Andy Slavitt, the former administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) under the Obama administration, is temporarily taking over Cityblock Health. He also served as a COVID response senior advisor in the Biden White House.
CEO and Co-Founder of Cityblock Health Iyah Romm is taking a leave of absence for six months. Cityblock was founded from Sidewalk Labs, a subsidiary of Alphabet and sister company of Google. Romm cited struggles with depression and long-term effects of trauma as part of his reasoning for a leave of absence, which he wrote in a message on LinkedIn.
Cityblock Health––which reached a $1 billion valuation at the end of 2020, according to Business Insider––aims to address the root causes of health for underserved urban populations.
The healthcare company will form an office of the CEO during Romm’s leave of absence, made up of the executive leadership team and led by Slavitt, who is also the board chair. Slavitt is also a general partner in healthcare investment firm Townhall Ventures, which is an investor in Cityblock.
“Andy has been among my closest colleagues and friends over the last five years of building Cityblock,” Romm wrote. “He’s an incredible leader, with values deeply aligned to our mission, and we are fortunate to have his support and leadership at this time.”
Amy joined TriMed Media as a Senior Writer for HealthExec after covering home care for three years. When not writing about all things healthcare, she fulfills her lifelong dream of becoming a pirate by sailing in regattas and enjoying rum. Fun fact: she sailed 333 miles across Lake Michigan in the Chicago Yacht Club "Race to Mackinac."