Ron Rittenmeyer to Step Down as Tenet CEO

Effective September 1, COO Saum Sutaria, MD, will assume the role of CEO.

Tenet Healthcare CEO Ron Rittenmeyer is stepping down from his role, the healthcare services company announced on Monday.

Rittenmeyer, who has served as CEO and executive chairman for over three years, will continue to serve as executive chairman of the company and the board through the end of 2022.

Saum Sutaria, MD, president and COO of Tenet will assume the role of CEO on September 1 where he will continue to report to Rittenmeyer.

"When I joined Tenet as Executive Chairman and CEO almost four years ago, I had two major objectives," Rittenmeyer said in a statement. "First, was the transformation of the business in terms of improving quality of care and service to build long-term, financial stability. Second, was to develop and execute a succession plan through the organization, enhancing our leadership at every level and identifying my replacement. During the past several years, Saum and I have worked closely together through extraordinary times including COVID, and at each step, he has continued to demonstrate excellent leadership in framing the right strategic and tactical pathway."

Sutaria joined Tenet in January 2019 to serve as COO and then was promoted to president later that year. He joined the board in 2020.

Previously, Sutaria worked as a leader in healthcare and private equity for McKinsey & Company, where he served clients on strategic, operations, and financial issues for 18 years.

"I am honored to serve as CEO and continue our work in building a truly unique and diversified healthcare enterprise," Sutaria said in a statement. 

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