Cristian Rico

In July 2020, Dr. Cristian Rico was named Chief Medical Officer of Health Services at AltaMed. In this role, he oversees AltaMed’s medical leadership, encompassing areas such as telehealth, women’s health, quality and population health, and complex care. Dr. Rico previously served as AltaMed’s Vice President of Medical Groups, overseeing the recruitment and performance of providers at all primary clinics, dental services, and HIV services. Dr. Rico also serves as an AltaMed media spokesperson, often offering subject matter expertise on a variety of topics, including the Affordable Care Act, culturally competent care, medically underserved areas, and community needs. He joined AltaMed’s Executive Governance Leadership Committee in August 2019.

A native of Southern California, Dr. Rico has dedicated his career to the underserved communities of East Los Angeles by improving quality, patient experience and satisfaction, and access to care. He joined AltaMed Health Services as a staff physician in 2004, served as Medical Director for AltaMed Medical and Dental Group — El Monte from 2005 to 2010, and served as Regional Medical Director (RMD) for Los Angeles County from 2010 to 2015.

As an RMD, Dr. Rico’s first task was to improve medical provider recruitment. He was able to create an efficient and sustainable process to recruit competent providers with desirable attributes and identify emerging leaders who have gone on to become medical and regional medical directors. He has also worked with several medical, nurse practitioner, and physician assistant schools to provide students with firsthand experience in community medicine at AltaMed.