County-run Kern Medical Center taps Andrew Cantu as CFO
Former Mercy Hospital exec charged with shoring up finances for struggling hospital.
Bakersfield, California-native Andrew Cantu will be named the CFO of his hometown’s hospital, Kern Medical Center, on Feb. 9, according to a statement by the Kern County board of supervisors.
Cantu, who currently serves in the same position at Mercy Hospitals and its umbrella company, Dignity Health, has over 20 years of experience in healthcare finance with most of it spent at Mercy.
[Also: Latest CFO announcements]
Cantu replaces interim CFO Arebi Garsa, who was in place while the search was on for a permanent replacement, according to the Bakersfield Californian.
Cantu is expected shore up the county hospital’s shaky finances and move it toward a hospital authority structure. He will work directly for the county, eschewing health insurance, retirement and other county employee benefits..
KMC has already trimmed its monthly $3 million loss to $400,000, according to Bakersfieldnow.com.
"We went through challenges at Mercy 15 years ago - some of the same challenges," said Cantu in the Bakersfield Californian. "They can be overcome."
KMC chief executive Russell Judd previously worked for 10 years with Cantu at Mercy.
