No More Waiting: Hospital CEOs Say the Time Is Now for Transformation

Top executives at the AHA Leadership Summit are emphasizing action to push through the uncertainty of the current climate.

At the AHA Leadership Summit in Nashville, the message from hospital and health system CEOs is undeniable: healthcare transformation is no longer optional or theoretical—it must happen now.

With financial strain, shifting care expectations, and major policy reform converging, industry leaders urged action over caution in the face of an uncertain and evolving environment.

"There's no better time than right now," Marty Bonick, president and CEO of Ardent Health, said on day two of the three-day event. "This is not just headwinds, this is ingredients for transformation."

OBBBA brings pressure and opportunity

One of the biggest drivers of urgency is the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA), a sweeping legislative package that poses major challenges for providers by cutting Medicaid funding, increasing administrative burden, and expanding performance-based payment requirements. While full implementation is still ahead, CEOs made it clear the industry is already bracing for its impact.

Laura Kaiser, president and CEO of SSM Health, said leaders have a responsibility to anticipate OBBBA's implications. She described the legislation as fundamentally different from prior reform efforts and emphasized the need for proactive communication and clarity.

She also called the bill a valuable chance to rethink care models and public health priorities. The bill is a great opportunity for hospital decision-makers to lean forward, but the question is how? Kaiser's recommendation to fellow CEOs is to move with "purposeful urgency."

Innovation can't wait for policy

Eugene Woods, president and CEO of Atrium Health, challenged the tendency of health systems to wait for optimal policy conditions before taking action, but noted: "There's not going to be a savior in terms of policy or reimbursement model."

He argued that leaders must make forward-looking bets today or risk falling behind. Woods shared that Atrium, for example, is currently piloting artificial intelligence to support rural facilities, enabling greater access to care regardless of location.

If hospital executives aren't spending at least 50% of their time on bets for the future, they're doing the industry a disservice, according to Woods.

Redefining the center of care

Wright Lassiter III, CEO of CommonSpirit Health, highlighted that many organizations have delayed necessary transformation. However, economic pressures aren't going to ease anytime soon and the urgency to evolve has never been greater.

Hospitals must stop treating what happens within their four walls as the hub of healthcare delivery and instead shift toward broader community-focused models, Woods argued. The mindset of slow, incremental change must also be replaced.

"We need to rid our organizations of incrementalism," Woods said, using ambient listening technology as an example of how systems often overthink innovation and take baby steps towards solutions. "We have to presume we're in a sprint, not in a marathon."

Collaboration over blame

Bonick emphasized that innovation also requires a mindset shift, not only toward embracing technology, but also toward collaborating across the healthcare ecosystem.

He posed a critical question for health systems: What do patients want as customers? He acknowledged that return on investment may not come right away with certain innovations, but said the long-term payoff is worth the leap.

He also pushed back on the blame game between providers, payers, and pharmaceutical companies. Every group is under the microscope, and with policy changes impacting the entire industry, it's counterproductive for providers to point fingers at payers or pharma.

"It's incumbent upon us as leaders, as a total system, to work together," Bonick said.

Stay tuned for more AHA Leadership Summit coverage.