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WASHINGTON (April 28, 2025) – The ���������� Association (AHA) will present its highest honor, the Distinguished Service Award, to Rod Hochman, M.D., the former president and CEO of Providence Health & Services based in Renton, Washington. Hochman will receive the 2025 award during a ceremony on May 5 at the AHA Annual Membership Meeting in Washington, D.C.

Hochman retired at the end of 2024 as president and CEO of Providence Health & Services after 45 years in health care, including 17 with the Providence family of organizations. At Providence, he worked hard to expand access to care, especially to those most in need, create innovations in care delivery and patient experience and increase quality of care. Hochman also diligently invested in mental health and well-being for staff and community members alike. Today, Providence is a family of 120,000 health care professionals, serving in 51 hospitals, more than 1,000 clinics and hundreds of programs and services across seven states.

“A servant leader who always puts patients and caregivers first, Rod has dedicated his life and career to improving access to care for the most vulnerable, and making health care better for all,” said AHA President and CEO Rick Pollack. “In addition to helping lead our field as AHA Chair through the early days of the COVID pandemic, Rod has a unique ability to look into the future and stay ahead of the curve. To state it simply, Rod’s work has improved the lives of millions of Americans and has set a new standard for the hospital field.”

As AHA Board Chair in 2021, Hochman led the field through the depths of the COVID-19 pandemic. His training as an immunologist proved invaluable as he served as the voice of hospitals and health systems nationwide. A visionary known for outside-the-box thinking, he fostered collaboration among hospitals and health systems in search of new innovations to enhance care and the patient experience. Actively engaged with the AHA since 2008, Hochman chaired the Executive Committee, the Committee on Nominations, the Center for Health Innovation Leadership Council and Regional Policy Board 9. He has also served on the Healthcare Advisory Council, the Health Systems Committee, the Coalition to Strengthen America’s Healthcare Board and numerous other committees and task forces.  

An immunologist and rheumatologist, Hochman received his bachelor’s and medical degrees from Boston University and served as a clinical fellow in internal medicine at Harvard Medical School and Dartmouth Medical School. 

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About the AHA

The AHA is a not-for-profit association of health care provider organizations and individuals that are committed to the health improvement of their communities. The AHA is the national advocate for its members, which include nearly 5,000 hospitals, health care systems, networks, other providers of care and 43,000 individual members. Founded in 1898, the AHA provides education for health care leaders and is a source of information on health care issues and trends. For more information, visit the AHA website at .