Our Leadership

Read what Kahn has to say about Health Care Reform.

Howard A. Kahn is Chief Executive Officer of L.A. Care Health Plan, a position he has held since 2001.  In his position as CEO, Mr. Kahn leads a coalition of over 50 community organizations that have joined together to create the Children’s Health Initiative of Greater Los Angeles, an effort to provide health insurance to every low-income child in Los Angeles County.  Launched in June 2004, the Initiative has successfully raised over $100 million through a public/private partnership, and is actively enrolling children in health coverage programs. 

Mr. Kahn has also led efforts by L.A. Care to reinvest millions of dollars into the community, with a special emphasis on strengthening the Safety Net.

Howard has more than 25 years of experience in healthcare, leading for-profit, not-for-profit and public organizations, with an emphasis on serving diverse and vulnerable populations.  He served as Senior Vice President for Latin America and Global Health at CIGNA International, where he was responsible for managing the overall implementation of CIGNA’s programs and strategies in targeted markets.  Mr. Kahn has also served in several capacities at Aetna, notably as a Vice President responsible for the company’s global health business, and as Vice President and General Manager for Aetna’s nationwide governmental managed care and managed health operations.

Howard was Founding President and Chief Executive Officer of The California Wellness Foundation, a $1 billion foundation whose mission is to promote health and prevent disease in underserved communities. He was also the Founding Chief Executive Officer of the Health Plan of San Mateo, a public non-profit HMO.

Currently, Howard is chair of the California Association of Health Plans, the first public plan CEO to hold that position. In 2009, Governor Schwarzenegger appointed Howard to the California Mental Health Services Oversight and Accountability (Prop. 63) Commission. He also serves on the boards of the Association for Community Affiliated Plans, The Good Hope Foundation, Insure the Uninsured Project, Latino Coalition for a Healthy California, Local Health Plans of California and the School of Community & Global Health at the Claremont Graduate School.  Howard pursued undergraduate studies at Harvard, received his Bachelor’s degree in Development Studies from UC Berkeley, and his Masters in Public Affairs from the Humphrey Institute at the University of Minnesota.

Howard is married with three teenage children, and lives in South Pasadena, California. 

As Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Batchlor is responsible for the medical leadership of L.A. Care Health Plan, including the assurance of quality health care delivery to all of  L.A Care’s 780,000 plus members. She serves as chair of several groups of the organization, including the Quality Assurance and Quality Improvement Committee. She also oversees the community investment program as well as culture and linguistic services for the organization.

Dr. Batchlor is a board member of the Integrated Healthcare Association, a statewide organization that promotes the continuing evolution of managed health care under integrated systems. She is an advisory board member for the California HealthCare Foundation Leadership program, and a leader of the e-Clinic Initiative, a partnership with Kaiser Permanente and the UniHealth Foundation to integrate e-health technology into the practice of health care at community clinics. She sits on the board of the Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce, and she serves on the State of California’s Olmstead Advisory Committee, which advises the Secretary of Health and Human Services on the implementation of principles designed to allow people with disabilities to live in the community.

Prior to her affiliation with L.A. Care, Dr. Batchlor developed and oversaw research, policy analysis and programs aimed at improving health care financing and delivery for the California HealthCare Foundation. She was the Chief Medical Officer for Prudential Health Care of California with responsibility for all aspects of medical management for that company's managed care products in the "five states" western region. She served briefly as the Medical Director for Community Health Plan, the health maintenance organization operated by the Los Angeles County Department of Health Services. She was Service Area Medical Director for CIGNA Health Plan of California, and was also a clinical instructor at the UCLA School of Medicine.

Dr. Batchlor received her undergraduate degree in Biology from Harvard University and completed medical school at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio. She completed her internship, residency and fellowship in Internal Medicine and Rheumatology at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center. She also holds a Masters Degree in Public Health from UCLA.

In addition to her health policy and administrative work, Dr. Batchlor is a licensed practicing physician with a specialty in rheumatology. She is also a board member for Crystal Stairs, a non-profit organization in Los Angeles that promotes child development.

W. Randy Stone is Chief Financial Officer of L.A. Care Health Plan. In this role he has supervisory responsibility for and directs all significant aspects of the organization's financial, accounting, treasury, strategic planning, risk management, financial compliance/audit, materials management/procurement, and facility administration operations.

Mr. Stone has held a number senior financial and leadership positions in the managed health care industry, encompassing a variety of delivery system models. Theses have included staff model operations, contracted care networks, and physician practice management organizations. His primary responsibilities have included accounting/financial management, treasury/banking, strategic planning and budgeting, product line development, and patient care delivery operations.

