More than two years after General Catalyst first said it would take over Akron, Ohio-based Summa Health, 2026 has brought the health system its first permanent CEO since the deal closed and its first named roster of AI vendors meant to remake how it operates.
General Catalyst’s Health Assurance Transformation Co., or HATCo, signed a letter of intent in January 2024 to acquire Summa Health and convert it to a for-profit system, a move General Catalyst framed as fundamentally different from a typical private equity buyout. The two organizations reached a $485 million definitive agreement in November 2024, and Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost gave conditional approval in June 2025.
The deal closed Oct. 1, 2025, and weeks later Summa announced that President and CEO Cliff Deveny, MD, would transition to CEO emeritus, with HATCo President and CEO Daryl Tol stepping in as Summa’s acting president and CEO effective Jan. 1, 2026.
Here are 5 updates on Summa Health from 2026, as reported by Becker’s:
- HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. toured the transformation effort: Mr. Kennedy visited Summa Health in Akron as part of his “Take Back Your Health” tour through Ohio. Mr. Tol described the visit as a chance to show off the HATCo-backed effort to build “a blueprint for healthcare innovation and lifelong community-based care.” Discussions covered AI-enabled care, behavioral health, nutrition, chronic disease management, homelessness, opioid addiction treatment and public safety.
- Mr. Tol laid out why Akron was chosen as HATCo’s test case: Speaking at an Akron Roundtable event, Mr. Tol said Summa’s integrated insurance arm and Akron’s varied market conditions made it a fit for the HATCo model, and that leadership deliberately chose a lower-growth market because succeeding there would be a harder, more convincing test than an easier market would provide. He also said HATCo was still searching for a permanent CEO and planned to keep Summa’s headquarters local.
- Summa named its first permanent CEO since the ownership change: Jennifer Eslinger, previously president and chief operating officer of Rochester (N.Y.) Regional Health, was named Summa’s next president and CEO effective Sept. 21, following a national search. She previously held leadership roles at Detroit-based Henry Ford Health and Nashville, Tenn.-based HCA Healthcare.
- Ms. Eslinger and Mr. Tol detailed their AI and access priorities: Ms. Eslinger told Becker’s in August that she plans to spend her first 90-plus days on “listening and learning tours” before setting priorities, and that she sees AI’s near-term role as easing back-office burden before extending support to front-line clinicians. Mr. Tol told Becker’s that a year in Akron sharpened his focus on Medicaid coverage losses and residents defaulting to the emergency room for care they shouldn’t need there.
- HATCo named its first eight transformation vendors. Summa announced Aug. 19 that it will work with eight General Catalyst-backed companies: Aidoc, Clarium, Commure, Fabric, Hippocratic AI, Judi Health, Transcarent and Verse Medical, spanning diagnostic imaging AI, supply chain analytics, ambient documentation and revenue cycle automation, virtual primary care and care orchestration, claims and benefits administration, care navigation, and durable medical equipment and post-acute care management. HATCo is also working with fellow General Catalyst company Percepta to build a Health System Command Center meant to link all eight tools into one operating layer.
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