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HARTFORDBUSINESS.COM | SEPTEMBER 30, 2024 21 POWER 25 | Healthcare James Shmerling F or those traveling down Washington Street in Hart- ford, it's been impossible to miss the giant red crane that's been hovering above Connecticut Children's medical center over the past year-plus. It's a symbol of the most significant expansion in the hospital's 27-year history — a project occurring under the leadership of CEO Jim Shmerling. The $280 million new tower, adjacent to Connecticut Children's existing Hartford campus, will house several ambitious new programs, including a fetal surgery center that is expected to make Hartford a national leader in the discipline; a NICU unit with 50 private rooms; and state-of-the-art facilities for bone marrow transplant work and gene therapy. The new patient tower is the high- est-profile piece of a broader turn- around effort that's been underway at Connecticut Children's since Shmerling arrived nine years ago. Shmerling is not new to major expansions. He previously oversaw hospital construction at Vanderbilt Children's Hospital and the Children's Hospital of Colorado. Earlier this year, Shmerling led the debut of a new 12-bed medical psychiatric unit at Connecticut Children's Hartford campus. He also announced a major donation from former board chairman David Roth and his wife, Linda, who provided the largest single gift for the medical center's tower expansion. A Nashville native, Shmerling is well-known in the industry, having held management roles at children's hospitals in five states since 1979. He also chaired the board of the national Children's Hospital Associa- tion in 2014. Karen Lynch K aren Lynch finds herself in familiar territory, although it's not necessarily a position she wanted to be in. Lynch, president and CEO of CVS Health, made a surprise announce- ment in August when she decided to part ways with Aetna President Brian Kane, who she hired just a year earlier to run the Hartford-based health insurer. The leadership change came after CVS lowered its 2024 profit guidance for a third consecutive quarter and reported a 7.6% drop in second-quarter net income. Adjusted operating income in the company's healthcare benefits segment, which includes Aetna, decreased 39% due to "increased utilization and the unfavorable impact of the previously disclosed decline in the company's Medicare Advantage star ratings for the 2024 payment year," among other factors. With Kane out, Lynch has assumed direct leadership of Aetna, which she led prior to being named CVS' CEO in 2021. That means Lynch will continue to play a major role in determining Aetna's future strategy, including its presence and employee count in Connecticut. The company employs thousands of workers in the state. During her previous tenure as Aetna's leader she put a spotlight on mental health care. One of her main priorities will be righting the compa- ny's Medicare Advantage program. During her career, Lynch has received numerous accolades, including being named to Fortune's list of the 50 Most Powerful Women in Business, and one of the Top 25 Women in Healthcare by Modern Healthcare in 2017. Lynch's company has made other recent news in Connecticut. CVS by the end of this year plans to open three Oak Street Health primary care centers within existing pharmacy locations in New Haven, Waterbury and Bridgeport. CVS last year acquired Chicago-based Oak Street Health, which focuses on primary care services for Medicare patients, for $10.6 billion. Aetna also announced it's expanding its fertility coverage benefits, including to the LGBTQ+ community.