Beth Bortz, MPP | President & CEO
Beth was named the President and CEO of the Virginia Center for Health Innovation (VCHI) in March 2012. Prior to joining VCHI, she served for nine years as the Executive Director of the Medical Society of Virginia (MSV) Foundation, where she developed and led programs in health care quality improvement, medication assistance, public health awareness, and physician leadership. Ms. Bortz also served as Senior Program Officer and Deputy Director of the Virginia Health Care Foundation for seven years and as a Senior Associate Legislative Analyst for the Virginia General Assembly’s Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission for three years. Ms. Bortz is a 2007 graduate of LEAD Virginia and recently completed service on its Board of Directors. She serves as a member of the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine’s Standing Committee on Primary Care, as a founding member of the National Task Force on Low Value Healthcare, and as a member of Virginia’s All Payer Claims Database advisory board. Previous commitments include serving as the public member on the American Board of Family Medicine Board of Directors, as the Secretary of the Board of Directors of Virginia Health Information, and as a founding board member and chair of Rx Partnership. She has received several awards and recognition for her work, including: the 2014 Virginia Leader Award from LEAD Virginia, Influential Women of Virginia Award from Virginia Lawyer’s Media; Medallion Award for Community Partnership from Mutual of America; and Stettinius Award for Nonprofit Leadership from the Community Foundation representing Greater Richmond. Ms. Bortz earned her undergraduate degree in Economics and Government and her Masters in Public Policy from the College of William and Mary.
Zelda Hinkle | Project and Communications Coordinator
Zelda Hinkle is a Project and Communications Coordinator for the VCHI team. Zelda is a recent graduate of William & Mary's Mason School of Business. In her time at William & Mary, Zelda worked as a Marketing Specialist for the Dean of Students Office. She brings experience in recruitment and logistics from her time on Kappa Delta Sorority's Leadership Council. Zelda also completed a Project Management Internship with Brandito, LLC. Zelda earned her BBA in Business Analytics from William & Mary in 2023.
Lauryn Walker, RN, MPH, PHD | Chief Strategy Officer
Lauryn is the Chief Strategy Officer for Virginia Center for Health Innovation (VCHI). Prior to joining VCHI, Lauryn served as the Interim Chief of Population Health and Senior Advisor to the Chief Actuary and Chief Strategy Officer for North Carolina Medicaid, where she focused on Medicaid expansion and reforms to integrate behavioral and physical health. Lauryn also served as the Senior Advisor for Chief Deputy and Chief Health Economist at Virginia Medicaid, supporting implementation of Medicaid Expansion, data transparency, the development of the Office of Value-Based Purchasing (VBP), the Office of Quality and Population Health, and the Office of Data Analytics. Prior to working directly with states, Lauryn conducted Medicaid policy evaluations and research on health care financial incentive programs. She also served as a health fellow for the U.S. House of Representatives Minority Leader. Lauryn is a registered nurse and member of the Virginia Medical Reserve Corps. She earned her nursing degree and MPH from Johns Hopkins University and her PhD from Virginia Commonwealth University.