Health care system CEO named chair of state hospital alliance

SARASOTA — David Verinder, president and CEO of Sarasota Memorial Health Care System, was named chair of the Safety Net Hospital Alliance of Florida’s board of directors.

The alliance advocates for the state’s 14 flagship safety net health care systems. The systems play a crucial role in caring for Florida’s most vulnerable citizens, providing essential, highly specialized medical services and training the next generation of physicians, according to a press release. 

The organization’s members comprise about 10% of all hospitals in Florida, but they have shouldered the care for 60% of the state’s COVID-19 hospitalized patients, the statement says.

It also says, "Safety Net Alliance hospitals have been at the forefront of not only COVID-19 care, but also highly specialized procedures, treatments, research and cures that are proving that Floridians have access to the best health care in the nation." 

“It’s a privilege to be a part of an organization that strives to provide all Floridians with access to the highest quality of care,” says Verinder in a statement. “Safety net hospitals have stepped up to meet the unprecedented challenges of the global pandemic, and we will continue to work with state and federal leaders to ensure we have the resources and support needed to care for our communities.”

Verinder will serve a two-year term as chair of the Safety Net Alliance board, the release states. The board includes CEOs from public, teaching, children’s and regional perinatal intensive care hospitals.

Verinder has served as president and CEO of Sarasota Memorial Health Care System since 2014. The 839-bed public health system has a staff of 7,000. Verinder has overseen the opening of Sarasota County’s only Trauma Center, the launch of graduate medical education programs with Florida State University’s College of Medicine, the construction of a new hospital expected to open in south Sarasota County in fall 2021 and the development of the Brian D. Jellison Cancer Institute to provide comprehensive oncology care.