Los Alamos Medical Center names Michael H. Covert next CEO

Los Alamos Medical Center has picked Michael H. Covert, FACHE, to become its next chief executive officer, a move that matters far beyond the hospital’s administrative offices because the facility is the only hospital in Los Alamos County.

Covert will take over on June 15, replacing Bob Singletary, who has served as interim CEO since March. For a county of 19,419 residents, the change puts a new face at the top of a 47-bed acute care hospital that has served Northern New Mexico for more than 70 years and employs more than 300 health care workers.

That makes the appointment a key moment for patients, employees and families who rely on Los Alamos Medical Center for emergency care, surgery, inpatient treatment and outpatient services. The hospital also has been under close community scrutiny after announcing a transition away from labor and delivery services, a change that has raised concerns about how far local care can still stretch for families who want services close to home.

Covert arrives with a long health care résumé. He most recently served as chief operations officer at Northeast Georgia Health System, where local coverage said he helped oversee day-to-day operations for a five-hospital system, while also working to improve care coordination and patient flow. His past leadership roles include CHI St. Luke’s Health System in Texas, Palomar Health in California, Washington Hospital Center in Washington, D.C., and Sarasota Memorial Health System in Florida.

The hospital’s announcement presents Covert as an executive with decades of experience in both operations and strategy, a background that could prove important at a time when Los Alamos residents are paying close attention to staffing levels, specialty access and the financial choices that shape what services stay in town. In a small county where one hospital carries outsized weight, even a routine leadership transition can influence morale among employees and confidence among patients.

Los Alamos Medical Center says it is the county’s only hospital and a major health care provider for Northern New Mexico. Its leaders have also stressed the importance of keeping care coordinated across the region, even as some services shift elsewhere. Covert steps into that conversation as the hospital tries to project stability, preserve trust and define what the next chapter of local care will look like.