What healthcare CEOs say is missing from the access conversation

“Access to care” emerged as a top healthcare C-suite buzzword heading into 2025. While much of the conversation has focused on coverage, affordability and capacity, hospital and health system leaders told Becker’s the industry often overlooks the more human elements: trust, navigation and how patients actually experience the care journey.

Here is what four CEOs said when asked: What does healthcare not talk about enough when it comes to access?

Editor’s note: Responses have been lightly edited for clarity and length.

Andrew Goldfrach. CEO of Arrowhead Regional Medical Center (Colton, Calif.): When we talk about access, we often talk about it in general terms — the number of patients seen in clinics or our emergency departments. At the root, access is less about capacity or ease of getting seen; it is more about reducing those barriers within the community, at home or elsewhere that force patients to de-prioritize getting the services they need. A lot of access is related to health equity. It is our responsibility as health systems to think differently about access — understanding the root of why patients aren’t able to be seen timely, then developing strategies that are unique to those circumstances.

For my organization, a big factor is not only the drive times to and from our clinics but also comfortability (or lack thereof) with using digital platforms, assuming they even have appropriate internet connectivity. Most of my patients use prepaid cell phones and don’t have private internet, which creates additional barriers. As healthcare leaders, it is important to remember that healthcare delivery is local, and as such, we need to better position ourselves to meet our patients where they are.

Michelle Joy. President and CEO of Carson Tahoe Health (Carson City, Nev.): When we talk about access, I think we focus too much on the numbers — such as first available appointment, wait times and bed capacity — and not enough on the human side. Access isn’t just about getting in the door; it’s about feeling cared for and supported once you’re there.

What doesn’t get talked about enough is how much access today is dictated by administrative barriers like prior authorizations. Every day, our teams are doing everything possible to get patients the care they need, but denials delay treatment or create frustration for patients who assume it’s the hospital’s or clinic’s fault. It wears on our staff and erodes trust in the system.

When patients lose faith that the system is working for them, it doesn’t matter how many appointment slots we add. Access requires compassion, connection and trust in a system that works both with and for patients and caregivers, not against them.

Jennifer Mendrzycki. President and CEO of TMC Health (Tucson, Ariz.): When we talk about access, we tend to focus on how many providers or clinics exist, but not on how people actually move through the system. For most patients, the hardest part is not the care itself but figuring out how to get there. Navigating referrals, authorizations and appointments can be overwhelming, especially for families trying to coordinate care from a distance.

We also overlook the hidden cost of time. Every delay, phone call or wait for approval takes people away from work and family, and that is a real, measurable cost. If we want to improve access, we have to design around how patients live, not how systems operate. That means rethinking care models, expanding navigation support, integrating technology that connects rather than complicates, and aligning policy to reward coordination instead of volume. Workforce shortages are real, but they cannot be an excuse. The path forward is process redesign that builds access into how healthcare works rather than leaving it up to patients to figure out.

David Walz, BSN, RN. President and CEO of Madelia (Minn.) Health: When we talk about healthcare access, we usually talk about cost and coverage. But what we don’t talk about enough is proximity, trust and continuity.

In rural communities, access means:

Transportation: Can patients actually get to care?
Time: Do they have to take a full day off to see a doctor?
Trust: Do they feel known and heard when they arrive?

At Madelia Health, we see that access is about removing every barrier — not just financial but physical and emotional — so care feels truly within reach.

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