In the News: 2011

Minority Business Leaders: Michael Rashid

August 5, 2011
John George, Reporter
Philadelphia Business Journal

Michael A. Rashid has set a goal for the AmeriHealth Mercy Family of Cos., for which he is the president and CEO, to be recognized by 2015 as the national leader in developing health-care solutions for the chronically ill and the underserved.

"Our commitment is to continue to develop innovative approaches to improving the health status of the people we serve, and to being responsible stewards of state and federal funding resources," Rashid said. "Our focus is, and has always been, on our mission: We help people get care, stay well and build healthy communities."

Rashid took over as CEO of AmeriHealth Mercy, a Philadelphia-based Medicaid managed-care organization owned in a joint venture by Independence Blue Cross and Mercy Health System , in January 2010. He's been with the company for 16 years, previously serving as executive vice president and chief operating officer.

When he first became COO, AmeriHealth Mercy was a single product HMO serving 500,000 in two states. Today it has four distinct products and serves more that 2 million members in 12 states. Keystone Mercy Health Plan, which is part of the organization, is the largest Medicaid HMO in the region.

Rashid, who is the first African-American president and CEO of AmeriHealth Mercy, was honored earlier thus year with the Martin Luther King Jr. Association for Nonviolence Inc.'s Drum Major Award for his work helping people gain access to quality health care at AmeriHealth Mercy. The award also recognized Rashid's involvement in community and civic affairs, including his service on the boards of Medicaid Health Plans of America, the Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce, the Philadelphia Industrial Development Corporation, the Philadelphia Regional Port Authority, the Philadelphia Zoo and the Vision of Hope.