LOUISVILLE, KY — October 23, 2007— Humana Veterans Healthcare Services’ (HVHS) announces the creation of an Advisory Board and named six inaugural members.  The HVHS Advisory Board, which was recently formed to provide guidance, insight and leadership in developing and maintaining the goals of the organization to provide quality healthcare services to our nations’ deserving veterans.  The six initial members, which have varying leadership backgrounds within the military and Veterans Administration (VA) include: CMDR (Ret.) Everett Alvarez, Jr., Terry Clark, M.D., Harold Gracey, Jr., Col. (Ret.) Ronald M. “Mike” Kimball, Kenneth Kizer, M.D., and Jo Ann Webb.

“Humana Veterans Healthcare Services is pleased to welcome these individuals to its Advisory Board,” said Al Poteet, president and CEO of HVHS.  “Their leadership and vast knowledge of the VA and its healthcare system will be an invaluable asset as we continue to develop our access to quality healthcare services for the VA and its many veterans.”

Everett Alvarez, Jr. was a Navy Lieutenant Commander who endured one of the longest periods as a Prisoner of War (POW) in American history – over eight and a half years.  He was one of the first American POWs of the Vietnam War.  As a distinguished naval officer and government executive, Alvarez is best known as the first American aviator shot down over North Vietnam.   He retired as a Commander of the Navy in 1980.  Since that time, Alvarez served in many roles in Washington, D.C., including Program Management at the Naval Air Station Systems Command and Deputy Director of the Peace Corps, Deputy Administrator of the VA. He was appointed by President George Bush to serve on the President’s Task Force to Improve Health Care Delivery for our Nation’s Veterans, as well as another appointment by former Secretary of the VA to Chair the CARES Commission.

Terry Clark, M.D., president of MD Informatics, LLC, is a board certified General Surgeon with over 20 years experience in healthcare to include Chief of Surgery at a VA Center.   As a former Lt. Col. in the U.S. Army Medical Corps, veteran of Operation Desert Shield/Storm, and General Surgeon for the US Public Health Service, he is extremely knowledgeable about the VA medical system.  Most recently, Dr. Clark served as a commissioner on a Presidential Task Force to make recommendations to improve healthcare for America’s veterans.

Harold F. Gracey, Jr. is an executive consultant with Topside Consulting Group, where he has worked in the role for four years.  Before joining Topside, Gracey was a Vice President of Systems Integration Division for PEC Solutions, Inc and Vice President of Government Affairs at FedBid.com.  With over 30 years in a federal career, he held numerous positions within the Sept. of VA, the Dept. of Health and Human Services, and the Dept. of the Army.  His last government assignment was the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Information and Technology and acting Chief Information Officer of the Dept. of VA.

Colonel (Ret.) Ronald M. “Mike” Kimball served with distinction in the U.S. Air Force for 30 years and is a disabled veteran.  He held numerous positions in the Air Force Medical Service during his tenure.  Following his retirement from the military, Kimball formed Kimball Consulting Services Inc, where he serves as President and Chief Executive Officer, as well as the Senior Consultant in Healthcare Management and Medical Informatics.

Kenneth W. Kizer, M.D., currently works with Medsphere, following his tenure as the President and Chief Executive Officer of the National Quality Forum (NQF), a Washington, D.C.-based private, non-profit healthcare quality improvement and standards setting organization.  Kizer serves as trustee of Trinity Health; a member of the US Preventive Services Task Force and a consultant to several organizations and foreign countries.   From 1994-1999, he was the Undersecretary for Health is the Dept. of VA where he was the CEO of the Veterans Healthcare system.  Kizer is board certified in six medical specialties or subspecialties, and has contributed over 400 publications in medical and healthcare literature.

Jo Ann Webb, R.N. is the Senior Director of Federal Relations and Policy for the American Organization of Nurse Executives (AONE), a subsidiary of the American Hospital Association.  She is the chief lobbyist and director of advocacy relations for the over 5,000 registered professional nurses in executive practice of AONE.  Webb also served as an Army nurse.  She held senior executive positions in the legislative and executive branches of government including two presidential appointments at the Dept. of VA.  She currently holds a presidential appointment to the National Veterans Business Development Corporation and has served on governmental boards and commissions.

         
About HVHS
HVHS, headquartered in Louisville, KY, is a subsidiary created by Humana Inc.  The company was formed in 2007 to develop solutions to veterans’ healthcare issues.  It provides an organizational structure that is flexible, agile, and responsive to the emerging requirements of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and the veterans who rely on VA services.

         
About HMHS
HMHS, headquartered in Louisville, KY., has been a Department of Defense contractor for the administration of the TRICARE program since July 1, 1996. In August 2003, HMHS was awarded the contract to provide health benefits support and services to approximately 2.8 million active duty and retired military and their eligible family members in the 10-state South Region. HMHS was also awarded the Department of Defense’s contract to provide health care services and support for active duty service members and their families located in the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, in February 2004.