Rica Lewis-Payton

Mrs. Lewis-Payton is a healthcare leadership consultant and executive coach with 35 years of healthcare experience. Prior to starting her own consulting business, she served as Director of the Veterans Health Administration’s (VHA) Healthcare Leadership Talent Institute. In 2008, she returned to her hometown of Birmingham, AL and served as the CEO of the VA Medical Center, the first female and African American to serve in this role. In 2012, Ms. Lewis-Payton received the Presidential Rank Award, the highest honor for a member of the federal government’s Senior Executive Services (SES) Corps. In 2000, she was appointed by the Governor of Mississippi as the first African American female to serve as the State’s Medicaid Commissioner.

Ms. Lewis-Payton received her Master of Science degree in Hospital and Health Administration from The University of Alabama at Birmingham and her Bachelor of Science degree in Economics from Talladega College. She is a Certified Healthcare Executive (CHE) and a Life Fellow in the American College of Healthcare Executives.

She has received numerous awards and honors, and is a member of The Links, Incorporated and a life member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority.