Board of Directors

Daniel R. Liljenquist
SVP and Chief Strategy Officer,
Intermountain Healthcare & Chairman of the Board, Civica Rx
Dan Liljenquist is the lead architect and Board Chair of Civica Rx, a new nonprofit generic drug company established to reduce chronic generic drug shortages and price gouging, which have negatively impacted patient care for over a decade. Dan’s commentary on generic drug market issues was published in the New England Journal of Medicine (Addressing Generic Drug Market Failures—The Case for Establishing a Nonprofit Manufacturer) and informed Civica Rx’s mission to ensure that essential generic medications are available and affordable to everyone.
Dan is Senior Vice President and Chief Strategy Officer for Intermountain Healthcare, where he also oversees Intermountain’s Enterprise Initiative and Market Intelligence & Planning Offices. Prior to joining Intermountain, Dan served in the Utah State Senate and was nationally recognized for his work on Medicaid and public-sector pension reforms. He is a former strategy consultant with Bain & Company, Inc. Dan received his JD from The University of Chicago Law School and his BA in Economics from Brigham Young University. Dan and his wife, Brooke, are the parents of six children and reside in Bountiful, Utah.

Erin Asprec
Executive Vice President & Chief Operating Officer,
Memorial Hermann Healthcare System
Erin began her career in healthcare at the Methodist Health Care System in 1998. She joined the Memorial Hermann Healthcare System in 2002, working as the Director of Business Development and then as the Executive Liaison to the President and CEO of the System, Dan Wolterman. Erin then served at the TMC Campus as the Chief Executive Officer of the Memorial Hermann Heart & Vascular Institute for six years. She planned and managed the construction of the Institute, comprised of 265,000 square feet and 147 beds. Her numerous achievements resulted in a range of prestigious honors from several leading organization, including Thomson Reuters, the Institute for Healthcare Improvement and the American Heart Association.
In March 2010, Erin was named Chief Executive Officer of Memorial Hermann Southeast Hospital where she focused on the growth of key service lines, including oncology, heart and vascular, orthopedics, neuroscience, and specialty surgical services. She fostered and developed the University of Texas Medical School H o u s t o n relationship at Southeast through physician recruitment, and by building new models for collaboration and growth in key service lines.
Since 2012, Erin has been active in both the Texas Hospital Association (THA) and American Hospital Association (AHA). She has served on the THA’s Council on Policy Development, a delegate to the AHA Regional Policy Board and currently serves on the Executive Committee and Board of the THA.
In 2013, Erin’s role as Chief Executive Officer was expanded to include the new Memorial Hermann Pearland Medical Complex. The facility is home to the second Convenient Care Center of the Memorial Hermann System, which opened in February 2014, and home of the 64-bed Memorial Hermann Pearland Hospital, which opened in 2016.
In March, 2015 Erin was promoted to Senior Vice President/Regional President of Memorial Hermann’s South Region. The South Region oversight encompassed leadership, direction and integration of the acute hospitals [Memorial Hermann Sugar Land (81 licensed beds), Southwest (561 licensed beds), Pearland (64 licensed beds) and Southeast (293 licensed beds)] and 44 ambulatory care sites (outpatient imaging, sports medicine and rehabilitation, outpatient laboratory and outpatient surgery centers). In 2017, Erin was given oversight of the organization’s Neuroscience service line, and gained the additional title and scope of Chief Transformation Officer.
Erin spearheaded the formation of Women Leaders of Memorial Hermann (WLMH). The mission of the WLMH program is to build a strong network and a culture of excellence among women leaders that has a far reaching impact both within the organization as well as in the community. The program launched in November 2015 and to date has over 650 members.
In October, 2017 Erin was promoted to Executive Vice President-Acute Care Services/Chief Transformation Officer with oversight over all community acute-care facilities [Cypress (81 licensed beds), The Woodlands (351 licensed beds), Northeast (255 licensed beds), Katy (208 licensed beds), Memorial City (444 licensed beds), Greater Heights (260 licensed beds), Sugar Land (149 licensed beds), Southwest (547 licensed beds), Pearland (64 licensed beds), and Southeast (293 licensed beds)]. Erin provided leadership to the Behavioral Health Services and the organization’s Support Services. As the new chief transformation officer, Erin led the organization’s Clinical Care Redesign effort to reduce variation, create standardization by reducing waste in order to improve quality service while reducing cost. In August 2018 Erin assumed oversight of the Memorial Hermann’s Texas Medical Center location and Children’s Hospital (1084 licensed beds) including administration of TIRR (134 licensed beds).
In December 2019, Erin was promoted to Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer for the Memorial Hermann Healthcare System.
Erin earned a Master in Health Administration degree from Saint Louis University, and a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry from the University of Texas at Austin. She is currently a member the Texas Hospital Association, San Jose Clinic, CIVICA and POSSE Boards.

