The American Hospital Association (AHA) Board of Trustees has elected Marc L. Boom, M.D., president and CEO of Houston Methodist, as its Chair-elect Designate. Dr. Boom will be Chair-elect in 2025 and become the 2026 Chair of the AHA, the top-elected official of the national organization that represents America’s hospitals and health systems and works to advance health in America.

 

Since 2012, Dr. Boom has led the 2,500-bed Houston Methodist, an eight-hospital system with more than 32,000 employees. During Dr. Boom’s time at Houston Methodist, the system has been recognized for its dedication to high quality clinical care and patient experience, innovation, and a world-renowned research institute. In addition to his leadership role, Dr. Boom is board certified in internal medicine and geriatric medicine and maintains a part-time primary care practice.

 

“I am honored to be chosen as the chair-elect designate of the AHA board. In this role, I promise to continue the organization’s excellent track record of advocating for all of our nation’s hospitals,” said Dr. Boom. “As chair, I will work diligently to convince others that the right answer is almost never one sided, but rather somewhere in between. The right answer is rarely an ’OR,’ it is an ’AND.’ Together, we can lead the AHA into the future.”

 

Prior to becoming president and CEO, Dr. Boom served in a number of executive roles for 15 years at Houston Methodist, including running its flagship hospital. Dr. Boom is also an associate professor of clinical medicine at Weill Cornell Medicine. His leadership and contributions to hospitals and health care have been recognized over the course of his career, including most recently as the 2024 recipient of the Stephen L. Klineberg Award for outstanding leadership in health care by Rice University. Dr. Boom was the first hospital CEO in the nation to mandate the COVID-19 vaccine for its employees and physicians. His leadership paved the way for other hospitals and hospital systems to do the same to protect their patients.

 

He also served as chair of the Texas Hospital Association in 2021 and chair of the Greater Houston Partnership in 2023. In addition, Dr. Boom is a member of several professional and community organizations such as the American College of Healthcare Executives, the American College of Physician Executives, and the American Heart Association, where he is Past-President of the Board for the Houston office.

 

He holds a Bachelor of Science in biology from the University of Texas, a Master of Business Administration from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, and a medical degree from the Baylor College of Medicine. Dr. Boom completed his residency in internal medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital and fellowships in general internal medicine and geriatric medicine at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania.

 

Dr. Boom is a member of the AHA Board of Trustees. He currently serves on AHA’s Health Systems Committee and previously was an AHA Regional Policy Board 7 delegate.