December 17, 2024
WASHINGTON, DC— After more than three decades of dedicated service at the helm of the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA), founder and President Margaret E. O’Kane announced her decision to retire at the end of 2025, which is also the organization’s 35th anniversary year.
“Leading NCQA for the past 35 years has been an incredible honor, and I am proud of the work we’ve done to improve quality throughout the health care industry,” said O’Kane. “I am equally inspired by the dedication of those in the field working tirelessly to improve quality at every level of the health care system, and I am proud to transition the future of NCQA to the next generation of quality leaders whose vision will continue to shape and lead the industry forward.”
Before founding NCQA in 1990, O’Kane was a respiratory therapist for five years in various hospitals, and quickly realized that care was not well organized or standardized. This inspired her to found NCQA, with the goal of building consensus around key health care quality issues and working with large employers, policymakers, doctors, patients and health plans to determine what’s important and how to measure it, and how to promote improvement throughout the industry.
During her tenure, O’Kane helped put NCQA at the forefront of advancing health care quality. Today, more than 216 million people—about 65% of the U.S. population—are enrolled in NCQA-Accredited plans that use NCQA’s Healthcare Effectiveness Data and Information Set (HEDIS®) to assess and benchmark the quality of care. More than 10,000 entities—health plans, health systems, primary care practices, technology vendors, and more—are accredited or recognized through NCQA’s evaluation programs that set rigorous standards for how care is managed and delivered.
“On behalf of the board, I want to thank Peggy for her more than three decades of leadership at NCQA and her dedication to the pursuit of health care quality for all throughout her impressive career,” said NCQA Board Chair-elect John Glaser, PHD, Executive in Residence at Harvard Medical School. “Her compassion, unwavering commitment to high-quality health care and genuine care for patient outcomes have shaped the industry, and we are grateful knowing that her legacy will continue to guide the future of NCQA.”
NCQA will launch a national search for a new President. O’Kane will remain in her role, actively leading the organization until a successor is named before the end of 2025.
About NCQA
NCQA is a private, nonprofit organization dedicated to improving health care quality. NCQA Accredits and Certifies a wide range of health care organizations. It also Recognizes clinicians and practices in key areas of performance. NCQA’s Healthcare Effectiveness Data and Information Set (HEDIS®) is the most widely used performance measurement tool in health care. NCQA’s website (ncqa.org) contains information to help consumers, employers and others make informed health care choices. NCQA can also be found at Twitter/X @ncqa and on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/company/ncqa.
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