LA Care Health Plan announced on December 5 that its Board of Governors unanimously voted to appoint Martha Santana-Chin as its next Chief Executive Officer. This appointment makes Santana-Chin the first woman and Latina to lead the organization.
Santana-Chin had previously held several leadership roles at various organizations, including an 11-year tenure at Health Net, a Centene company, where she served as Plan Chief Product President in the California Market.
Santana-Chin’s Background
As the eldest of nine and the daughter of immigrants whose family had to rely on Medi-Cal during her childhood, Santana-Chin takes pride in her understanding of low-income communities’ struggles. She has dedicated her nearly 30-year career to working with underserved communities in Los Angeles County and other parts of the state.
Santana-Chin has been at the forefront of healthcare innovation and has played pivotal leadership roles in every stage of California’s managed care journey, which is focused on helping low-income populations. Her work has been critical in transitioning these communities into managed care as the program evolved its focus to care for those with complex medical needs and to address whole-person care by integrating medical, behavioral, and social sciences.
Santana-Chin’s steadfast commitment to advocating for access to high-quality care empowers the communities she serves to thrive. She succeeds the outgoing CEO, John Baackes, who guided LA Care for almost a decade and whose departure was announced in April of this year.
“I’m deeply honored to be the next Chief Executive Officer of LA Care as a representative voice of the people we’re serving,” Santana-Chin said. “I have a profound sense of responsibility to LA’s low-income families and look forward to collaborating with the remarkable team at LA Care, its board, and its community stakeholders to continue advancing equity in healthcare.”
A Passion for Expanding Healthcare Access
The Board of Governors considered many qualified candidates, but Santana-Chin was chosen as the ideal leader to inspire LA Care’s community and ensure that the organization continues to bring a well-rounded structure, a sense of collaboration, and overall fairness to LA’s complex healthcare landscape.
Santana-Chin brings extensive experience in managed care, provider relations, operations, delivery system strategy, network management, value-based care programs, and business accountability. Her partnership-building skills have cultivated high-performing collaborative cultures and a strong team-oriented approach, which will be valuable to the organization’s success.
Al Ballesteros, the chair of LA Care’s Board of Governors, said, “Martha’s passion for expanding access to healthcare combined with her humility, empathy, and commitment to building strong and resilient coalitions made her the clear choice to be our next CEO.”
Ballesteros added, “She understands our stakeholders and their unique needs—whether they be our members, providers, local, state, and federal regulators, or community advocates.”
Hilda Solis, a member of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors and LA Care’s Board of Governors, added: “This historic appointment of a versatile and dynamic Latina community leader to helm the nation’s largest publicly operated health plan bodes well for patients and providers across greater Los Angeles. LA Care is a unifying force in our community, and I’m confident that under Martha’s leadership, we will continue to get Angelenos the care they need, when they need it.”
Santana-Chin’s Education Credentials
Santana-Chin also serves as Board Chair for the United Way of Greater Los Angeles and the Integrated Healthcare Association. She graduated with a BS in finance from California State University Long Beach and received her MBA from the University of California, Irvine—Paul Merage School of Business.
Santana-Chin will assume her position as CEO of LA Care on January 6, 2025.
