BURLINGTON, Vt. (WCAX) – A big leadership change is coming to the state’s largest health care provider as it navigates a budget battle with state regulators.
UVM Health Network President and CEO Sunny Eappen is stepping down as part of what the network’s board announced on Thursday is part of a larger effort to reduce expenses and streamline leadership.
UVM Medical Center president Dr. Steve Leffler will be the network’s interim CEO starting October 15th. UVM Health Network Board Chair Tom Golonka says that’s in addition to his current role as president of UVMMC.
“We’ve reached the limit for what Sunny can bring to the table. We really appreciate everything he’s done, but we think where we need to go next is really more aligned with the academic medical center,” he said.
Golonka says that the role of the network has been to coordinate between hospitals and other partners and state regulators.
With Dr. Leffler now at the helm, they hope that the state’s largest hospital will act as a better coordinator and reduce overhead. This all comes less than a week after the Green Mountain Care Board slashed the UVM Medical Center’s proposed budget, citing administrative bloat as one of the major reasons the hospital would be forced to take in less revenue.
Eappen, who has been on the job for less than three years, will stay on as a consultant through December to assist in the transition.