Dennis E. Dahlen
Chief Financial Officer,
Mayo Clinic
Dennis E. Dahlen, CPA, MBA serves as Chief Financial Officer of Mayo Clinic, a $12 billion enterprise that includes clinical practice, research, and medical education operations. Prior to Mayo Clinic, he held the same position at Banner Health, an $8 billion integrated health care delivery system in Phoenix, after serving in several other executive positions from its inception in 1999. Dennis earned an MBA in finance from Minnesota State University, Moorhead, and a bachelor’s degree in accounting from the University of North Dakota, Grand Forks.
Dennis has served or is currently serving on the boards of InvisionAZ, Greater MSP, the Ronald McDonald House Charities of Phoenix, Sonora Quest Laboratories, Spirit in the Desert Retreat Center, University of Arizona Health Plans, and MediSun. He just completed his term as chairman of the board of directors for the Arizona Chamber of Commerce. Dennis and his wife, Mary, have three daughters and maintain homes in both Rochester, Minnesota and Phoenix, Arizona.

Carter Dredge
Senior Vice President & Lead Futurist,
SSM Health
Mr. Dredge holds a bachelor’s degree in business management/corporate finance from Brigham Young University, and a Master of Healthcare Administration from Cornell University, where he also currently teaches a graduate-level course on alternative healthcare payment design.

Lou Fierens
Executive Vice President, Administrative Services,
Trinity Health
Lou joined Trinity Health in February 2001 and is currently responsible for the development and implementation of strategic plans for all areas of Administrative Services for Trinity Health. At Trinity Health this includes responsibility for multiple system shared services including Supply Chain Management - from strategic sourcing to procure-to-pay operations and through the national distribution center; Clinical Engineering, Real Estate, major Capital Project Management, Food and Environmental services, Laboratory services including Warde Lab, Performance Excellence, and Philanthropy activities across the health system. At Trinity Health, this amounts to managing a total annual expense base of over $8 billion.
Prior to joining Trinity Health, Lou spent 15 years with General Motors Corporation in assignments of increasing responsibility in manufacturing, production control, logistics, strategic planning and worldwide purchasing. There, he served as director of GMSupplyPower.com, General Motors' global supply chain management portal.
Lou holds a bachelor's degree in supply chain management from Michigan State University and an MBA in operations management from the University of Michigan. He also completed the Accelerated Development Program (ADP) for International Managers at the London Business School in London, England. Lou currently serves on numerous boards including St. Mary's Healthcare System, HealthTrust Purchasing Group, University of Michigan – Dearborn School of Business, Northern Michigan Supply Alliance, and Civica Rx.

Drew Hobby
Chief Innovation Officer,
Blue Cross of Idaho
Drew Hobby is focused on ensuring Blue Cross of Idaho is a leading innovator across the industry. This includes responsibility for our Healthcare Economics, IT and Strategy teams, as well as supporting our provider partners.
Hobby joined Blue Cross of Idaho in 2017 as vice president of Provider Partner and Payment Innovation, where he led provider network functions including efforts to shift from a fee-for-service provider payment model to value-based payments. Before being promoted to his current position, he also served as senior vice president of Healthcare Economics and tasked with one of Blue Cross of Idaho’s top strategic priorities: making healthcare more affordable for clients and members.
Hobby came to Blue Cross of Idaho from WellCare Health Plans, Inc., in Tampa, Florida, where he served in numerous roles, including as vice president, Medicaid Network Management, where he was responsible for the national Medicaid network strategy.
He received his Bachelor of Science degree in Business Process Management from Indiana University.

