Contact: Amy Murphy, amurphy@acc.org, 202-375-6476

(BETHESDA, MD)—John C. (Jack) Lewin, M.D., has been appointed as the new chief executive officer of the American College of Cardiology. Following an extensive national search, Dr. Lewin was selected from a field of outstanding candidates as the right leader at the right time for the ACC. He will assume his new duties in the fall of 2006 following the College’s move to Washington, D.C., in September.

“Dr. Lewin brings a lifetime of experience in health care leadership and innovation,” said Steven E. Nissen, M.D., F.A.C.C., president of the American College of Cardiology. “His vision and passion will greatly enhance our ability to fulfill our mission: to advocate for quality cardiovascular care — through education, research promotion, development and application of standards and guidelines — and to influence health care policy.”

Dr. Lewin is a physician, an experienced association leader, and a public policy expert and veteran health care advocate.

Dr. Lewin has a wealth of experience in association management. He is currently the CEO of the 35,000-member California Medical Association (CMA), the largest state medical association in the nation. He has served as chief staff officer there for the past 11 years. During his tenure at CMA, Dr. Lewin led the organization through the purchase of Audio Digest Foundation, the world’s largest provider of audio continuing medical education (CME) products. In addition, he founded and serves as Chairman for MEDePass, a digital identity and information trust company designed to provide Internet security, confidentiality and authentication for physicians and other health care professionals over the Web. His experience in professional education will be a valuable resource for the College in its ongoing commitment to offering innovative cardiovascular education.

Dr. Lewin earned his bachelor’s degree in biological science at the University of California, Irvine, and received his medical degree and internal medicine training from The University of Southern California. He spent seven years in practice with the United States Public Health Service (USPHS) in the Navajo Area Indian Health Service in Window Rock, Arizona. From there he went into private practice in Maui, Hawaii, where he served a large, rural area, providing care to more than 3,000 island residents. During that same period (from 1979 to 1987), he served as medical director of Kula Hospital.

Dr. Lewin became Director of Health for the State of Hawaii Department of Health in Honolulu in 1987. In this role, Dr. Lewin served as the State’s Chief Physician and Chief Environmental Officer. During his seven year tenure, Dr. Lewin spearheaded many innovative public health programs making great strides in providing greater access to medical care for the residents of Hawaii. He founded the State Health Insurance Program (SHIP), a start-up health insurance company designed to cover self-employed individuals and small businesses in Hawaii. Eventually, SHIP covered 55,000 beneficiaries which represented nearly 5% of the state’s population at the time. His rich understanding of public policy is an ideal complement to the College’s commitment to advocating for cardiovascular patients and practitioners.

“I am excited about the opportunities my new role with the ACC affords,” Dr. Lewin said. “The College is a leader in the medical profession. While others are talking, the ACC is taking bold action to promote and measure quality of cardiovascular care. This is a proactive organization, ready to deal with the critical challenges facing health care.”

Dr. Lewin has served on a multitude of advisory panels and boards including Marathon Multimedia and Marathon International, Californians Allied for Patient Protection, the AMA Commission on Unity, the Navajo Nation Health Advisory Board, the California Governors Council on Sports and Fitness, and the Hepatitis Foundation International.

Dr. Lewin and his wife Sandy, a businesswoman and schoolteacher, will be relocating to the Washington, D.C. area. They have three grown children. In his leisure time, Dr. Lewin is an avid runner and enjoys the outdoors.

The American College of Cardiology, a 33,000-member nonprofit professional medical society and teaching institution, is dedicated to fostering optimal cardiovascular care and disease prevention through professional education, promotion of research, leadership in the development of standards and guidelines, and the formulation of health care policy.

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The American College of Cardiology (ACC) provides these new reports of clinical studies published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology as a service to physicians, the media, the public, and other interested parties. However, statements or opinions expressed in these reports reflect the view of the author(s) and do not represent official policy of the ACC unless stated so.

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