McLaren Health Care, the three-state, 14-hospital health care system and health plan, has appointed Justin F. Klamerus, M.D., M.M.M., as Executive Vice President and Chief Medical Officer. Dr. Klamerus has served as President of Karmanos Cancer Hospital & Network, a subsidiary of McLaren Health Care, since January 2017.
An oncologist by training, Dr. Klamerus assumes the position previously held by Dr. Michael McKenna, McLaren Health Care’s first CMO, who passed away in May.
“Over what has already been an exceptional career, Dr. Klamerus has proven himself to be a compassionate physician and a capable and confident leader, one who has already developed a rapport with many of our physician leaders around the system,” said Phil Incarnati, President and CEO of McLaren Health Care. “Dr. McKenna’s accomplishments at McLaren reached far, and he leaves a well-earned legacy. His loss was very tough on all of us, but it’s pleasing to know that one of his most trusted mentees will succeed him and build on his significant contributions to our clinical quality improvements. Dr. Klamerus will be a welcomed addition to our leadership team.”
As Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Klamerus will recommend, develop and supervise the implementation of medical care aimed toward improving patients’ clinical outcomes while establishing a single standard of care across the McLaren system. His immediate objectives include continuing to build on McLaren’s established success of service excellence, clinical quality and health equity, solidifying the system as the health care provider of choice in the communities it serves.
Following his graduation from Olivet College, Dr. Klamerus earned his Doctor of Medicine degree from the Michigan State University College of Human Medicine. He completed his internal medicine residency — achieving the position of chief resident — at The Ohio State University before continuing his education with a medical oncology fellowship at Johns Hopkins University. Additionally, he also earned a Master of Medical Management degree from Heinz College at Carnegie Mellon University and completed the Health Management Academy’s General Electric Fellowship Program for Chief Medical Officers.
In 2020, he was appointed to the Public Health Advisory Commission by Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer.
Dr. Klamerus’ history with McLaren began in 2009 when, while a practicing oncologist, he served as the Program Director of Cancer Services at McLaren Northern Michigan in Petoskey before becoming President of the McLaren Cancer Institute. In 2014, when McLaren acquired the Karmanos Cancer Institute, he assumed the role of Executive Vice President and Chief Quality Officer at Karmanos before being named the organization’s President.
While at Karmanos, Dr. Klamerus oversaw the expansion of the Karmanos Cancer Network, growing it to 16 community treatment centers throughout Michigan and Ohio and uniting them under a single standard of care by developing the structure of clinical guidelines, care plans and performance standards. He also led all business development and oversaw critical business and clinical partnerships with community physicians, academic faculty and graduate medical education partners.