The American Telemedicine Association’s CEO, Jonathan Linkous, has left ATA after 24 years as CEO. An ATA spokesperson cited personal reasons, according to MedCityNews. Sources told POLITICO Morning eHealth that Mr. Linkous “simply told the organization he was leaving the job effective immediately before its board meeting this week.” It was certainly an unusual departure, without the standard transitional period of months or even a year. The ATA release was short and concentrated on the ‘transitional period’.

Acting as interim CEO will be Dr. Sabrina Smith, who joined last January as COO after senior VP/COO-level positions with the Regulatory Affairs Professionals Society (RAPS) and the American Academy of Physician Assistants (AAPA) after 12 years with MedStar Health, the largest health system in the Washington DC metro. MedCityNews quoted ATA board president Peter Yellowlees, MD that the search is expected to take about six months. This will take the search through ATA’s Fall Forum in October and well into the ramp-up for ATA 2018 in April. ATA is seeking “a vision for the future of healthcare” and “extensive knowledge of telemedicine”, so if you have it, step up! 

Jon Linkous, from the formation of ATA to yesterday, gained much recognition for telemedicine and telehealth, to where ATA presently has 10,000 members and 450 health system and industry partners, a leading annual conference, multiple events and educational programs. They have concentrated much (and successful) effort in gaining parity of payment for telemedicine, a state by state battle, though the POLITICO report (using a quote from a former HIMSS executive director now consulting for ATA!) did not think much of ATA’s influence in the Washington DC swamps. Another major change apparent over the past five years: as an association, healthcare technology has developed way outside ‘telemedicine’. Organizations like HIMSS have exploded in size through redrawing their definitional lines plus aggressive acquisitions in media and of competitors such as Health 2.0. The next chapters won’t be simple or easy for the new CEO. Also FierceHealthcare. (Disclosure: TTA has been for many years a media partner of the ATA annual conference.)