Chad Lefteris appointed to American Hospital Association Regional Board

UCI Health president and CEO will advise on national health policy development

Orange, Calif. — Chad Lefteris, president and CEO of UCI Health, will serve as a California state delegate to American Hospital Association (AHA) Regional Policy Board 9. In the role, Lefteris will advise on national health policy development, advocating for patients and the community.

“It is an honor to represent California on the AHA board,” said Lefteris. “Working with colleagues across the west on important health policy issues reflects the longstanding UCI Health commitment to improving the health of our communities.”

The AHA is a national nonprofit that represents and serves all types of hospitals and healthcare networks, as well as those they serve.

Its regional policy boards are part of the AHA’s formal governance structure. The organization uses regional recommendations to inform national health policy development.

The California Hospital Association (CHA) appointed Lefteris to a two-year term through Dec. 31, 2027.

“Chad’s leadership experience, along with his policy and political expertise, will make him an excellent contributor with a California perspective to AHA’s policy making process,” said Carmela Coyle, president and CEO of the California Hospital Association.

All regional policy boards meet three times a year.

“Chad is an ideal addition to AHA Regional Policy Board 9,” said Sean Barry, AHA regional executive for Region 9.

“His leadership experience during a period of dynamic growth and change at UCI will benefit peers and the Association alike. We are grateful he accepted this appointment and know he will represent California ably.”

About Regional Policy Board 9

Regional Policy Board 9 includes AHA member hospitals and health systems leaders from Alaska, California, Hawaii, Nevada, Oregon, Washington State and the Pacific islands of American Samoa, Guam and the Northern Marianas. CHA and other state and regional associations also hold ex officio seats on the board.

The current chair of Regional Policy Board 9 is Mason Van Houweling, CEO of University Medical Center of Southern Nevada, in Las Vegas. Van Houweling also sits on the AHA Board of Trustees.

About Chad Lefteris

Lefteris, who was appointed CEO of UCI Health in April 2020, has been a transformational and visionary leader. He steered the system through the COVID-19 pandemic, led the planning and development of the $1.3 billion UCI Health — Irvine medical campus, and established the UCI Health Community Network in 2024, which added four community hospitals to the system. He is also opening the system’s seventh hospital later this year, the UCI Health — Irvine Rehabilitation Hospital, designed for the needs of patients receiving acute inpatient rehabilitation care for stroke, traumatic brain and spinal cord injuries, amputation and other injuries and disorders.

UCI Health is the clinical enterprise of the University of California, Irvine. The 1,461-bed system comprises its flagship academic medical center UCI Health — Orange, the UCI Health — Irvine acute care hospital and medical campus, four community hospitals and affiliated physicians of the UCI Health Community Network in Orange and Los Angeles counties and a network of ambulatory care centers across the region.

The system provides tertiary and quaternary care at UCI Health — Orange and includes the only Orange County-based National Cancer Institute-designated comprehensive cancer center, high-risk perinatal/neonatal program and American College of Surgeons-verified Level I adult and Level II pediatric trauma center, gold level 1 geriatric emergency department and regional burn center.

Powered by UC Irvine, UCI Health serves 5.6 million people in Orange County, western Riverside County and southeast Los Angeles County.