Before joining L.A. Care in April 2001, Mr. Stone was Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer for UniMed Medical Management Co., where he was responsible for the financial operations of seven separate physician practice management organizations in Southern California, serving approximately 435,000 enrolled lives. Prior to UniMed, Mr. Stone was Treasurer and Vice President, Finance, for Talbert Medical Management Co, where he was responsible for financial and treasury operations in five states. Before that position, Mr. Stone held numerous senior level roles with FHP International, including Corporate Vice President (Finance), Regional Vice President (California IPA Operations), and Regional Vice President (California Staff Model Operations).

Mr. Stone earned his Masters Degree in Business Administration and his undergraduate degree in Accounting and Business Management from California State University, Long Beach. He is a member of Financial Executives International, and serves on the Health Care Advisory Committee of California State University, Long Beach.

Mark S. Windisch, Esq., Senior Advisor

Mark S. Windisch is Senior Advisor at L.A. Care Health Plan.  In this role he formulates and manages strategies relating to various government programs and business opportunities.  He also handles specialized legal matters for L.A. Care. 

Mr. Windisch is admitted to practice law in California and before the United States Supreme Court.  Prior to joining L.A. Care in November 2003, he was a partner at private law firms in Los Angeles where he practiced healthcare and public agency law for nearly 30 years.  During those years he represented numerous California counties and universities as special counsel in business and funding matters, including frequent dealings with agencies in Sacramento and Washington, D.C.

Over the years, Mr. Windisch has served as general counsel to various tax-exempt and charitable organizations, was involved in the creation of several government-operated health plans, and participated in structuring and counseling nonprofit foundations associated with local government agencies.  He was involved in the early stages of L.A. Care, having served as a legal advisor to the Los Angeles County Managed Care Planning Council in the early 1990s. 

On behalf of public agencies and universities, Mr. Windisch has crafted numerous bills enacted into law in California.  Funding programs he framed over the years have brought more than $25 billion in federal funds to public and private hospitals and health systems throughout California.

In 2004, Mr. Windisch was a founder of the Health-e-LA Coalition, a group of healthcare, business, nonprofit and academic organizations that are working to create pathways for the interoperable exchange of electronic health records throughout Los Angeles County.  In January 2006, he was elected as one of the founding members of the Board of Directors of CalRHIO (California Regional Health Information Organization), an entity dedicated to the interoperable exchange of electronic health information throughout California.   He served on the CalRHIO Board and its Executive Committee until September 2009.

Mr. Windisch received his undergraduate degree in Political Science from Duke University in Durham, North Carolina, and his law degree from UCLA School of Law.  In 1992, he received an award of high commendation from the Board of Supervisors of Los Angeles County.  In 2003, he was honored by the L.A. Area Chamber of Commerce as its "Volunteer of the Year," and was named by Los Angeles Magazine as one of the top healthcare attorneys in the Los Angeles region.

Augustavia J. Haydel is General Counsel of L.A. Care Health Plan. In this role she provides and arranges for legal counsel to L.A. Care's Board of Governors and to senior management. Ms. Haydel's duties involve a wide array of activities, including advice and counsel on health care legal issues, public law and government practice issues, board administration and governance issues, litigation activities, contract strategies and negotiations, and various other general and specialized legal topics.

Before joining L.A. Care, Ms. Haydel served for 10 years as counsel at WATTS Health Systems, Inc., in Los Angeles, California. Prior to that position, she was in private practice. She also has served as an Assistant District Attorney in the King's County District Attorney's Office in Brooklyn, New York, and worked as a Market Research Analyst for the Indiana Business Development Foundation in Indianapolis, Indiana.

Ms. Haydel earned her Juris Doctor degree from the Indiana University School of Law in Bloomington, Indiana. She received her undergraduate degree in economics from Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois.

Ms. Haydel has instructed students in micro and macroeconomics at Indiana University and at Purdue University in Indianapolis. She is a member of numerous legal and professional organizations, including the National Health Lawyers Association, the Black Women Lawyers Association and the Los Angeles County Bar Association.

John Wallace serves as Chief of Staff for L.A. Care Health Plan, the largest public health plan in the nation. In that role, John is responsible for the following operating units: Administration & Strategies, which includes Communications & Marketing, Government Relations, Plan Partner Relations and Regulatory Affairs & Compliance. Additionally, Managed Care Services, which includes Member Services, Provider Network Operations, Strategic Initiatives Department, Product Operations and Claims; and Information Services report to Wallace.

Prior to L.A. Care Health Plan, Mr. Wallace held a number of positions with the Los Angeles County Department of Health Services including responsibility for Communications, Government Relations, Public Policy, 1115 Waiver Office and the Public Private Partnership Program.  Mr. Wallace also worked in the Administrations of Governor Pete Wilson and Los Angeles County Supervisor Don Knabe.  Mr. Wallace is a native of San Pedro, California and a graduate of the University of Southern California.

Barbara Cook is Chief of Human and Community Resources at L.A. Care Health Plan. In this role, she is responsible for all aspects of Human Resources and Training and Organizational Development. She also oversees the organization’s Multicultural Community Health Workers/Promotoras Program, Community Health Centers and Community Outreach and Education department.

