Benjamin K. Chu, M.D., M.P.H., M.A.C.P.
President, Kaiser Permanente Southern California Region; Group President, Kaiser Permanente Southern California and Hawaii; Chair of the American Hospital Association Board of Trustees
Benjamin K. Chu, MD, MPH, MACP, was appointed regional president of Kaiser Permanente Southern California in February 2005. In January 2011, he was given the added responsibility of overseeing the Hawaii region as a group president responsible for both Southern California and the Hawaii regions. He directs health plan and hospital operations for 14 hospitals and 168 medical offices to serve more than 3.6 million members in both locations. As a group president, he joins the Programwide Operational Leadership group with oversight responsibility over the entire program.
Before he joined Kaiser Permanente, Dr. Chu served for three years as president of New York City’s Health and Hospitals Corporation (HHC), the largest public hospital system in the country. A primary care internist by training, Dr. Chu possesses extensive health care experience as a clinician, administrator, and policy advocate. He was senior vice president for Medical and Professional Affairs for HHC in New York from 1990 to 1994. During that period, he also served as acting commissioner of Health for the New York City Department of Health.
Dr. Chu also has experience as an academic health center leader. He was senior associate dean at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons from July 2000 – February 2002. He also served at the New York University School of Medicine and Medical Center as associate dean and vice president for Clinical Affairs from April 1994 – May 2000. He was a 1989-1990 Robert Wood Johnson Policy Fellow serving as legislative assistant for health for New Jersey Senator Bill Bradley.
At both Kaiser Permanente and New York City, Dr. Chu has been a strong proponent of the use of the electronic health record as a powerful tool for improving quality and outcomes for patient care.
Dr. Chu currently serves as the chair of the American Hospital Association Board of Trustees. He is on the board of the Commonwealth Fund in New York and is a member of the Advisory Committee to the director, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Dr. Chu earned his medical degree at New York University, his master’s degree in public health from Columbia University, and a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Yale University.