The American Hospital Association (AHA) announced on June 30 the unanimous appointment of Steve Walsh as its next president and chief executive officer.
Walsh will assume leadership of the nation’s largest hospital and healthcare system membership organization this fall. The AHA represents nearly 5,000 member hospitals, health systems, networks and other providers. He has served as president and CEO of the Massachusetts Health & Hospital Association (MHA) since 2017,
“Steve is a proven healthcare leader, innovator and accomplished advocate for healthcare improvement, who understands both the challenges facing hospitals and the opportunities ahead,” said Dr. Marc L. Boom, chair of the AHA Board of Trustees and president and CEO of Houston Methodist. “Throughout his career, he has demonstrated an ability to bring people together, build consensus and advance meaningful solutions on behalf of patients, caregivers and communities.
“Steve is the right leader at the right time for America’s hospitals and health systems,” Boom added. “As healthcare continues to evolve, we need a leader who can both champion our field and help shape the future. Steve brings the experience, vision and collaborative leadership necessary to guide the Association through this important next chapter.”
Boom also thanked and praised outgoing AHA President and CEO Rick Pollack. “On behalf of the Board of Trustees, I want to thank Rick for his extraordinary leadership and decades of service to the Association and our nation’s hospitals,” he said. “We are deeply grateful for his contributions and excited for the future under Steve’s leadership.”
Walsh brings more than two decades of experience advancing American healthcare. At the MHA, Walsh has been a proven coalition builder and has broken boundaries between providers, payers, policymakers and others. He has championed the principle that strong hospitals mean stronger communities, creating a more accessible and coordinated healthcare system for patients on behalf of more than 70 hospital and health system members.
Previously, Walsh served six terms in the Massachusetts House of Representatives, including as Chair of the House Committee on Health Care Financing. In 2011, he wrote and oversaw passage of Chapter 224, the commonwealth’s landmark 2012 healthcare reform law. It incentivized alternative payment models and investment in community health while encouraging patient empowerment and primary care.
“It is a profound honor to be selected to lead the American Hospital Association, and I am grateful for the trust the Board has placed in me to carry on the legacy of service that Rick Pollack has created,” said Walsh. “The next era of American healthcare is bright for the patients and caregivers we serve, all of whom will benefit from our members’ unified focus around access, quality and innovation.
“To write the next chapter will require creative leadership, hard-earned trust and the willingness to bring unlikely partners to the same table. I am a true believer that hospitals and health systems must be the ones to define that future for the nation given their unique connection with patients and communities. Building bridges, building trust and building momentum will drive AHA’s successes in the years ahead.”
A member of the American College of Healthcare Executives, Walsh has been regularly named to Boston Magazine’s list of Most Influential Bostonians and Modern Healthcare’s 300 Most Influential People in Healthcare He holds degrees from Wesleyan University, the New England School of Law and the Harvard Kennedy School of Government.