Highmark Health Plans — the Pittsburgh based nonprofit that insures nearly 8 million people — has a new president.
Gustavo “Gus” Giraldo will begin effective immediately, parent company Highmark Health announced Monday.
Giraldo comes most recently from Aetna, where he served as senior vice president of individual and family plans. Aetna is owned by CVS Health.
During Giraldo’s 25-plus years in the healthcare industry, he’s also worked at Magellan Health, Centene Corporation and Cigna Healthcare, where he spent the bulk of his career.
“What drew me to Highmark is how closely its mission aligns with my own personal passion for improving healthcare,” Giraldo wrote in a post on LinkedIn.
“This is a new direction and an effort to more meaningfully and effectively drive that mission as part of a not-for-profit Blue Plan that is deeply committed to creating remarkable health experiences and improving health outcomes.”
Giraldo earned a bachelor’s degree from Florida State University and a master’s in business administration from the University of Pennsylvania, according to his LinkedIn page.
He will succeed Tom Doran, who had served as president of Highmark Health Plans since 2023.
Highmark said Doran departed to “pursue other opportunities.”
The announcement comes the same day that Highmark announced a significant boost in profits for its insurance arm during the first half of 2026 after two straight years in the red.