Shelley Lyford
President and Chief Executive Officer,
West Health, the Gary and Mary West Foundation
and the West Health Institute
Shelley Lyford is president and chief executive officer of West Health, the Gary and Mary West Foundation and the West Health Institute. Solely funded by philanthropists Gary and Mary West, West Health is a family of nonprofit and nonpartisan organizations including the Gary and Mary West Health Institute and Gary and Mary West Foundation in San Diego, and the Gary and Mary West Health Policy Center in Washington, D.C. West Health is dedicated to lowering healthcare costs to enable seniors to successfully age in place with access to high-quality, affordable health and support services that preserve and protect their dignity, quality of life and independence. The organizations use a combination of applied medical research, policy, advocacy, and outcomes-based philanthropy to improve healthcare for seniors and lower costs.
Lyford played a critical role in helping establish the Gary and Mary West Foundation in 2006. Under her leadership, the Gary and Mary West Foundation has awarded more than 534 grants totaling nearly $212 million for applied medical research and community support and social services for seniors and their caregivers. Lyford also leads the Gary and Mary West Health Institute as it conducts applied medical research on a wide range of issues affecting healthcare costs and seniors.
Lyford has spearheaded the development of innovative healthcare delivery systems that serve as national care models of excellence, including the Gary and Mary West Senior Emergency Care Unit at UC San Diego Health, California’s first nationally-accredited facility. Additionally, she oversaw the development of the first of its kind Gary and Mary West Senior Dental Center, which is co-located in a popular senior community center in downtown San Diego, to ensure low-income seniors have access to high-quality, affordable dental care integrated with health and wellness services. These and other care models are supported by various research initiatives with collaborators that include the American Geriatrics Society, UC San Diego Health, Mount Sinai in New York, Brown University, and Northwestern University.
In 2019, Lyford was appointed for a three-year term as a commissioner on the California Commission on Aging, advising the state’s governor and legislature, along with federal, state, and local agencies, on issues, policies, and regulations that affect California’s seniors.
Lyford serves as vice chair of the board of directors for Civica Rx, a not-for-profit generic drug company that will help patients by addressing shortages and lowering the high prices of lifesaving medications. Lyford is also board chair for the Gary and Mary West Senior Dental Center; a board director with the Gary and Mary West Foundation; a board member of Generations United; and sits on the San Diego Regional Economic Development Corporation’s board of directors focused on promoting San Diego as an epicenter for successful aging research. Lyford holds a master’s degree in international relations and political economy from the University of San Diego.

Ned McCoy
President & Chief Executive Officer,
Civica, Inc.
Ned McCoy is Civica’s President and CEO. He has been with the company since its 2018 launch and most recently served as Chief Operating Officer where he was responsible for commercial operations, research and development, manufacturing/supply chain and business development.
Prior to assuming the role of Civica's President and CEO, Ned served as its Chief Operating Officer where he was responsible for commercial operations, research and development, manufacturing/supply chain and business development. Prior to this role, Ned was the Chief Business Development Officer, responsible for developing and signing long term supply partnerships to prevent drug shortages and establish fair pricing.
Ned worked for Abbott for 32 years before joining Civica, where he had a strong track record of creating successful business opportunities by developing lasting partnerships between companies that capitalized on the strengths of both.
While at Abbott, Ned worked in 4 business divisions: Hospital Products, Pharmaceutical Products (now AbbVie), Nutrition and Corporate Mergers and Acquisitions.
Ned was the recipient of 4 President's Awards for outstanding accomplishments and was awarded the “Biggest Contributor to Earnings Per Share” for Abbott during one year. He is an inventor with 11 issued patents.
Ned received his Bachelor and Master of Science degrees in Chemical Engineering from North Carolina State University (Raleigh, NC). He and his wife, Gail, have 3 children and reside in Dublin, Ohio.

Andrea Noda
Vice President of Health Care-Drug Pricing,
Arnold Ventures
Andrea develops and oversees strategic investments in drug pricing reform. Before joining Arnold Ventures, she worked at the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) for more than a decade, providing quantitative analysis and technical assistance to Congress on federal health care legislation. Andrea’s work at CBO focused on a variety of health care issues including Medicare and Medicaid prescription drug reimbursement and coverage, and the provision of Medicaid services to the elderly and people with disabilities.
Previously, Andrea worked at Avalere Health, where she provided analytic, strategic, and managerial support on projects for health care industry clients related to Medicare and Medicaid. She also worked at the Georgetown University Health Policy Institute, where she worked on a variety of research projects related to the Medicare prescription drug benefit.
Andrea holds a master's of public policy from Georgetown University and a bachelor’s in social policy from Northwestern University.

