Martin Luther King community healthcare CEO Dr. Elaine Batchlor named UCLA Fielding School of Public Health 2021 commencement speaker

Dr. Elaine Batchlor, chief executive officer of MLK Community Healthcare in Los Angeles, will deliver the 2021 commencement address for the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health’s Virtual Commencement Celebration on Friday, June 11.

As CEO, Batchlor leads a health system that includes Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Hospital (MLKCH) — a private safety net hospital — as well as outpatient practices, the MLK Community Medical Group, a fundraising foundation, and community and population health programs located in South Los Angeles. She was instrumental in the development and start-up of MLKCH, which opened in 2015 as a private, nonprofit hospital with the mission of improving the health of one of the most underserved communities in the state.

“We are honored to have Dr. Batchlor deliver this year’s commencement address, said UCLA Fielding School of Public Health dean and distinguished professor of biostatistics Dr. Ron Brookmeyer. “As we navigate our way through this unprecedented time, we recognize how critical public health and public health leadership truly are,” Brookmeyer said. “Dr. Batchlor is a visionary healthcare leader who, with her colleagues at MLKCH, is addressing critical health issues, including COVID-19, with humanity and resolve.”

Prior to her role at MLKCH, Batchlor served as chief medical officer of L.A. Care Health Plan, the nation’s largest public health plan providing care for a safety net population. She has also served in various vice president roles, including at the California Health Care Foundation, where she ‘developed and oversaw research, policy analysis and programs aimed at improving health care financing and delivery.’

Batchlor, a member of the National Academy of Medicine, is board-certified in both internal medicine and rheumatology, serves on the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health’s board of advisors, and is a Fielding School alumnus (MPH ’90). 

“As an alumnus and exceptional thought leader in public health and medicine, Dr. Batchlor is the perfect person for our graduates to hear from as they prepare for all that lies ahead,” said Brookmeyer.

The UCLA Fielding School of Public Health virtual commencement celebration will take place on June 11 at 3:00 PM PDT and will be available for viewing on the Fielding School's website and YouTube channel.

The UCLA Fielding School of Public Health, founded in 1961, is dedicated to enhancing the public's health by conducting innovative research, training future leaders and health professionals from diverse backgrounds, translating research into policy and practice, and serving our local communities and the communities of the nation and the world. The school has 631 students from 26 nations engaged in carrying out the vision of building healthy futures in greater Los Angeles, California, the nation and the world.