Premier Health announced Oct. 22 that Rosanna Morris will be its next president and chief executive officer, effective in the first quarter of 2027, succeeding Michael Riordan, who plans to retire after five years leading the Dayton-based health system.
The Premier Health Board of Trustees said Morris was selected unanimously after an extensive national search. She will work with Riordan, the system’s senior leadership, the board and physicians in the months leading up to taking the role, according to the announcement and industry coverage of the appointment.
Morris currently serves as executive vice president and chief clinical operating officer at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, where she oversees a $6 billion clinical enterprise and leads work on quality, growth, innovation and operations, Premier Health said. She previously served as president of Beaumont Hospital-Royal Oak in Michigan and held executive leadership roles at Nebraska Medicine.
A registered nurse by training, Morris, whose credentials include an MBA, BSN and RN, brings more than 27 years of leadership experience across academic medical centers and integrated health systems, the system said. She has received national recognition for her leadership, including honors from Becker’s Hospital Review and Modern Healthcare.
Board leaders pointed to that mix of clinical and operating experience in announcing the choice. Jason Mahoney, chair-elect of the Premier Health Board of Trustees and chair of the CEO selection committee, said Morris’s experience, strategic vision and commitment to people position her to lead the system’s next chapter as it advances its mission.
Morris, for her part, said she was impressed by Premier Health’s leadership, its academic partnerships — including its longstanding relationship with Wright State University — and its commitment to developing the health care workforce of the future, according to the system’s announcement.
Premier Health is one of the Miami Valley’s largest health systems and employers, anchored by Miami Valley Hospital in Dayton. The leadership transition is set to play out over the coming months, with Riordan remaining in place until Morris takes over in the first quarter of 2027.
The announcement, dated Oct. 22 in Dayton, closes one of the larger health-system leadership searches in southwest Ohio this year. Becker’s Hospital Review and Modern Healthcare both noted the appointment in their executive-move coverage this week, listing Morris among the most significant hospital leadership changes nationally for Oct. 17-23, which underlines how closely the transition will be watched beyond the Miami Valley.