Michael D. Rowe
Senior Vice President and Chief Business Development and Strategic Relationships Executive,
Kaiser Foundation Health Plan
Michael D. Rowe is the Senior Vice President/Chief Business Development and Strategic Relationships Executive for Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, and Hospitals (KFHP/H). Mike leads growth efforts and manages strategic relationships to support the organization’s long-term, sustainable performance. He works with Kaiser Permanente’s health plan, hospital and physician leadership on new growth opportunities with the goal of making high-quality, affordable health care available to more of the country through strong connections with like-minded organizations. He is accountable for driving the identification, assessment, and negotiation of new and expanded relationships to extend the reach of Kaiser Permanente’s model of integrated care and coverage.
Mike joined Kaiser Permanente in 2010 as the Chief Financial Officer and Senior Vice President of Finance for the Northern California Region of KFHP/H. He has been an instrumental part of the Northern California leadership team that continues to produce exceptional performance in quality, growth and financial strength. Prior to Kaiser Permanente, Rowe spent a number of years in senior financial roles with health systems including Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth and Allina Health System. Mike serves on the boards of Mercy Health in St. Louis, BroadJump and Civica. He has previously served on the boards of Mercy/Bon Secours Health System and St. Joseph Health System of Orange. Mike earned a BBA Degree in Accounting and Management and a MBA Degree in Finance and Accounting from the University of Wisconsin, Madison. He is a Certified Public Accountant and a Fellow in the Healthcare Financial Management Association.

William B. Rutherford
Chief Financial Officer and Executive Vice President,
HCA
William B. Rutherford is Chief Financial Officer and Executive Vice President of Nashville, Tennessee-based HCA, the nation’s leading provider of healthcare services. As CFO, Rutherford has management responsibility for the company’s Treasury Department, Office of the Controller, Information Technology, Government Programs, Development, Investor Relations, Parallon and HealthTrust Purchasing Group. A 30-year veteran of HCA, Rutherford joined the company as a Staff Auditor in 1986. He served the company in a variety of roles, including Director of Operations Support and Chief Financial Officer for the Georgia Division. From 1996 to 2005, Rutherford was Chief Financial Officer for the Eastern Group. During this time, the Eastern Group comprised approximately 90 hospitals with $12 billion of net revenue.
In 2005, Rutherford left HCA to start his own training and education company which led to work with several private equity ventures. He served as Chief Operating Officer of Psychiatric Solutions, a behavioral health services provider, from January 2006 to June 2007. Rutherford returned to HCA in December 2008, serving as Chief Financial Officer of the Outpatient Services Group through January 2011. In this role he was responsible for HCA’s company-wide operations of freestanding outpatient facilities to include ambulatory surgery centers, diagnostic imaging and cancer center operations. This also included physician services to support both hospital and outpatient strategies. Prior to his current appointment, Rutherford served as COO of the Clinical and Physician Services Group, helping to provide leadership oversight of physician employment, recruiting and practice management for over 3,000 providers. Rutherford’s current board membership includes Students Taking a Right Stand (STARS). Past board memberships include Center for Non-Profit Management and YMCA Joe C. Davis Outdoor Center. Rutherford received a bachelor’s degree in accounting and finance from the University of Tampa and is a Certified Public Accountant. He resides in Nashville with his wife, Nancy, and their two sons.

Kathleen Sanford
Executive Vice President and Chief Nursing Officer, CommonSpirit Health
Kathleen Sanford, DBA, RN, FACHE, FAAN, is the Executive Vice President and Chief Nursing Officer for CommonSpirit Health. Her prior position was CNO for Catholic Health Initiatives where she served as the executive leader for several clinical groups, including the national Pharmacy enterprise. Dr. Sanford has over 40 years of experience in health care, including staff nursing, middle management, chief nurse executive, hospital administrator, and strategy executive roles. In addition to acute care leadership, she has worked in long term care; founded, initiated and managed a Medicare-certified home health agency; built and managed urgent care services; and managed employed physician office practices.
A former Army officer, Colonel Sanford retired as Chief Nurse and acting State Surgeon/Medical Commander of the Washington Army National Guard. She served as the 2006 President of the American Organization of Nurse Executives, and in that role, also participated in the Tri-Council for Nursing. She has served on the American Hospital Association Board in addition to multiple regional and local boards. She is currently editor-in-chief for Nursing Administration Quarterly (NAQ).
A former newspaper and health care journal columnist, Kathleen has published hundreds of articles as well as the management book, “Leading with Love.” Dr. Sanford also co-wrote a 2015 healthcare management book titled, “Dyad Leadership In Healthcare: When One Plus One Is Greater Than Two.” Her education includes a Bachelor of Science degree in Nursing from the University of Maryland/Walter Reed Army Institute of Nursing, a Master of Arts degree in Human Resources Management from Pepperdine University, a Master of Business Administration degree from Pacific Lutheran University, and a Doctorate in Business from Nova Southeastern University. She is a Fellow in the Wharton School of Business Nursing Administration Program, a Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives, and a Fellow of the American Academy of Nursing.

