DETROIT – The president and CEO of Henry Ford Health announced Thursday that he is stepping down and taking another position with a Chicago-based health system.
Henry Ford Health President and CEO Wright Lassiter III announced on April 28 that he is leaving his role to become CEO of CommonSpirit Health, one of the largest nonprofit health systems in the nation, officials said. Lassiter joined Henry Ford Health as the president in 2014, and then became the president and CEO in 2016.
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“It has truly been one of the great honors of my life to lead the incredibly relentless, resilient, innovative, diverse and compassionate team that is Henry Ford Health. It has been said that when you need heroism at scale, when you are faced with a seemingly insurmountable challenge, when others say ‘no,’ you come to Henry Ford. I found this to be true -- every day,” Lassiter said in a statement. “I am incredibly proud of the transformative work we have done together in and across communities in Michigan and far beyond. I have no doubt that the influence and impact of Henry Ford will continue to grow and flourish long after my final day here.”
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A national search will be held to find Lassiter’s replacement. Officials say that Bob Riney, president of health care operations and COO, will lead while the search for a replacement is underway.
“In 2020, with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, Henry Ford Health became a leading advisor to city of Detroit and the state of Michigan. Henry Ford Health quickly charted the path for vaccine research and became a chosen leader for the Moderna and J&J vaccine trials,” a press release reads. “Under Lassiter’s leadership, Henry Ford Health became the official medical advisor for Michigan’s mass vaccination site and the first health system in the state to require workforce vaccination.”
Lassiter will conclude his role at Henry Ford Health in July.
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