Healthcare Industry Expert Ben Lytle to Speak at National Health, Wellness & Prevention Congress

Tempe, Ariz. – March 31, 2005 – L. Ben Lytle, a nationally recognized healthcare and public policy expert and CEO of AXIA Health Management, has been selected to present at the National Health Wellness & Prevention Congress on Wednesday, May 4, at the Hyatt McCormick Place in Chicago, Ill. Lytle will share his expertise on "Consumer Centric Health Plans" to an audience of approximately 1,000 healthcare professionals.

The Advisory Boards of the National Health Wellness & Prevention Congress and the Consumer Directed Health Care Conference have also invited Lytle to serve as a discussion leader and facilitator for the Joint Leadership Summit, which is being held in conjunction with the co-located events on Wednesday May 4in Chicago. The Summit is a special leadership forum for advisory board members, speakers, and select guests to discuss current and future healthcare issues and what steps can be taken to advance the industry.

“Ben Lytle is a welcome addition to our high-level panel of experts,” explains conference CEO Skip Brickley. “Our advisors overwhelmingly agreed that his impressive track record and stellar reputation coupled with his leadership of AXIA Health, which incorporates his visionary views on consumer-directed care with a focus on wellness and prevention, make him a valued participant.”

Other speakers on the agenda include Mark McClellan, MD, administrator, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS);Kenneth R. Pelletier, Ph.D., M.D., Clinical Professor of Medicine, University of California School of Medicine, San Francisco (UCSF) and director, corporate health improvement program (CHIP) at the University of Arizona School of Medicine; George Lundberg, M.D., editor, Medscape General Medicine, WebMD Medscape Health Network; John Rother, director of policy and strategy, AARP; and  Wendy Borow Johnson, president, Healthy Living Channel.

Lytle is CEO of AXIA Health Management, a leading population health management company that focuses on improving the health of individuals in specific population segments through high-yield prevention and health management programs designed to prevent, or delay chronic disease or disability.  Prior to forming AXIA Health, Lytle served as CEO of Anthem, one of the largest health benefits company in the United States. During his tenure at Anthem, Lytle built, took public and sold Acordia, Inc., which became the world’s seventh largest insurance broker.  

Lytle’s innovative strategies have achieved national recognition andwere cited in Tom Peters’ book Liberation Management, as well as in several periodicals. He has provided testimony to Congress and state legislatures on healthcarereform; chaired Indiana’s governor-appointed healthcare commission; and served on President Clinton’s Commission on Consumer Protection and Quality in the Health Care Industry.