Chair of Board of Hospital Council Announces Retirement of President, CEO Sponseller

SACRAMENTO, Calif., Dec. 11, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Craig Wagoner, chair of the board of the Hospital Council of Northern and Central California, today announced that Arthur A. Sponseller, President and CEO of the Hospital Council since 2005, will retire when his employment contract ends on December 31, 2018.

The Hospital Council of Northern and Central California is a nonprofit trade association representing 192 hospitals and health-systems in 50 of California's 58 counties -- from Kern County to the Oregon border. Prior to joining the Hospital Council, Sponseller served as COO of the California Association of Hospitals & Health Systems (CAHHS) and the California Hospital Association (CHA) for seven years and was affiliated with the Healthcare Association of Southern California in various executive capacities from 1984 to 1998.

"On behalf of our member hospitals, I want to thank Art for his tremendous leadership," said Wagoner. "Art has quite simply transformed the Hospital Council, working closely with his dedicated staff and regional vice presidents to make sure the issues and concerns of our member hospitals were taken into consideration by policy-makers at all levels of government. Internally, Art has created a culture of excellence, collaboration, and service and inspired the staff to do great things."

As the chief executive officer of one of the largest regional hospital associations in the country, Sponseller worked closely with member hospitals to develop a results-oriented advocacy program at the local government level to improve the delivery of health-care services. Under Sponseller's leadership, the regional Hospital Council became recognized among government leaders as a credible voice for hospitals and an advocate for strong, patient-supportive health-care policy positions.  Among his accomplishments, Sponseller helped guide the Hospital Council to establish a major Quality and Patient Safety Collaborative and an effective county advocacy program, and redesigned the association's issue leadership program while streamlining the strategic planning process.

A native of Michigan, Sponseller holds a law degree from the Detroit College of Law at Michigan State University and is an inactive member of the State Bar of California. He began his career in the health-care field in 1979 in the human resources department at the Catherine McAuley Health Center in Ann Arbor, Michigan, moving to Los Angeles five years later.

To ensure continuity of leadership, a nationwide search will be conducted for Sponseller's replacement.

SOURCE Hospital Council of Northern & Central California