William McKinney Named CEO of Eleanor Health

WALTHAM, Mass.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Eleanor Health, the first addiction and mental health provider delivering comprehensive, whole-person care through value-based payment models, today announced the appointment of William McKinney as Chief Executive Officer and member of Board of Directors, effective January 9, 2024.

William was most recently the CEO of Sevita (formerly The MENTOR Network), the leading provider of home and community-based specialty health care with 45,000 employees serving over 55,000 individuals. He led Sevita through several years of exceptional top- and bottom-line growth culminating in a successful transaction in 2022. Prior to joining Sevita in 2019, William served as president of the Integrated Care Group for Fresenius Medical Care (FMC), where he managed multiple business lines including Fresenius Health Partners, FreseniusRx, MedSpring Urgent Care and FMC’s managed care contracting. William previously held senior leadership roles at MedSpring Urgent Care and WellCare Health Plans and also consulted for McKinsey & Company.

“My passion in healthcare is trying to solve the hard problems, and there aren’t many things more challenging than addiction treatment,” McKinney said. “When you tackle the big issues in healthcare, it’s critical to consider the whole person — physical health, mental health, and social well-being. This approach is the heart and soul of Eleanor, and working towards this vision is the reason I’m here.”

Eleanor delivers in-person and virtual substance use disorder care, underpinned by a harm-reduction clinical model. By meeting people where they are, Eleanor’s approach opens the door for individuals to receive care who may not otherwise seek help or who may face barriers that prevent their illnesses from responding well to traditional methods of treatment. The trusted relationships Eleanor forms with its members uniquely positions them to coordinate integrated care and address all drivers of health: physical, social and mental. This is all underpinned by value-based payment models, proprietary technology and data-driven insights, which allow Eleanor to drive sustainable outcomes and total-cost-of-care reduction across large populations.

“William has a proven track record of delivering mission and margin, at scale. His deep knowledge of value-based contracting and care delivery for complex populations positions him well to propel Eleanor to further success in its mission to transform the quality, delivery and accessibility of addiction treatment,” said David Whelan, Board Chair of Eleanor Health and Co-Founder and General Partner of Town Hall Ventures, Eleanor’s founding investor.

Eleanor is in seven markets today and currently has 17 value-based contracts, including with three national payers. The company achieved this industry-leading commercial traction due in part to its approach – a much-needed departure from more traditional residential and outpatient recovery programs that are fee-for-service, short-term and abstinence based. These treatment modalities can be notoriously costly and ineffective with relapse rates as high as ~85% and cost upwards of $30k for a 30-day stay. People cycle in and out of these programs without connection to longitudinal care, resulting in only a small percentage achieving sustainable outcomes while driving enormous spend.

Chris Bischoff, Managing Director, General Catalyst, said: “At General Catalyst, we are committed to partnering with ambitious entrepreneurs who are dedicated to transformational change that drives outsized impact. The large, underserved population Eleanor serves coupled with what we believe is a pioneering approach fits squarely into this thesis, and is why we invested in the business. We are thrilled to have what we think is a world-class leader like William who has both vision and execution-orientation at the helm.”