After 44 years, John Hogan retires as Capital Health Plan's chief executive

The first time Winnie Schmeling met John Hogan, he was sitting in his corner office in a former county jail in Albany, Georgia – complete with bars on the windows. Within just a few years, she had recruited the young “numbers guy” to Tallahassee to become head of a new health care start-up.

Today, Capital Health Plan is one of the most highly regarded HMOs in the nation – and for the first time in 44 years, it faces a future without Hogan at the helm.

Earlier this year, Hogan packed up his modest office and retired as the only chief executive CHP has ever known. Over the course of four-plus decades, Hogan quietly built CHP into one of the most successful health plans in the nation, simultaneously ranked among the highest 10% in quality and the lowest 25% in cost.

Transition is rarely easy for any organization, especially after a long-time leader departs. But CHP’s Board of Directors was fortunate to have the right person already in house, and the board and CHP members can expect that newly promoted CEO Sabin Bass will continue on the positive path established by his predecessor.

Hogan was just 27, with a newly earned master’s degree in health planning from the University of North Carolina, when Schmeling visited his office that day in 1976. She was a health planner for the Health Services Administration in the Florida Panhandle, and she instantly recognized that this lanky young man had something special.

Schmeling was part of a group – also including Ken Boutwell and David Coburn – trying to establish a new health maintenance organization to serve the Tallahassee area. So, two years after first meeting Hogan, she floated the idea that he might be the new HMO’s first executive director. He applied – enticed at least in part by how much closer the capital city was to his girlfriend (now wife) Marge, who was living in Gainesville – and beat out three experienced HMO executives for the job.

“He was far and away the best candidate. And he was affordable,” Coburn recalled with a chuckle. “Philosophically, he shared what we wanted – it was a really good fit.”

Boutwell, as president of MGT of America, put up the in-kind contribution that enabled the fledgling organization to land three initial federal grants, and provided office space and other support. CHP’s co-founders had a clear vision for what they wanted the organization to be, with three guiding principles: excellent health outcomes, positive experiences for members, and to do all that while keeping the plan affordable.

“I’m amazed at how well John did it – he created a culture at CHP of being the best in the nation,” Boutwell said. “He created a culture where everyone wants to be the best they can, a team that’s committed to winning. And he did it all with the highest level of integrity and commitment.”

Long-time board members remember the curious sight of Hogan pulling up to work in the early days, having to unfold his 6-foot-6 frame from the tight quarters of his VW Beetle. Yet even as his role and responsibilities grew, Hogan remained the same modest person, regularly shunning the limelight so those around him could gain recognition.

“His values can be summed up in two words: He cares,” said Schmeling. “He has been the beating heart of CHP, with an extraordinary sense of personal humility.”

“CHP might have endured through these past 40-plus years, but without John’s approach it wouldn’t be the same universally recognized standard of quality and caring,” said longtime board member Tom Barron. “He set the tone, and everything flowed from that.”

A classic example of Hogan’s approach arose during the COVID-19 pandemic, when CHP’s dual role as both an insurance company and a health care provider was put to the test. From Day 1, Board member Tom Herndon observed, Hogan ensured that the medical staff and office teams worked together to minimize the risk for members. Hogan was there on the front lines throughout, but never flamboyantly.

“He has brought CHP from a fledgling organization with no office, no staff, no nothing, to one of the most highly regarded HMOs in the country,” Herndon summarized.

After so many years without turnover at the top, a time of transition couldn’t be far off. When it arrived, CHP’s board was ready. Its members – including many of the same people who initially hired Hogan – carefully considered the upside of replacing him with someone who was already deeply a part of the organization, and who understood its culture, role, and responsibilities. They concluded that Bass was clearly the best person for the CEO post.

Bass has been with CHP for 19 years, most recently serving as Executive Vice President of Finance and Chief Financial Officer before his elevation to President and CEO. Over the past several years, his role has broadened beyond just the finances, in part as a reflection of the board’s recognition that he might someday step up into the top position.

Ultimately, the decision on a successor to Hogan came down to the philosophy and values that have driven CHP for so many years – what Boutwell called “continuity of our best-in-the-nation culture.” Other board members agreed.

“It’s a pretty clear signal to the members, the staff, and the community at large that we’re going to carry on with the philosophy that we’ve carried on with for 40-plus years – that we are devoted to that and plan to continue,” Coburn said.

“CHP is a special place,” Schmeling concluded,” and we wanted to keep it that way.”

This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: John Hogan retires after 44 years as Capital Health Plan's only CEO