Wright Lassiter III named 100 Most Influential People in Healthcare

CHICAGO (Dec. 8, 2025) – CommonSpirit Health President and CEO Wright Lassiter III has again been recognized by Modern Healthcare as one of the “100 Most Influential People in Healthcare” for 2025. Lassiter holds the number 10 position on the list.

“It is an honor to be recognized among so many leaders who are working to strengthen and transform an ever‑changing health care landscape,” said Lassiter. “This recognition reflects the dedication of the entire CommonSpirit team, whose commitment to humankindness, equity, and innovation ensures that we serve patients and communities with compassion and excellence every day. As we look ahead, I remain inspired by the belief that health care must be both safe and just, and that our collective influence is measured by the lives we improve and the dignity we uphold.”

Modern Healthcare’s annual ranking highlights executives who have advanced clinical, operational and financial goals while driving broader change across the health care sector. Editor-in-chief Mary Ellen Podmolik noted, “Our ranked list of the 100 Most Influential People in Healthcare highlights the executives in all corners of the industry who are striving to advance medicine and how care is delivered — and succeeding in doing so.”

Lassiter leads CommonSpirit Health, one of the nation’s largest nonprofit health systems, with reported revenues of $40 billion in fiscal year 2025 — an 8.5% increase over the prior year. He oversees 158 hospitals and about 2,300 care sites across 24 states, serving more than 25 million patient visits annually. Under his leadership, nearly 160,000 team members, including 45,000 nurses and 25,000 physicians and advanced practice clinicians, deliver care across hundreds of communities. He also directs the CommonSpirit Health Foundation, aligning care delivery with community investment to advance equity, access and humankindness.

Lassiter has championed technology and innovation, advancing the use of artificial intelligence (AI) and digital tools to improve clinical decision-making, streamline operations and enhance patient outcomes. His vision integrates clinical excellence with cutting-edge technology, ensuring that care is not only safe and effective but also personalized and equitable. This commitment is reflected in CommonSpirit’s strong Leapfrog safety ratings, with 86% of eligible CommonSpirit hospitals receiving either an “A” or “B” grade, compared to just 58% of hospitals nationwide. In 2025, CommonSpirit was recognized with the prestigious Eisenberg Award for Patient Safety and Quality, and several of its hospitals were ranked among the Best Hospitals by U.S. News & World Report, further reinforcing Lassiter’s commitment to ensuring quality and patient care.

He has also prioritized employee engagement, fostering a culture where caregivers feel valued, supported and empowered to deliver their best work. In 2025, CommonSpirit’s internal MyVoice Survey achieved a record 114,000 team member participants, with improved scores across all key measures and results exceeding national benchmarks in areas such as belonging, values and trust. This commitment to workforce engagement was further recognized when Forbes named CommonSpirit one of America’s Dream Employers for both 2025 and 2026. Together, these efforts translate directly into improved patient experience, as teams across CommonSpirit provide care that is compassionate, seamless and centered on the dignity of every individual.

A nationally recognized voice on health system strategy, workforce leadership and cross-sector collaboration, Lassiter champions sustainability, fairness and compassionate care as essential pillars of health care’s future. His influence has been further acknowledged by Becker’s Healthcare, which recently named him among its 61 CEO Influencers to Know (2025), and by Crain’s Detroit Business, which honored him as Newsmaker of the Year (2022) and with the Healthcare Heroes Corporate Achievement Award (2021).

Beyond his executive accomplishments, Lassiter contributes his expertise to corporate governance through board service at several major companies. He is a director at Quest Diagnostics, serving on the Audit and Finance and Quality, Safety and Compliance committees; a director at Fortive; and lead independent director at DT Midstream, where he chairs the Corporate Governance Committee and serves on the ESG and Compensation committees.

The complete Modern Healthcare ranking appears in the December issue of the magazine, with honoree profiles available online at ModernHealthcare.com/100MostInfluential.