The Friday Five - Women as Chief Health Officers

Healthcare in the US is an industry where women consumers make 80 percent of buying and usage decisions and represent 65 percent of the workforce. Women are the Chief Health Officers of their households. What do Walgreens, CVS Health, Rite Aid, Walmart Health and Wellness and Anthem have in common? Females occupy the top offices. As we gear up for Women’s History Month, this week’s Friday Five celebrates these Chief Health Officers.

Rosalind “Roz” Brewer – Chief Executive Officer, Walgreens
When Roz Brewer steps into the CEO chair at Walgreens on March 15, she will be the third Black woman in history to ever serve as a Fortune 500 CEO, and currently the only one. A graduate of the all-female HBCU, Spelman College, Brewer hails from Sam’s Club and Starbucks. In 2018, Fortune ranked her #33 on its list of the 50 Most Powerful Women in Business. Walgreens Boots Alliance is committed to creating a better world through health and wellness, by being the first choice for pharmacy, well-being and beauty, and helping people across the world lead healthier and happier lives.
Follow: @WBA_Global

Karen S Lynch –President and Chief Executive Officer, CVS Health
With over three decades of experience in the health care industry, Karen Lynch was promoted the top job at CVS Health this month after two years serving as an Executive Vice President. A graduate of Boston College and The Questrom School of Business at Boston University, Karen was awarded an honorary doctorate of humane letters from Becker College in 2015. CVS Health plays a role in over 100 million lives every year through their pharmacies, MinuteClinics, and HealthHUB locations, all under the leadership of Lynch. Follow her: @KarenSLynch, LinkedIn
Follow: @CVSHealth

Heyward Donigan – President and Chief Executive Officer, Rite Aid
Apointed in August 2019, Heyward Donigan leads one of the nation’s leading drugstore chains that has approximately 2,500 stores in 19 states, across America. Previously, Donigan served as executive vice president & chief marketing officer at Premera Blue Cross, and earlier in her career, she served as senior vice president of all operations at Cigna Healthcare. She has also held executive roles at General Electric, Empire BCBS and U.S. Healthcare, and previously served on the Board of Directors at several public companies, including Kindred Healthcare. Donigan has a master’s of public administration from New York University and a bachelor’s degree in English from the University of Virginia.With a personal interest in your health and wellness, Rite Aid delivers the products and services that valued customers, need to lead a healthier, happier life.
Follow her: LinkedIn
Follow: @riteaid

Dr. Cheryl Pegus – Executive Vice President, Health and Wellness, Walmart
Cheryl Pegus, M.D., M.P.H is a board-certified physician with subspecialty training in cardiology and is currently the EVP of Health and Wellness at Walmart. Previously she was the President of Consumer Solutions and Chief Medical Officer at Cambia Health Solutions. She is co-founder of A New Beat, an organization dedicated to improving the cardiovascular health and careers of women and under-represented minorities. She sits on the board of the American Heart Association and is the immediate past board chair for the Association of Black Cardiologists.Dr. Pegus received her bachelor’s degree from Brandeis University. Her medical doctorate is from Weill Cornell Medical College, and she has a master’s degree in Public Health from Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health.
Follow her: @CPegusMD, LinkedIn
Follow: @Walmart

Gail K. Boudreaux – President & CEO, Anthem Inc.
With more than three decades in the healthcare industry, Boudreaux has been the CEO of Anthem, Inc., since 2017. She is successfully leading the nation’s second-largest health insurer and a Fortune 50 company, serving nearly 41 million insured members through its affiliated health plans. She was recognized this week with Modern Healthcare’s Top 25 Women Leaders’ Luminary Award. She is the former CEO of United Healthcare, and served as Executive Vice President of Health Care Services Corporation and earlier as President of Blue Cross/Blue Shield of Illinois. Boudreaux earned a bachelor’s degree with honors from Dartmouth College and an MBA with distinction from Columbia Business School. Anthem’s mission is: Improving Lives and Communities. Simplifying Healthcare. Expecting More.
Follow: @AnthemInc