DENVER, CO – June 30, 2021
Everside Health today announced four appointments to its Board of Directors, bringing the total number of directors to 11. The board members include Joseph Mello, CEO of First Light Advisors, LLP and former president of DaVita Medical Group; Michael Strautmanis, Executive Vice President for Civic Engagement with the Obama Foundation; Wouleta Ayele, Senior Vice President for Starbucks Technology Services; and Sara Lewis, who serves on the boards of Healthpeak Properties and Weyerhaeuser Company.
Everside Health (formerly Paladina Health, Activate Healthcare and Healthstat) is one of the nation's largest direct primary care providers operating more than 340 health clinics in 33 states at or near the facilities of its employer, union and other plan sponsor clients.
"We are honored to welcome these four outstanding professionals to the Everside Health board," said Chris Miller, CEO of Everside Health. "Each brings a wealth of experience and a unique perspective that will be invaluable as we continue on our quest to bring better health outcomes to patients while lowering the total cost of care for plan sponsors."
Below is additional background information on each of the newly announced board members:
Wouleta Ayele, Senior Vice President for Starbucks Technology Services, serves on the Everside Health Nominating & Governance Committee. At Starbucks, Ayele is responsible for the technology pillars that enable the company's brand-differentiating capabilities and platforms, including Business Intelligence and Data Services, Enterprise Architecture, Emerging Technologies, Data Center and Cloud Enablement, Global Network, Technology Operations, and Technology Governance & Compliance. At previous roles within the company, Ayele oversaw Loyalty & CRM Technology and led teams focused on supporting business intelligence solutions, enabling artificial intelligence and machine learning, and establishing data governance practices focused on privacy and compliance.
Sara Lewis has served on the board of directors of seven public companies over the past 17 years, and now serves as chair of the Everside Health Audit Committee. In addition to serving on the Everside Health board, she also serves on the boards of the Weyerhaeuser Company and Healthpeak Properties, Inc., and is on the Center for Audit Quality's Audit Committee Council. On the philanthropic side, she is a member of the Board of Trustees of the Brookings Institution and is on the leadership board of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Center for Capital Markets Competitiveness.
Joe Mello, a private investor and management consultant in the healthcare industry, serves as chair of the Everside Health board. He is also a member of the board of Radiology Partners and serves on the strategic advisory boards of Project Connect LLC, and MARS Petcare, and is on the advisory board to the President of the Georgia Institute of Technology. He is the founder and chief executive officer of First Light Advisors, LLP. Previously, he served as president of DaVita Medical Group and Chief Operating Officer of its parent company, DaVita Inc.
Michael Strautmanis, Executive Vice President for Civic Engagement at the Obama Foundation, serves on the Everside Health Nominating & Governance Committee. In his role at the Obama Foundation, Strautmanis leads teams driving civic engagement, community affairs, and strategic partnerships and is the Chief Engagement Officer of the My Brothers' Keeper Alliance, an initiative of the Obama Foundation. Previously, he was an advisor to President Barack Obama for almost two decades and was at the center of crafting the White House's agenda, policy and strategic approach to key initiatives, including health care reform. Strautmanis previously worked at the Walt Disney Company where he led an enterprise-wide initiative to consolidate, focus, and deepen the impact of Disney's corporate social responsibility program.
The complete list of the directors serving on the Everside Health Board of Directors includes:
Everside Health, formerly Paladina Health, Activate Healthcare and Healthstat, is one of the largest direct primary care providers in the U.S., operating 340+ health clinics in 33 states located at or near the facilities of its employer, union and other benefit sponsor clients. Everside's patient-focused, care-obsessed, technology-driven healthcare delivery model aligns incentives to benefit the patient, the physician and the benefit provider, all while reducing the total cost of care. Patients receive convenient, low- or no-cost access to physicians and 24/7 virtual care, reducing the need for costly ER use. Everside Health is based in Denver. For more information, visit www.eversidehealth.com.