When she joined L.A. Care in 2005 as Senior Director, Human Resources, Ms. Cook brought with her more than 15 years of progressive leadership responsibility and unique operations and clinical experience. The breadth of her human resources experience includes employee benefit plan design, risk and insurance management, organizational development, regulatory and legal compliance expertise, and employee training and retention program development.

Before joining L.A. Care, Ms. Cook served for five years as Sr. Vice President, Human Resources at Sunstone Hotel Properties, Inc., in San Clemente, CA. Prior to that position, she was a human resources consultant focusing on management development, compensation and benefit plan design, HRIS systems integration, compliance and change management. She also served as Corporate Vice President, Human Resources for a number of years at UniHealth in Burbank, CA.

Ms. Cook earned her M.B.A. from University of Redlands in Redlands, CA, and her Bachelor of Science degree in Health Care Management from University of La Verne in La Verne, CA. She also holds an Associates degree in Nursing from Quinsigamond Community College in
Worcester, MA.

Jim R. Brown is Chief of Operations at L.A. Care Health Plan. In this role, he oversees the member services, claims, provider network operations, project administration, and product operations departments. He is also responsible for the oversight of information services and strategic initiatives for the organization.

Mr. Brown has over 20 years of healthcare industry experience. He has successfully led organizations across the healthcare industry, including health plans, integrated delivery systems, medical groups and IPAs. Under his leadership, these organizations achieved exceptional levels of performance, including nationally recognized levels of quality of care, member satisfaction, and operational performance.

Mr. Brown most recently spent five years at Presbyterian Health Plan in Albuquerque, New Mexico as the Chief Operating Officer, where he oversaw all operations for this 450,000 member health plan. Presbyterian Health Plan achieved NCQA “Excellent” ratings for all three product lines in 4 out of the 5 years Mr. Brown was at Presbyterian and, just prior to leaving this position, the Medicaid plan at Presbyterian was ranked in the top 25 in the country by US News and World Report and scored in the top 10% in member satisfaction compared to all health plans in the country. Prior to this position, Mr. Brown was the Administrator and Chief Operating Officer at La Vida Medical Group and IPA in Los Angeles, one of the largest IPAs in California.

Mr. Brown also held positions as Vice President of Managed Care for Harriman Jones Medical Group /UniHealth, Inc. in Long Beach; Administrator of Northwest Orange County Medical Group; COO and Administrator at Tenet Physician Services in Los Alamitos, CA; and Director of Utilization Management and Manager of Information Technology Development at Long Beach Memorial IPA in Long Beach, CA.

Mr. Brown earned an M.P.H. in Health Policy and Management from the School of Public Health at UCLA and an M.B.A. in Management from the School of Business at San Francisco State University. Mr. Brown also holds two Bachelor degrees from the University of California at Davis, a B.S. in Biochemistry and a B.A. in Economics. He became a Certified Healthcare Insurance Executive (CHIE) in 2008, a one-year intensive educational program to develop strategic management skills needed to lead health insurance plans.

Recently Mr. Brown was on the Board of Directors of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central New Mexico and also served as a Committee Member of the New Mexico Senate Bill 197, which was established to develop policy positions, funding and legislation to meet the needs of people with autism.

Gene Fernandez is Chief Information Officer at L.A. Care Health Plan. In this role, he is responsible for articulating the vision and establishing the strategy for integrated information technology at L.A. Care. He is also responsible for providing leadership in the development, implementation and governance of L.A. Care’s information systems and technology infrastructure.

Mr. Fernandez has extensive experiences with health care IT systems implementation, business process re-engineering, IT strategic planning, IT outsourcing and project management. He brings to L.A. Care over 20 years of experience as a health care information management bilingual executive. Mr. Fernandez has served as Chief Information Officer at the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland as well as the Naval Medical Center in Portsmouth, Virginia. He has also served in a myriad of Information Technology (IT) leadership positions for the Department of Defense’s health care delivery organizations as an active duty commissioned officer in the Navy Medical Service Corps. Mr. Fernandez’s private sector experience includes having served as Chief Information Officer and Chief Technology Officer for Sparrow Health System and as a Senior IT Consultant for PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP Healthcare Consulting Practice in Washington, D.C.

Mr. Fernandez is board certified in healthcare management as a Fellow in the American College of Healthcare Executives. He is also a member of the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society and the College of Healthcare Information Management Executives. Mr. Fernandez earned a Master of Science degree from Purdue University and a Bachelor of Science degree from Southern Illinois University. He has also completed the Information Management Executive Course sponsored by the University of Michigan & the College of Healthcare Information Management Executives (CHIME). In addition, he has also completed a healthcare management certificate program sponsored by Case Western Reserve University and completed a second master’s from the University of Illinois at Springfield in May 2007.