The president and CEO of Lynchburg-based Centra Health is stepping down from her position, according to a Thursday announcement. An interim CEO has been appointed, effective immediately.
Amy Carrier led Centra for about two and a half years, starting in the position in September 2021.
Richard Tugman, CEO of Piedmont Community Health Plan, a subsidiary of Centra, has been named interim president and CEO, according to a news release from the health system. A national search has commenced for a permanent candidate.
Tugman served as interim CEO of Centra in 2021 after Dr. Andrew Mueller submitted his resignation. Mueller had held the position for less than two years, according to the Chatham Star-Tribune.
On average, hospital CEOs remain in their position for about six years, according to a report by Crist Kolder Associates, an executive recruiting firm based in Illinois.
The transition in Centra’s leadership comes weeks after letters were sent to cancer patients, announcing that the contract between Lynchburg Hematology-Oncology Clinic, an independent physician group, and Centra Health would be discontinued, according to reporting by WDBJ-TV and others.
Centra in January sued the clinic for $7 million, WSET-TV and others reported.
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