AHA Board names SSM Health’s Laura Kaiser chair-elect designate

The AHA Board of Trustees Board of Trustees has elected Laura Kaiser, president and CEO of SSM Health, based in St. Louis, Mo., as its chair-elect designate. Kaiser will be chair-elect in 2027 and become the 2028 AHA chair, the top elected official of the association.  

“I look forward to the opportunity to serve, continuing to advocate for America’s hospitals and health systems to advance solutions that work for everyone. The AHA’s vision of a society of healthy communities, where every person has the potential to live a healthy life, is one I have pursued throughout my career,” Kaiser said. “Our patients and communities demand and deserve our very best, and we must move with purposeful urgency to deliver it. That means protecting and strengthening the 24/7 care hospitals provide today, while reimagining how we build and support a healthier, resilient future for our patients and the communities we serve.” 

Kaiser joined SSM Health, which serves millions of patients across Missouri, Illinois, Wisconsin and Oklahoma, in 2017. Prior to that, Kaiser served as executive vice president and chief operating office for Intermountain Health in Salt Lake City. In addition, Kaiser served in a number of senior leadership roles at Ascension Health, including as the regional executive for the Gulf Coast/Florida region and as president and CEO at Sacred Heart Health System in Pensacola, Fla.