Nicole West, Vice President, Internal Audit

Nicole West serves as Vice President of Internal Audit, overseeing all Internal Audit functions and Enterprise Risk Management. West originally joined CHS in 2012 and served as Senior Director of Internal Audit. Prior to her work at CHS, she served as Director of Internal Audit for HealthSpring, Inc. and worked at Ernst & Young where she served public and private clients across different industries including Financial Services, Manufacturing, Gaming, Energy, and Telecommunications. West holds a bachelor of science degree in accounting and a bachelor of science degree in marketing from the University of Tennessee and a master’s degree in business administration from Mississippi State University.

« Leadership

Chuck Cova, President, Region 2 Operations

Charles J. (Chuck) Cova serves as the President of Region 2 Operations for Community Health Systems, overseeing the Company’s affiliated hospitals and markets in Arkansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, and New Mexico. Cova joined CHS in 2021 as the Vice President of Operations for Region 2. He was promoted to Region 2 President in October 2023. Prior to joining CHS, Cova served in hospital and market executive leadership positions and was ultimately promoted to Division President & CEO and Senior Vice President of Operations on the Central Coast in California. Cova had direct governance and management responsibility for acute care hospitals, post-acute facilities, ambulatory care sites, a comprehensive cancer center, and the physician enterprise, developing one of the most robust and successful health care delivery systems throughout the San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara and Ventura counties, consistently recognized for quality, safety and patient experience. Cova holds a bachelor’s degree from St. Mary’s college, a master’s degree in business administration in health services management from Golden Gate University, and completed post graduate work at Harvard.

« Leadership

Patrice Bordron, Vice President and Chief Information Security Officer

Patrice Bordron serves as Vice President and Chief Information Security Officer. With deep and broad global cyber and technology experience, Patrice is responsible for leading all aspects of the organization’s information security risk management program. Prior to joining CHS in 2021, he oversaw security, data privacy, compliance and continuity management at Nationwide Financial as its Chief Information Security Officer.

Before moving to the US, Patrice worked as an IT leader for Bank of America in London, Royal Bank of Scotland in Edinburgh, and ABSA and BMW, both in Johannesburg, South Africa. He served in the South Africa Military Medical Service as a Special Forces Paratrooper Medic after receiving a receiving a bachelor’s degree in computer science, information technology and software design from Vaal University of Technology in Vanderbijlpark, South Africa.

« Leadership

Jim Horrar, Senior Vice President, Managed Care

Jim Horrar is responsible for all aspects of managed care for Community Health Systems. Horrar originally joined CHS in 2008 and served as President and CEO at former subsidiary Quorum Health Resources, LLC, then as a Division Vice President of Operations working with hospitals in the south and southeast from 2014 to 2019. He rejoined CHS in 2023 following three and a half years with Centene Corporation as senior vice president over the Mid-West Division. Horrar began his career working with Humana Inc. for 14 years as chief operations officer for the Kentucky market and as a corporate vice president for national contracting. He holds a bachelor’s degree in electrical and biomedical engineering from the Vanderbilt University, master’s degree in electrical engineering from the University of Louisville, and master’s degree in business administration from Vanderbilt University.

« Leadership

Miguel S. Benet, M.D., M.P.H., Executive Vice President, Clinical Operations

Miguel S. Benet, M.D., M.P.H., has leadership responsibilities for clinical services and operations including the CHS PSO – Patient Safety Organization, clinical research, clinical informatics, case management/utilization review, ED, OR, OB cardiovascular service lines, transfer center operations, pharmacy, behavioral health, post-acute services, clinical data science, process improvement, clinical documentation improvement and physician coding and documentation, physician practice management, and graduate medical education (GME) programs within CHS-affiliated hospitals.

Before joining CHS in 2021, Benet served as Chief Medical Officer for HCA’s North Texas Division where he had responsibility for all clinical, safety and quality activities and led strategic implementation of clinical programs across the 16-hospital network. In his more than 20 years as a physician executive and practicing provider, he has held leadership roles including Chief Resident, Anesthesiology Department Chairman, medical staff committee chairmanships, and CMO at individual hospitals.

Benet earned his bachelor’s degree from the University of Florida and his medical degree along with a master’s degree in public health, health management and policy from the University of Michigan. He completed his anesthesia residency at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School in Boston, Massachusetts.

« Leadership

Nathaniel (Nathan) Summar, Vice President, Revenue Management

Nathan Summar serves as Vice President of Revenue Management for Community Health Systems where he is responsible for all aspects of Medicare and Medicaid reimbursement for CHS and its’ affiliates. His responsibilities include oversight of all federal and state regulatory reporting, analysis and advocacy for government programs, and oversight of the accounting cycle for revenue recognition. Summar joined CHS in 2002 as an Accounting Manager and has served as Vice President of the Revenue Management department since 2014. Prior to joining CHS, he held accounting positions in the healthcare and construction industries. He holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Middle Tennessee State University and is a Certified Public Accountant. 

« Leadership

Craig Pickard, Senior Vice President, Corporate Taxation

Craig Pickard was appointed Senior Vice President of Corporate Taxation for Community Health Systems in 2018. He joined CHS in 1998 as Director, Corporate Taxation and was appointed Vice President in 2015. Prior to joining CHS, he served as Tax Manager at Coventry Corporation and Deloitte LP, and as an Associate in Corporate Tax at HealthTrust. Pickard holds a bachelor’s degree in accounting from the University of Kentucky and is a Certified Public Accountant.

« Leadership

Gabe Ottinger, Senior Vice President and Treasurer

Gabe Ottinger was appointed Senior Vice President and Treasurer of Community Health Systems in 2020. Ottinger joined Community Health Systems in 2014 and has held various financial leadership roles during his tenure with the Company, including overseeing accounting and reporting for joint ventures, overseeing Company’s annual budgeting process and developing a corporate financial analytics team and various other special projects. Prior to joining CHS, he had an accomplished consulting career, where he assisted clients with acquisitions, divestitures, and public offerings of stock. He also served as Treasurer of Doane Pet Care, Director of Strategic and Business Planning at Mars PetCare US, and in various positions in the Assurance and Advisory Services practice at Ernst & Young. He holds a bachelor’s degree in accounting from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.

« Leadership

Edward W. (Ted) Lomicka, Vice President, Strategic Analytics

Ted Lomicka serves as Vice President of Strategic Analytics for Community Health Systems where he is responsible for overseeing data analytics, process improvement, new technologies, staffing structures, and market-based innovation projects. Lomicka joined CHS in 2002 as Director of Strategic Analysis and has held various positions of increasing responsibility in Finance and Treasury, including Vice President and Treasurer. Prior to joining CHS, he managed a team of consultants at PricewaterhouseCoopers that advised health systems on approaches to improving financial performance. He served as chairman of Leadership Health Care and was a board member for the Nashville Health Care Council and a participant in the Nashville Health Care Council Fellows program. He holds a bachelor’s degree from Tulane University and an MBA from Vanderbilt University.

« Leadership