St. Lukes' CEO is stepping down.
Dr. David Pate announced Wednesday he plans to retire at the end of January after a decade on the job.
During those 10 years, he's helped the hospital system grow in a number of directions, including expanding the downtown Boise campus, building a new hospital in Nampa, expanding services into eastern Oregon, and even creating a virtual care center where doctors can communicate with their patients remotely.
Pate says America's health care system still faces a number of challenges with no answers in sight.
"Even if we could reduce prices in health care and reduce some of the costs, the demand for health care is increasing tremendously, and that is what scares the heck out of me. And we're not doing anything about that as a country," Pate said.
Pate plans to spend more time with his family in his retirement. He says he's also planning to teach healthcare law at the University of Idaho.
Chief Operating Officer, Chris Roth, will replace Pate as the new CEO.
