Health system leaders to receive AHA Distinguished Service Award

On April 15 at the AHA Annual Membership Meeting in Washington, D.C., AHA will present Nancy Howell Agee, CEO of Carilion Clinic, and Brian Gragnolati, president and CEO of Atlantic Health System, with its highest honor — the Distinguished Service Award — for their longtime service to the AHA and the field.  
 
Howell Agee has led Carilion since 2011, transforming it from a collection of hospitals to a patient-centered, physician-led organization that has partnered with Virginia Tech to create the Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine, which has graduated more than 400 physicians. She currently chairs the Coalition to Strengthen America’s Health Care and has previously chaired the AHA Board of Trustees and Committee on Health Care Strategy and Innovation, among other roles.  
 
“Nancy is committed to finding solutions that provide the best quality for patient care experience and expanding access to all those in the communities Carilion serves,” said AHA President and CEO Rick Pollack. “Drawing on her experience as a nurse and a hospital leader, Nancy is well known for her deep passion for patients and her dedication to mentoring other women leaders.”  
 
Gragnolati has led Atlantic Health System since 2015 and is a nationally respected voice in health care and a frequent speaker at national and international events. He twice received the AHA’s Partnership for Action Grassroots Champion Award for his advocacy on behalf of the field and played a key role in New Jersey’s pandemic response, serving on both the Office of the Governor’s COVID-19 Restart & Recovery Advisory Council and Professional Advisory Committee.   
 
“Brian has worked tirelessly to lead the transformation of care in New Jersey and across America,” Pollack said. “Brian’s dedication to improving access to high quality care while reducing costs through investments in people and technologies has improved the health care experience for everyone who enters the doors of Atlantic Health and his ideas have inspired the entire hospital field.”