Mercy Names New Chief Legal Officer

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Mar 28, 2024, 08:00 ET

ST. LOUIS, March 28, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Mercy names Jennifer Brown its new chief legal officer and senior vice president, beginning April 1, 2024.

"Health care has become increasingly complex, while at the same time transformative change is accelerating," said Steve Mackin, Mercy's president and CEO. "That's why it's imperative we have innovative counsel who can guide Mercy as we enter our third century of care. Jennifer's excellent leadership ability will contribute to Mercy's growth and collaboration efforts while shepherding Mercy through an increasingly complex regulatory environment. She will bolster our commitment to integrity, ethics and compliance."

Brown most recently served as chief administrative officer and general counsel of Graphite Health, a nonprofit start-up founded by Kaiser Permanente, Intermountain Health, SSM Health and Presbyterian Healthcare Services, where she led a team overseeing legal, human resources, finance, policy and compliance. Prior to Graphite, Brown served as chief legal officer at Baylor Scott & White Health in Dallas, Texas, and Presbyterian Healthcare Services in Albuquerque, New Mexico, where she had oversight for the legal, risk and compliance departments. Brown also has previous Mercy experience, working as outside counsel in the early 2000s and later as Mercy's first in-house vice president of senior transaction counsel from 2011 to 2014.

"My earlier work with Mercy played a transformational role in my life, and it's a tremendous privilege to return," said Brown. "I look forward to working collaboratively with teams across Mercy to meet the challenges and opportunities of today's ever-changing health care landscape in support of Mercy's vision."

Brown, a Texas native, earned a bachelor's in political science and economics from Texas A&M University in College Station. She later earned her doctorate in jurisprudence from The University of Texas School of Law in Austin.

With over 30 years of experience, Brown will focus on optimizing existing standards across Mercy to ensure local and regional compliance. As she transitions into her new role, she will work with Phil Wheeler, Mercy's current legal counsel lead who is retiring after 14 years of service. "Mercy has experienced significant growth and change during Phil's tenure," said Mackin. "We are thankful for his dedication and how his expertise helped shape our future, helped us operate at the highest compliant standard and safeguarded our interests."

"Mercy has a remarkable history of caring for communities," said Brown. "I will strongly advocate for patient rights and health care for all. I believe in Mercy's heritage and mission and will work hard in supporting our reputation as a pillar of trust in the communities we serve."

About Mercy  
Mercy, one of the 20 largest U.S. health systems and named the top large system in the U.S. for excellent patient experience by NRC Health, serves millions annually with nationally recognized care and one of the nation's largest and highest performing Accountable Care Organizations in quality and cost. Mercy is a highly integrated, multi-state health care system including more than 50 acute care and specialty (heart, children's, orthopedic and rehab) hospitals, convenient and urgent care locations, imaging centers and pharmacies. Mercy has over 900 physician practice locations and outpatient facilities, more than 4,500 physicians and advanced practitioners and 50,000 co-workers serving patients and families across Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri and Oklahoma. Mercy also has clinics, outpatient services and outreach ministries in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas. In fiscal year 2023 alone, Mercy provided more than half a billion dollars of free care and other community benefits, including traditional charity care and unreimbursed Medicaid.

SOURCE Mercy