The California Health Care Foundation (CHCF) today announced the election of health plan CEO Elizabeth Gibboney to its board of directors. Since 2015, Gibboney has served as chief executive officer of Partnership HealthPlan of California (PHC), which administers Medi-Cal benefits for more than 527,500 members across 14 rural counties in Northern California.

“Liz is one of the most forward-thinking leaders in Medi-Cal managed care today,” said CHCF board chair Daniel Gross, DNSc, RN. “Having her on our board will enhance CHCF’s efforts to improve Medi-Cal and ensure that all Californians have the care they need.”

Gibboney has been at PHC since its inception in 1994. Before becoming CEO, she spent eight years as deputy CEO/COO (chief operating officer). She was instrumental in leading five county expansions from PHC’s original service area, Solano County, to now include Del Norte, Humboldt, Lake, Lassen, Marin, Mendocino, Modoc, Napa, Shasta, Siskiyou, Sonoma, Trinity, and Yolo Counties. PHC successfully implemented Medi-Cal expansion under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Gibboney built on that success when California expanded Medi-Cal eligibility to include all children, regardless of immigration status.

“Liz has been an essential part of California’s progress toward universal coverage,” said CHCF president and CEO Sandra R. Hernández, MD. “She knows what it takes to solve access and quality challenges in a state as big and diverse as California.”

Gibboney and her team at PHC have taken bold steps to improve categories of care that are core to CHCF’s work. These include new palliative care and transportation benefits, care coordination for people with complex health and social needs, an online member portal, and enhanced services for mental health care and treatment of substance use disorder. She has championed efforts to solve regional and statewide shortages of primary care and mental health providers and other health workers. From 2017 to 2019, she focused on those challenges as a member of the California Future Health Workforce Commission.

“I am honored to be joining the CHCF board. Honestly, it’s reflection of all the hard work of the dedicated PHC staff and our community partners,” said Gibboney. “It’s clear that we are at a pivot point in the health care system, and I look forward to working with the CHCF board and staff to identify and promote innovative solutions that increase access and quality to all Californians and to strengthen our provider workforce.”

Gibboney also serves on the boards of Local Health Plans of California, the association of California’s Medi-Cal-focused health plans, and OCHIN, a technology innovation and support network for community health centers.

She received her bachelor’s degree from the University of California, Davis, and has a master’s degree in communications from California State University, Sacramento. She lives in Benicia, California.

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About the California Health Care Foundation