Molina picks former Aetna exec as new CEO

Molina Healthcare announced Tuesday that Joseph Zubretsky, Aetna's former chief financial officer, will take over as its new president and CEO, effective Nov. 6.

Zubretsky will succeed interim CEO Joseph White, who took over after the insurer ousted CEO Dr. J. Mario Molina and Chief Financial Officer John Molina, the sons of the company's founder, in May. At the time, Molina's board cited the company's disappointing financial performance, though some observers thought Dr. Molina's outspoken criticism of Republican efforts to repeal the Affordable Care Act might have played a role.

White will remain with Molina Healthcare as CFO.

Long Beach, Calif.-based Molina offers Medicaid plans in 12 states and sells individual-market plans on a number of state exchanges. It covers 4.7 million members in total.

"Joe is the right CEO to lead Molina during this transformative period," said Dale Wolf, chairman of Molina's board of directors. "He has a track record of strong leadership across multiple businesses, both inside and outside managed care, and has first-hand experience in leading restructuring efforts at previous organizations."

Zubretsky joins Molina with more than 35 years of experience in the insurance and financial services industries. He was most recently the CEO of the Hanover Insurance Group. Prior to that role, he served almost nine years at Aetna, where he most recently was CEO of Healthagen Holdings, a group of healthcare services and information technology companies.

From 2013 to 2014, he served as senior executive vice president leading Aetna's National Businesses. From 2007 to 2013 he served as Aetna's CFO.

"I am excited to begin my new role at Molina Healthcare," Zubretsky said in a statement. "The company's rich heritage and focus on serving families and individuals in need, combined with an unwavering mission-driven culture, generate a compelling service offering in the government healthcare space."

Molina announced in July that it planned to lay off 1,400 employees, or 10% of its workforce, to offset losses from its ACA exchange business.