Michael Hunn, the chief executive officer of Orange County’s $4 billion health care plan for the poor, said Wednesday, Jan. 21, he is retiring at the end of the year.
As the head of CalOptima Health, Hunn has guided the public agency since 2021 through controversy over its financial practices while scoring major accomplishments in bringing health care and housing to the masses. Nearly one in every three Orange County residents receives services through CalOptima.
Hunn, 70, said he disclosed his plans nearly a year early to give the CalOptima board ample time to search for a replacement to oversee a staff of 1,664. He promised to push hard during his time left on health initiatives to improve medical services for the impoverished.
“I look forward to this next year. I told the board I will not take my foot off the gas pedal and I will go full tilt until my last day,” Hunn told the Orange County Register.
County Supervisor Vicente Sarmiento, chair of the CalOptima board, said he was grateful for Hunn’s “visionary leadership.”
“Michael’s innovative thinking, steadfast pursuit of strategic initiatives for our members, and careful stewardship of the organization’s resources have prepared us to confront an ever-changing and complex environment for health care,” Sarmiento said.
In 2021, Hunn took the helm of a CalOptima agency long criticized for its alleged use by Orange County officials as what the Register editorial board called “a patronage system” in its management of billions of dollars.
Hunn himself became the focus of controversy in 2022 when, less than a year into his contract, the CalOptima board raised his pay by 50% to an annual $841,500. Former county Supervisor Andrew Do, who is now serving federal prison time for accepting bribes in his county post, was chairman of the CalOptima board at that time.
Hunn stressed he had not asked for a raise and CalOptima officials previously noted his increased compensation was comparable to other CEOs of health care agencies and was adopted by the entire board.
Officials also said CalOptima spends more than 95% of its budget on health care services and less than 4.5% on overhead expenses, among the lowest overhead rates for any health plan in California.
A state audit also was ordered into CalOptima’s stockpiling of $1.2 billion in surplus and reserves — money that critics said should be spent on providing services. The audit found in 2023 that $675 million in surplus funds should be used to improve services, which CalOptima has done. Yet it still has amassed nearly $1.6 billion, which Hunn notes will help its members survive state and federal cutbacks in Medi-Cal as well as other political hurdles.
“We are in a very good financial position to weather any cutbacks from the state, any cutbacks from the federal government,” Hunn said. “Given some of the tensions between Washington, D.C., and the state, if there were ever to be a hiccup in revenues, we’d be able to continue to pay our providers” for a time.
Cal-Optima also is stepping up virtual doctor visits for members afraid to venture out because of immigration raids.
“We have a real opportunity to stay laser-focused, not getting distracted by all the noise. We need to make sure people get to the doctor,” Hunn said. “I don’t look at it as a tough time. … If I stay focused on the mission, the beneficiaries of my focus will be our members.”
Unlike some executives, Hunn often hits the streets, attending virtually every event sponsored by CalOptima to educate and provide medical services to the public — including local fairs and back-to-school programs. He said he is planning later this month to help with the effort to physically count homeless people in Orange County.
In his career as a chief executive for several hospitals, Hunn said he has never hesitated to roll up his sleeves, go to the emergency rooms and even change pillowcases as a way to help during challenging times.
“I will always go to places where members are being served, in the parks, under the bridges,” said Hunn, a former Catholic priest. “That’s something, I think, is always important to me. If I as the leader don’t understand who it is I’m serving, than I will never be able to fulfill the mission.”
A key part of that mission is CalOptima’s street medicine program, in which contracted medical professionals and social workers provide health care to those experiencing homelessness. Some of the workers were previously homeless themselves, Hunn said.
Related Articles
States go their own way as RFK Jr. shifts federal vaccine policy The US is on the verge of losing its measles elimination status. Here’s why that matters How abortion coverage threatens to prevent a congressional deal on health care subsidies US flu activity fell for a second week. But experts worry the season is far from over Inside the battle for the future of addiction medicineThe program is underway on the streets of Garden Grove, Costa Mesa and Anaheim and is being expanded to Santa Ana and north Orange County.
During Hunn’s tenure, the board also approved $526 million to enhance rates for Medi-Cal claims by 8% to ease the financial strain on providers and help retain them to serve the disabled or those below the poverty level.
“Members and their families, they are counting on us to get things right,” Hunn said. “So when they reach out, we better be prepared to serve them.”
Hence then, the article about caloptima ceo to retire at end of 2026 ending a tenure marked by success and controversy was published today ( ) and is available on The Orange County Register ( Middle East ) The editorial team at PressBee has edited and verified it, and it may have been modified, fully republished, or quoted. You can read and follow the updates of this news or article from its original source.
Read More Details
Finally We wish PressBee provided you with enough information of ( CalOptima CEO to retire at end of 2026, ending a tenure marked by success and controversy )
Also on site :