Patty Horoho is the Chief Executive Officer of OptumServe, the end-to-end federal business of Optum and UnitedHealth Group. Since forming OptumServe in 2017, Patty has grown the business by nearly 50%, including securing the $55B Veterans Affairs Community Care Third Party Administrator contract. Under Patty’s leadership, OptumServe continues to grow and expand its support of technology, health services, and data analytics and consulting initiatives across the Defense Health Agency, Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Veterans Affairs and other federal agencies. Before joining Optum, Patty headed up Accenture’s military health business as the client account lead and managing director for military health.

Patty’s distinguished leadership career includes 33 years with the U.S. Army, retiring as Lieutenant General, the 43rd Army Surgeon General and Commander of the U.S. Army Medical Command. She was the first female and first nurse and non-physician to hold these posts. In these roles, Patty led the third largest health care system in the world, a global logistics, research and care network across five continents, with a $54B budget and staff of more than 156,000. An expert in health care transformation, Patty moved the entire Army medicine organization from a disease model of care to a system for health, and implemented groundbreaking and long-lasting initiatives around behavioral health, while improving health care considerations and force protection measures for military women. Patty has been humbled to serve and lead during pivotal moments in Army Medicine and in defense of the nation, including serving in the Emergency Room during the Green Ramp Disaster in 1994; standing up triage at the Pentagon on September 11, 2001; transforming care at the Walter Reed Health Care System from 2007
to 2008; and serving as the Special Assistant to the Commander, International Security Assistance Force Joint Command, Afghanistan.

Currently, Patty holds positions on the UnitedHealth Group Equity Advancement Board, Schultz Family Foundation Board of Trustees, University of Pittsburgh Board of Trustees and Chair of the Diversity and Inclusion Committee, Home Base Honorary Board and Leadership Council, and the Jonas Foundation. Patty is also a fellow in the American Academy of Nursing, and a member of the International Women’s Forum.

Patty is a native of Fayetteville, North Carolina. She earned her Bachelor of Science degree in nursing from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and her Master of Science degree as a clinical trauma nurse specialist from the University of Pittsburgh. Patty has served as a Distinguished Professor at the Uniformed Services University of Health Sciences Graduate School of Nursing, and also holds a Master of Science degree in national resource strategy from the Industrial College of the Armed Forces. Patty holds five honorary doctorates and has received numerous recognitions from Pitt and UNC, including distinguished alumni and fellow award, and a scholarship in her name.

Patty’s military awards and citations include the Distinguished Service Medal, Legion of Merit, Bronze Star Medal, France’s National Order of Legion of Honour Chevalier (Knight), Japan’s Defense Cooperation Award Second Class, and the President’s Lifetime Achievement award.

Additional recognition: Honored by Time Life Publications for her actions at the Pentagon on September 11, 2001; the American Red Cross and Nursing Spectrum National “Nurse Hero”; 2009 USO Woman of the Year; 2010 Margaret Cochran Corbin Award; Tiffany Circle Distinguished Woman Warrior; voted in as a Family Circle Top Ten Most Influential Mom; the New York Institute of Technology’s Riland Public Service Award (first military service member and nurse to receive this award); 2014 Honorary Rock of the Year award; the Helen Manzen Award from the New York University College of Nursing for exemplary leadership on behalf of the health of the nation; a Jonas Center for Nursing and Military leadership honoree; the American Red Cross Women Who Care Humanitarian Award; Inducted — 2016 Women of Impact in Healthcare award; the 2016 Woman’s Memorial Hall of Fame; the 2018 FedHealth IT Women in Leadership Impact Award; and the 2019 EagleForce Warrior Foundation’s Health Hero Award.