CHIME Appoints New Director of Communications and Vice President of Federal Affairs
Weinstock and Savickis Join CHIME to Strengthen Support of Communications and Public Policy Advocacy
ANN ARBOR, MI, September 10, 2015 – The College of Healthcare Information Management Executives (CHIME) is pleased to announce the appointments of Matthew Weinstock as director of communications and public relations and Mari Savickis as vice president of federal affairs. These new additions to the CHIME staff will strengthen the organization’s involvement in the healthcare IT industry and increasingly active role in public policy development.
“We are excited to announce Matthew and Mari as new members of the CHIME team, proven leaders in the health IT community,” said CHIME CEO and President Russell P. Branzell, FCHIME, CHCIO. “Their expertise will enhance CHIME’s ability to provide our members with the resources they need to succeed as the expectations for CIOs and senior health IT leaders continue to evolve.”
In his new role, effective September 8, 2015, Weinstock will help execute an aggressive communications strategy to key stakeholders including the media, policymakers and healthcare IT executives to highlight the organization and CHIME members as healthcare thought leaders.
Weinstock comes to CHIME with more than 20 years of experience leading editorial and communication projects across multiple media platforms. He spent the last 12 years as an editor of Hospitals & Health Networks, published by Health Forum, an American Hospital Association subsidiary. In that role, Weinstock interviewed and interacted with leaders across the industry, gaining a keen understanding of the myriad of issues driving change in the health care landscape. He also had a leading editorial role on Health Care’s Most Wired Survey and Benchmarking Study, which just concluded its 17th year. Most Wired is produced in collaboration between Health Forum and CHIME.
“We welcome his (Weinstock’s) experience and expertise and know he will quickly become a valuable member of the marketing and communications team.” said Branzell.
Shortly after Weinstock’s arrival, Savickis will begin in her role as CHIME’s vice president of federal affairs on September 14, 2015. She will focus on translating how federal policy mandates impact the day-to-day lives of healthcare CIOs. Her expertise in health IT and experience serving the provider community will be invaluable as the organization positions CIOs and other health IT leaders as key constituency for policymakers.
Savickis has been the assistant director of federal affairs for the American Medical Association (AMA) for the last nine years, where she led the organization’s interactions with the federal agencies concerning health IT policy. Prior to joining the AMA, Savickis worked at the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) and the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC).
“The public policy landscape – both in Washington and across the country – is very dynamic. CIOs, and our Foundation firms alike, are grappling with a complex regulatory environment,” said Branzell. “Mari will be an important resource to assist our members as they navigate federal policies while also valuable bringing expertise from her time with the AMA and within federal agencies to further strengthen CHIME’s advocacy capabilities.”
About CHIME
The College of Healthcare Information Management Executives (CHIME) is an executive organization dedicated to serving chief information officers and other senior healthcare IT leaders. With more than 1,600 CIO members and over 150 healthcare IT vendors and professional services firms, CHIME provides a highly interactive, trusted environment enabling senior professional and industry leaders to collaborate; exchange best practices; address professional development needs; and advocate the effective use of information management to improve the health and healthcare in the communities they serve. For more information, please visit www.chimecentral.org.
Contact:
Matt Weinstock
Director of Communications
734.249.8917
[email protected]