a spot on Modern Healthcare’s Best Places to Work in Healthcare list. Since joining BCBSAZ, Kehaly has led the company to number 1 market share, with 23% growth by focusing on consumer needs and company culture.

Among the many initiatives Kehaly is spearheading is the Blue Cross Blue Shield of Arizona Foundation for Community Health & Advancement, which began operations in January 2022, to enhance the company’s commitment to the public good by focusing on the critical health issues impacting Arizona, including mental health, substance use disorder, chronic health conditions, and health equity.

Michael J. Mizeur
President and CEO
BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina

Michael J. Mizeur is committed to serving the people of South Carolina as the leader of the health plan that has offered security to Palmetto State citizens for more than 75 years. As the President and CEO, Mizeur leads more than 20 companies, with over 15,000 employees, involved in health insurance services, U.S. DoD health program and Medicare contracts, Medicaid plans and a philanthropic foundation that funds programs to improve health care and access to health care for South Carolinians.

Mizeur began his career with BlueCross in 1998 and has held a number of senior leadership positions with the company, most recently president and chief operating officer in 2021.

Kehaly and Mizeur join NIHCM's powerful Board of Directors:

• Curtis Barnett
• Gail K. Boudreaux
• Gregory E. Deavens
• Andrew Dreyfus
• Patrick Geraghty
• Cory Harris
• W. David Helms, PhD
• JD Hickey, MD
• David L. Holmberg
• Daniel J. Loepp
• Jeff Roe
• Maurice Smith
• Tunde Sotunde, MD
• Gary D. St. Hilaire
• Steven Udvarhelyi, MD