Ballad Health Board, physicians applaud selection of CEO Alan Levine as one of Becker’s Hospital Review’s ‘2026 Great Leaders in Healthcare’
National recognition reflects improved access, quality outcomes and sustained investment across the Appalachian Highlands
37604, June 11, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. — Becker’s Hospital Review, a national news publication for the healthcare industry, has named Ballad Health Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer Alan Levine as one of its “2026 Great Leaders in Healthcare.” The national recognition highlights executives who are driving meaningful change, advancing care delivery and shaping the future of healthcare.
Levine was selected alongside leaders from some of the country’s most prominent health systems – including Kaiser Permanente, Mount Sinai Health System and St. Jude Children's Research Hospital – reflecting a distinguished group of executives leading innovation, improving access and strengthening care across communities nationwide.
“Great healthcare leaders are proactive changemakers… building the future rather than passively waiting for it to arrive,” Becker’s wrote in announcing the list.
Under Levine’s leadership, Ballad Health has become a nationally recognized model for rural healthcare transformation. Serving a region spanning Northeast Tennessee, Southwest Virginia, Eastern Kentucky and Western North Carolina – an area roughly the size of New Hampshire – Ballad Health operates 20 hospitals and a comprehensive network of services. This includes the nation’s largest Accountable Care Community, the population health initiative Appalachian Highlands Care Network, home health and behavioral health services and an innovation arm through Ballad Ventures.
“Alan represents the very best of mission-driven healthcare leadership and has guided this organization through some of its most challenging moments, including the merger and COVID-19,” said Dr. Evan L. Kulbacki, an independent pathologist in Kingsport, Tenn. and member of Ballad Health’s Clinical Council. “He’s deeply committed to quality – even when it requires greater investment – and keeps patient care at the center of every decision. Alan also has a unique ability to translate complex financial realities into something clinicians can understand, helping us see both the bigger picture and the day-to-day impact. He listens to physicians, values their perspective and is consistently forward-thinking in how he leads.”
Levine’s leadership at Ballad Health has delivered measurable progress across the system and region:
- Access: Ballad Health has expanded access to care across rural Appalachia by recruiting more than 800 providers since 2018, reopening Lee County Community Hospital to restore local inpatient services and continuing to invest in key expansions such as NICU, emergency and behavioral health capacity. The system also demonstrated its commitment to uninterrupted care during crises, maintaining services and rapidly deploying medical, behavioral health and community support across the region in response to Hurricane Helene.
- Quality and service: Real-time patient ratings through widely recognized platforms, such as Google reviews, demonstrate that Ballad Health’s hospitals perform as well as, or better than, many of the leading hospitals in the nation. As an example of demonstrative improvement in quality, peer-reviewed and published studies have reported a 24 percent decrease in deaths from trauma due to Ballad Health’s work alongside its partners from ETSU and the trauma team.
- Investment in the region: Ballad Health has made historic investments in its communities, including a record $150 million in capital in FY25 alone and more than $400 million in facilities, technology and access improvements since 2022.
- Financial stability: Despite industry headwinds, the system has maintained strong financial performance and “A” credit ratings, positioning Ballad Health to sustain access, invest in care and navigate future challenges.
- Innovation: Through Ballad Ventures, which invests in early-stage healthcare solutions to expand access and support care teams, along with robotics, telehealth and workforce programs, the system continues to pioneer new models of care for rural communities. As an example, through its investment in 34 Lives, patients with end-stage kidney disease are able to get needed transplants – saving lives and saving taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars annually.
Levine brings more than 30 years of executive leadership experience across healthcare systems of all sizes, as well as a distinguished record of public service at both the state and national levels. He has advised multiple governors on healthcare policy, led state health agencies and played a key role in managing major public health responses, including hurricane recovery efforts, the largest oil spill in U.S. history, the H1N1 influenza pandemic and the COVID-19 pandemic — guiding coordinated regional response efforts to maintain access to care during an unprecedented global crisis.
“Alan’s leadership is grounded in accountability, vision and a deep commitment to the people and communities Ballad Health serves,” added Dr. Brian Noland, Vice Chair and Lead Independent Director of Ballad Health’s Board and President of East Tennessee State University. “He understands that strengthening rural healthcare means investing in the medical staff – recruiting top talent, training the next generation of clinicians and ensuring providers have the support they need to deliver exceptional care close to home.”
Levine has also earned national recognition from organizations like Modern Healthcare and has been named to multiple leadership and innovation lists throughout his career.
“This recognition from Becker’s really belongs to the Ballad Health team – our physicians, nurses and clinicians and our support teams,” Levine said. “Our team is committed to our mission and to our communities. The most important recognition I receive is that I get the opportunity every day to continue earning their trust as we do this important work together.”
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About Ballad Health:
Ballad Health is an integrated community health improvement organization serving 29 counties of the Appalachian Highlands in Northeast Tennessee, Southwest Virginia, Northwest North Carolina and Southeast Kentucky. Our system of 20 hospitals, post-acute care and behavioral health services, and a large multi-specialty group physician practice works closely with an active independent medical community and community stakeholders to improve the health and well-being of close to one million people. By leading in the adoption of value-based payments, addressing health-related social needs, funding clinical and health systems research and committing to long-term investments in strong children and families in our region, Ballad Health is striving to become a national model for rural health and healthcare. Learn more at www.BalladHealth.org.
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