ORANGE, Calif. (August 4, 2016) — Community and health care leaders were sworn in on CalOptima’s Board of Directors today. The Orange County Board of Supervisors appointed six new members and reappointed one member to serve on the Board, which was reconstituted to have 10 seats, with nine voting members. The appointees’ terms end August 3, 2020.

• Ria Berger, CEO of Healthy Smiles for Kids of Orange County, serves in the seat for a community clinic representative.
• Ron DiLuigi, a retired health system executive, holds the public seat for a resident of Orange County.
• Dr. Nikan Khatibi, a pain and addiction medicine specialist, serves in the seat for a physician who is not affiliated with a contracted health network.
• Alexander Nguyen, M.D., a resident in psychiatry at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center whose mother is a CalOptima member, represents current recipients of CalOptima services in the seat for a CalOptima member or family member.
• Lee Penrose, CEO of St. Jude Medical Center, is reappointed to fill the seat for a hospital administrator.
• J. Scott Schoeffel, an attorney with Buchalter Nemer, fills the seat for a legal or finance professional.
• Paul Yost, M.D., an anesthesiologist at CHOC Children’s and St. Joseph Hospital, serves in the seat for a physician who is affiliated with a contracted health network.

The remaining three seats are filled by returning Board members, including Supervisor Lisa Bartlett, Supervisor Andrew Do, and Mark Refowitz, Board chair and director of the Orange County Health Care Agency (non-voting member). Supervisor Todd Spitzer is an alternate. 

“The Board members’ diverse credentials and experience will benefit our agency and provide valuable insight,” said Michael Schrader, CalOptima Chief Executive Officer. “I look forward to collaborating with the Board to ensure that CalOptima, as a public agency, remains responsive to the health care needs of our members.”

About CalOptima

A county organized health system, CalOptima provides publicly funded health care coverage for low-income children, adults, seniors and people with disabilities in Orange County, California. CalOptima’s mission is to provide members with access to quality health care services delivered in a cost-effective and compassionate manner. In total, CalOptima serves more than 795,000 members with a network of more than 7,000 primary care doctors and specialists, as well as 30 hospitals.

Media Contact:
Bridget Kelly
Director, Communications
714-246-8765
bkelly@caloptima.org