RWJBarnabas Health CEO Mark Manigan announced Wednesday morning that Sen. George Helmy will return to his role as executive vice president, chief external affairs and policy officer at the health system.
Manigan praised Helmy for his efforts in the U.S. Senate, where he served from Sept. 9 to Dec. 8, filling the unexpired term of Sen. Bob Menendez, who was forced to resign this summer. Helmy’s departure clears the way for Andy Kim, who won Menendez’ seat in November, to get an early start.
“On behalf of the entire RWJBarnabas Health family, I want to commend Sen. George Helmy on his distinguished service in the U.S. Senate on behalf of the people of the great state of New Jersey,” Manigan wrote in an email to RWJBH employees that was sent out this morning.
“He has built a remarkable legacy of service and accomplishment to our state and nation for which we can all be proud. Senator Helmy will continue to provide our team with invaluable leadership and counsel in helping RWJBarnabas Health achieve its mission of building and sustaining a healthier New Jersey.”
Helmy, the longtime chief of staff to Gov. Phil Murphy, said returning to RWJBH was a “no-brainer,” as it will enable him to continue a legacy of service – which is what attracted him to the health system originally.
Helmy, who will rejoin RWJBH on Dec. 16, originally started on Sept. 29, 2023.
“Coming out of the governor’s office, I viewed health care as an opportunity to go back into the private sector, where I had been twice before, but in a way that would be a continuance of doing good through some level of service,” he said.
Helmy said the system’s longtime commitment to serving some of the most vulnerable in the state is most appealing.
“From my first meeting with the CEO Mark Manigan, he was steadfast in his concerns about equity in health care,” he said. “He wants us to have the ability to deliver best-in-class care in the counties and the communities that we’re in, but also focus on community health, meaning, how do we keep this individual out of our emergency room? How do we provide him or her with better primary care.
“Mark always says, ‘We live the mission.’ That’s why we’re making investments in housing for homeless populations and investments in FQHCs and food pantries and 340B pharmacies that aren’t directly connected to us, because that has an impact on health outcomes in the communities where we have fantastic hospitals.”
Helmy made the most of his time in the Senate, introducing or co-sponsoring 30 bills while serving on three Senate committees. But it will be the contacts he made – both with other members of the senate and key bureaucratic officials – that will help in his work at RWJBH moving forward.
He said the relationships he built with members of both sides of the aisle, including Louisiana Republican Bill Cassidy, who is in line to become the chair of the key Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, will be invaluable.
“To have this connective tissue with the programs that pump billions of dollars into our economy and are very material to the health of our health of our families will be so important,” he said.
Helmy said his return to RWJBH will enable him to do what he does best.
“The role allows me still to have a great intersection with government officials and public policy,” he said. “Going back there after this short term in this in the Senate was a no-brainer for me.”
