W. Larry Cash Will Retire in May After Twenty Years of Service;
Thomas
J. Aaron to Succeed Cash as Chief Financial Officer
FRANKLIN, Tenn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 22, 2017--
Community Health Systems, Inc. (NYSE: CYH) announced today that W. Larry
Cash, President of Financial Services and Chief Financial Officer, will
retire from his executive management position and the Company’s Board of
Directors on May 16, 2017, the date of the Company’s 2017 annual meeting
of stockholders. Cash has served as the Company’s Chief Financial
Officer since joining the organization in September 1997 and was elected
to the Board in 2001. The Board of Directors approved Cash’s retirement
plans today. Upon his retirement, Cash will enter into a consulting
agreement with the Company, under which he will advise the Company’s
management team on issues related to healthcare finance, management and
operations.
Thomas J. Aaron, who currently serves as Senior Vice President–Finance
at Community Health Systems, will be appointed Chief Financial Officer
immediately following Cash’s retirement. Aaron joined Community Health
Systems in November 2016 after a 32-year career at Deloitte & Touche
LLP. Aaron retired from Deloitte in October 2016 after serving as
Tennessee Managing Partner and leading teams for many of the firm’s
largest national healthcare provider and payer clients, including
Community Health Systems, Inc., most recently in 2013.
Commenting on the announcement, Wayne T. Smith, chairman and chief
executive officer of Community Health Systems, Inc., said, “No one has
been more involved or more influential in shaping the evolution of
Community Health Systems over the past two decades than Larry Cash. I am
extremely grateful to Larry for his significant contributions, and I am
proud of all that we have accomplished. Larry’s business and financial
expertise have been critical to our success and encompassed every aspect
of the Company’s strategic initiatives, operations and financial
management. He has capably guided us through billions of dollars in
financial transactions, numerous acquisitions and divestitures, our IPO
in 2000, and he has provided oversight for many of our corporate
departments. Community Health Systems has relied on Larry’s vast
knowledge, integrity and tireless work, and he will leave us positioned
to build on our accomplishments well into the future. I wish Larry the
very best in his retirement and, on behalf of our Board and everyone at
Community Health Systems, we thank him for his outstanding service.”
Smith went on to say, “I am very pleased that Tom Aaron will transition
into the role of CFO upon Larry’s retirement. Through his leadership
role at Deloitte, Tom worked directly with our company as an audit
partner for many years. Since joining our organization last November,
Tom has been immersed in our financial operations, and he will continue
to work closely with Larry to ensure a smooth transition of
responsibilities. I am highly confident in Tom’s ability to help
Community Health Systems achieve our strategic and financial objectives.”
Larry Cash is a 20-year veteran of Community Health Systems and has more
than 30 years of management experience in the hospital and managed care
sectors. Cash currently serves on the Board of Directors for Community
Health Systems, Inc. and Cross Country Healthcare, Inc. Cash has been
named one of the top three CFOs in the healthcare sector by Institutional
Investor 11 times. He was named Business Tennessee’s first
ever CFO of the Year in 2008. He also earned that distinction in the
public companies category from the Nashville Business Journal in
2009 and went on to become recipient of the CFO Lifetime Achievement
award from the Nashville Business Journal in 2014. Prior to
joining Community Health Systems, Cash served as Vice President and
Group Chief Financial Officer of Columbia/HCA Healthcare Corporation
from September 1996 to August 1997. Prior to Columbia/HCA, Cash spent 23
years at Humana Inc., most recently as Senior Vice President of Finance
and Operations from 1993 to 1996. Cash received his bachelor’s degree
from the University of Kentucky. He is a Certified Public Accountant and
is professionally affiliated with the American Institute of Certified
Public Accountants, Tennessee Society of Certified Public Accountants,
and the Healthcare Financial Management Association.
Tom Aaron joined Community Health Systems as Senior Vice
President–Finance in November 2016 after concluding a 32-year career at
Deloitte. Aaron served as Deloitte’s Tennessee Managing Partner for ten
years. His healthcare industry experience at Deloitte includes audits of
public and private companies, strategy and operations improvement
consulting, mergers and acquisitions, financing and public equity
offering services, and participation in numerous board and committee
meetings. As a Deloitte partner, Aaron was the lead client service and
lead assurance partner on the Community Health Systems’ external audit
from 1996 to 2003 and from 2008 to 2013. Aaron received his bachelor’s
degree from the University of Kentucky and serves as a Master’s of
Accounting Advisory Board member for the University of Kentucky and
Vanderbilt University Owen Graduate School of Management.
About Community Health Systems, Inc.
Community Health Systems, Inc. is one of the largest publicly traded
hospital companies in the United States and a leading operator of
general acute care hospitals in communities across the country. The
Company, through its subsidiaries, owns, leases or operates 158
affiliated hospitals in 22 states with an aggregate of nearly 27,000
licensed beds. The Company’s headquarters are located in Franklin,
Tennessee, a suburb south of Nashville. Shares in Community Health
Systems, Inc. are traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol
“CYH.” More information about the Company can be found on its website at www.chs.net.
Forward-Looking Statements
Statements contained in this news release regarding operating results
and other events are forward-looking statements that involve risk and
uncertainties. Actual future events or results may differ materially
from these statements. Readers are referred to the documents filed
by Community Health Systems, Inc. with the Securities and Exchange
Commission, including the Company’s annual report on Form 10-K, current
reports on Form 8-K and quarterly reports on Form 10-Q. These filings
identify important risk factors and other uncertainties that could cause
actual results to differ from those contained in the forward-looking
statements. The Company undertakes no obligation to revise or update any
forward-looking statements, or to make any other forward-looking
statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or
otherwise.
View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20170222006483/en/
Source: Community Health Systems, Inc.
Community Health Systems, Inc.
Investor Contacts:
W.
Larry Cash, 615-465-7000
President of Financial Services and Chief
Financial Officer
or
Ross W. Comeaux, 615-465-7012
Senior
Director – Investor Relations
or
Media Contact:
Tomi
Galin, 615-628-6607
Senior Vice President, Corporate
Communications, Marketing and Public Affairs