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LOUISVILLE, Ky. (Jan.
28, 2002) -- The Board of Directors of the
Foundation for a Healthy Kentucky has appointed
Rita Moya to be the Foundation’s first
Executive Director. Moya, who moved to Kentucky
in August, was President/CEO of the National
Health Foundation, a charitable organization
based in Los Angeles, for 11 years.
Board Chair Laurel
True said the selection of Moya is "a key
milestone in the brief history of Kentucky’s
new public health foundation. We’ve
selected a leader with proven skills and
expertise in mobilizing communities around
important health issues."
"Rita Moya will do
much to help focus the foundation’s
mission and move it toward building consensus
for an action agenda," said True, who
is also a community volunteer with AARP.
The Foundation was
founded in 1999 when Attorney General Albert
B. Chandler and Anthem Blue Cross agreed
to place $45 million into a new organization
to repay the citizens of Kentucky for the
many years of tax-exempt operations Kentucky
Blue Cross and Blue Shield had enjoyed before
merging with for-profit Anthem Blue Cross
in 1993. In September 2000, the Attorney
General’s office announced the members
of a Community Advisory Committee, which
nominated the Foundation’s first Board
of Directors. The board held its inaugural
meeting last May and immediately began looking
toward how best to address the unmet healthcare
needs of Kentuckians.
"Volunteer efforts
can be very effective but they require strong
staff leadership," said Hank Wagner,
CEO of Jewish Hospital and chair of the
Board’s search committee. "In
Rita Moya we have found a nationally recognized
executive who has the business savvy to
manage our endowment and $2 million-plus
operating budget but who also has a great
passion for outreach to healthcare’s
uninsured and under served."
As President and
CEO of the National Health Foundation (NHF)
Moya was instrumental in implementing many
programs that expanded access to health
coverage and health services, especially
for low-income women and children. Moya
ran NHF, a non-profit devoted to improving
access to health and health care, from 1990
until June 2001. During her tenure she built
several endowment funds and was responsible
for facilitating many collaborative efforts.
In July 2001, NHF honored her by endowing
the Rita Moya Center for Health Information
Technology, which is dedicated to developing
web-based health planning tools in the public
domain. Moya serves on national boards including
the Work Group on Electronic Interchange,
Independent Sector and the Valeo Initiative.
She is a frequent speaker at conferences
and with the media on topics related to
access to health care and health information
technology and is the author of numerous
health policy papers and peer-reviewed articles.
Moya also has worked in the public sector
and in business where she has experience
in marketing, community affairs and grant
making. Moya holds an undergraduate degree
from the University of Nebraska and a Master
of Science degree in Urban Planning from
Virginia Tech.
"Moya will help
facilitate an exploration of Kentuckians’
key health aspirations." said Richard
J. Seckel, the Foundation’s Community
Advisory Committee chairman.
"Everyone wants
to live a life that includes good health
and freedom from disease but for many Kentuckians
barriers make this difficult," Moya
said. "I look forward to this exciting
opportunity and hope to interact with all
the dedicated leaders that have been working
so hard on many of the state’s key
health issues."
Moya will begin her
tenure with the Foundation for a Healthy
Kentucky on Feb. 1. To learn more about
the Foundation, which will be located in
Louisville, visit the new website: www.healthyKY.org
For Immediate Release
Contact: Mary Jo Shircliffe
Foundation for a Healthy Kentucky
(502) 394 3437, healthyky@core.com
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