Michael Rowan, the chief operating officer of Catholic Health Initiatives and No. 2 executive behind CEO Kevin Lofton, will leave the health system at the end of this month "to explore a number of other opportunities in the healthcare industry."
A spokesman did not specify what those other opportunities could be.
Rowan has been a top executive at CHI for more than 12 years and will depart as the not-for-profit hospital operator considers merging with Dignity Health on the West Coast. As COO and president for health system delivery, Rowan oversaw much of CHI's day-to-day operations, which have struggled heavily as of late.
CHI, headquartered in Englewood, Colo., lost nearly a half-billion dollars from operations in its 2016 fiscal year and recorded nearly $16 billion of revenue. CHI aggressively acquired more hospital systems and invested in a health insurance division, which has since tanked and led to much of the red ink. Modern Healthcare first reported in June that CHI was selling its health insurance arm.
Rowan told Modern Healthcare in 2014 that providers getting involved with health insurance as a means to achieve population health management was the future of the industry.
"It's one thing to be an insurer and say we can put a network together," Rowan said. "It's another thing to have a narrow network purposely built for population health management."
But Rowan also said CHI knew any potential benefits would not come quickly. "We don't want to suggest that we think we'll be as proficient as insurers in the insurance business in a couple of years," he said.