Kindred Healthcare Names New CEO

Kindred Healthcare, Inc’s chief operating officer and president, Benjamin A. Breier will take over as chief executive officer next year, the company announced Thursday.

Mr Breier will succeed Paul J. Diaz, who will become the executive vice chairman of the Kindred Board of Directors. Mr Breier’s new position in the company will be effective on March 31, 2015. At that time he will also become a member of Kindred’s Board of Directors.

“During Ben’s tenure as President, he significantly enhanced both the quality outcomes Kindred cares so deeply about, and the operational excellence for which Kindred has come to be known,” Mr Diaz said in a statement. “Ben has continued to drive performance, efficiencies of service and enhanced employee engagement.”

Mr Breier joined the company in 2005, was named president of the Hospital Division in 2008, and was promoted again to COO in 2010 and assuming additional responsibilities as president in 2012.

Kindred recently acquired Gentiva Health Services, Inc, a home health and hospice company with approximately 40,000 employees and 550 locations. The acquisition is expected to officially close by the first quarter of 2015, just before Mr Breier takes over Kindred.

“This combination strengthens our ability to serve patients across the full continuum of care—from the hospital to the home,” he had said at the time of the agreement announcement. “Together we will create the industry leading provider of home based patient-centered care, solidifying our position at the forefront of the care delivery model that is preferred by patients and payors. As a combined company, we will continue to grow and help shape the American Healthcare Delivery System.”

Once the deal closes, Mr Breier will be leading a company with more than 100,000 employees in hospitals, facilities, hospices, and home health agencies across 47 states, making Kindred the fourth-largest employer in the US. The company will serve more than 1 million patients a year, and will be the largest operator of long-term acute care hospitals and inpatient rehabilitation facilities.

“I am honored by the opportunity to lead a dynamic organization like Kindred,” Mr Breier said. “I look forward to continuing the mission of making post-acute care more efficient and accessible to the nation’s healthcare beneficiaries.”