Martin VanTrieste
Civica, Inc. President Emeritus
Sept. 2018 - June 2022
Martin VanTrieste served as Civica’s first President and CEO. He is also a former chief quality officer at Amgen who was recently named one of Modern Healthcare’s 100 Most Influential People in Healthcare and a leader on The Medicine Maker’s Power List of Industry Influencers. He has over 35 years in the biopharma industry, with comprehensive experience in biopharmaceutical manufacturing, quality systems and related government regulations in the U.S. and around the world.
Under Martin’s leadership, Civica helped to stabilize the supply of essential generic medicines across the country. During his tenure, Civica provided essential, often life-saving medications to over 55 health systems, representing over 1,500 hospitals across the U.S. and provided its medicines to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and the U.S. Department of Defense. During the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, Marin led efforts to deliver 2.1 million containers of Civica medicines to the U.S. Strategic National Stockpile.
In addition to working with quality supplier partners to deliver over 60 medicines in various dosage forms, the Civica team is advancing generic drug production in the U.S. by building Civica's future essential medicines manufacturing facility in Petersburg, VA.
Martin also led efforts to launch CivicaScript, the new Civica operating unit dedicated to lowering the cost of select high-cost generic medicines at the pharmacy counter. Using a cost-plus and price transparent model, CivicaScript, with its health plan partners, will further transform the supply chain to lower the cost of prescription medicines to ensure that consumers benefit from these medicines at a fraction of their current cost.
In March 2022 and under Martin’s leadership, Civica announced its plans to manufacture and distribute insulins that, once approved, will be available to people with diabetes at significantly lower prices than insulins currently on the market. The availability of affordable insulins will benefit people with diabetes who have been forced to choose between life sustaining medicines and living expenses, particularly those uninsured or underinsured who often pay the most out of pocket for their medications.
Earlier in his career, Martin was with Bayer Healthcare's Biological Products Division as VP of worldwide quality and Abbott Laboratories as VP of quality assurance for the Hospital Products Division.
Martin is founder of Rx-360, a nonprofit that increases security and quality in the biopharmaceutical supply chain. He has served as Chairman of the Parenteral Drug Association (PDA) Board of Directors and earned a Pharmacy degree from Temple University School of Pharmacy.

Jay Want, MD
Executive Director of the Peterson Center on Healthcare,
Peterson Center on Healthcare
Jay Want MD, is Executive Director of the Peterson Center on Healthcare. He leads the Center’s expanding portfolio of initiatives and grants to identify high-performance models of healthcare, validate their impact on quality and cost, and facilitate their adoption on a national scale. Dr. Want brings decades of experience in healthcare delivery, improvement science, data transparency and executive leadership. His background as a primary care physician further grounds the Center in its work to enable physicians, partnering with patients and care teams, to transform healthcare delivery from within the system.
Formerly Chief Medical Officer and Board Chairman at the Center for Improving Value in Health Care, Dr. Want has significant expertise in creating public-private partnerships that support the transparency necessary for healthcare transformation. He has also consulted for the Network for Regional Healthcare Improvement, the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services, and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.
Dr. Want has also served as an Innovation Advisor for the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation and was the President and Chief Executive Officer of a management services organization that is now part of the Medicare Shared Savings ACO Program. He served on the board of the non-profit Rocky Mountain Health Plan and on task forces for the Colorado Division of Insurance, the Colorado Trust, the Colorado Hospital Association, the Governor’s Blue Ribbon Commission on Health Care Reform, as a commissioner on the Colorado Commission for Affordable Health Care, and as a fellow of the Colorado Health Foundation.
Dr. Want received his internal medicine training at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center, his medical degree from Northwestern University and his undergraduate degree from Wabash College.

Blake Wilkerson
Vice President, Strategic Partnerships and Development
Blue Cross Blue Shield Association
Blake Wilkerson is vice president of strategic partnerships and development for the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association (BCBSA), a national federation of 35 independent, community-based and locally operated Blue Cross and Blue Shield (BCBS) companies. Today, one in three Americans is covered by the Blue System.
Wilkerson leads the business development, innovation and strategic partnership functions for BCBSA, with a focus on fostering and managing collaborative business relationships between BCBS companies and complementary third parties. In this capacity, he also oversees the international business.
Having previously worked for the Association's strategic consulting business from 2002 to 2006, Wilkerson rejoined BCBSA in 2018. Apart from his tenure with BCBSA, he has worked extensively across the healthcare industry in strategy consulting, business development and investor roles, including as principal in the global health practice of Booz Allen & Hamilton, vice president of business development with QuadMed, and investor and operating partner with Fullscript.
Wilkerson holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics and psychology from Northwestern University and a Master of Business Administration with honors from Columbia Business School.