Sam Downing, MBA, MPH, FACHE

Class of: 1971

Departments: Health Policy and Management

Lester Breslow Lifetime Achievement Award

Downing recently retired as president/CEO of Salinas Valley Memorial Healthcare System, an integrated network of health care programs, services and facilities on California’s central coast. He started at Salinas Valley Memorial in 1972 as an assistant administrator and had held the CEO position since 1985, overseeing a transition from a small rural hospital to a major health care system. Downing was also chairman for 17 years of Beta Healthcare Group, the largest provider of hospital malpractice coverage in California, and served as an adviser to the Clinton administration.

Magazine Article: Alumni Hall of Fame: 2011 Inductees