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CLEVELAND, Ohio — Summa Health CEO Dr. Cliff Deveny announced Wednesday that he will leave his role as CEO in the new year. Health Assurance Transformation Co. president Daryl Tol will become acting president and CEO until a new leader is named. Health Assurance Transformation Co. -- known as HATCo -- is the for-profit company that now owns Akron-based Summa. Deveny will stay with Summa as a strategic advisor and “CEO Emeritus” effective Jan. 1. He said he will continue to be actively engaged in the organization through 2026, according to his email announcement. “Daryl (Tol) will work closely with our leadership team and a strategy council of Summa leaders to ensure continuity, stability, and focus throughout this process,” Deveny said in an email sent to Summa medical staff, boards and committees. The announcement comes about a month after the $515 million sale of Summa Health to for-profit HATCo was completed. HATCo is a new business venture owned by venture capital firm General Catalyst. The sale, first announced in 2024, makes Summa the only major for-profit hospital system in Northeast Ohio. Deveny will be active in the search for a new, long-term president and CEO, as well as helping to support and onboard that person, Summa said. Deveny did not give a specific reason for his resignation, saying it was time to begin Summa’s next chapter. “An important component of any enduring organization’s ability to withstand the test of time is thoughtful succession planning. Together with our Board of Directors and partners at HATCo, we have decided that now is the right time to begin the search for the next long-term President and CEO of Summa Health,” Deveny said in the email. Cleveland.com has reached out to Summa for comment. In October, Deveny said all of Summa’s 8,500 employees — including Deveny himself and his leadership team — moved to the new for-profit health system, and that he would continue serving as CEO. The purchase price, when added to Summa’s current cash, will enable the health system to eliminate $850 million in existing debt, the companies said after the sale was first announced in early 2024. Health Assurance Transformation has also committed to $350 million in capital funding within the first five years for investment in technologies that support growth, as well as $200 million intended for strategic and transformative investments and to drive innovation over the first seven years. Some Akron residents opposed the sale, saying that the health system was undervalued and voiced fears that the quality of healthcare will suffer at a for-profit hospital. The sale has been criticized by Summa is Not For Sale, a coalition of public interest groups in Summit County concerned about public health. The coalition has charged Summa and Health Assurance Transformation with undervaluing the health system. Proceeds from the sale will fund the new Trailhead Community Health Foundation of Greater Akron, which is expected to receive “in the hundreds of millions of dollars,” Deveny said. An exact figure won’t be available until all of Summa’s debts are paid, and certain reserves will have to be kept in place for six months to a year, Deveny said.
