CHICAGO and MIRAMAR, Fla., March 19, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- MDLIVE Inc. announced appointments to its executive team to position the company for significant, sustained growth during the pandemic when virtual healthcare use is reaching record levels in the U.S. Specifically, MDLIVE has named Chairman Charles S. Jones to the additional post of chief executive officer, Christopher Shirley as chief financial officer and Andy Copilevitz as chief operations officer. The additions reflect the continued build-out of a senior leadership team of healthcare and technology industry executives from leading high-growth public and private companies.
In line with the recommendations of use by multiple government agencies, telehealth is proving to be an increasingly valuable tool in helping to reduce the spread of COVID-19 by providing a first-line defense for the medical community. Patients are conducting initial and follow-up medical visits from their homes, eliminating the unnecessary exposure to individuals in urgent-care settings while protecting the health of providers. MDLIVE, which has the industry’s most comprehensive virtual care platform, has seen its own utilization increase by more than 50 percent since the start of the pandemic outbreak in the U.S. with some geographic markets reporting their highest-ever numbers of virtual visits.
“Virtual care is playing a critical role in how the healthcare system is working to combat the spread of COVID-19 by keeping patients out of the ER and urgent care centers whenever possible,” Jones said. “Furthermore, virtual behavioral health services are proving to be a critical resource for helping individuals struggling with managing heightened levels of stress and anxiety during the pandemic. While we began the build-out of our executive team several months ago, it is good to have in place the expertise to enable us to continue to manage contagion in healthcare settings.”
Jones continued, “With our ongoing work in enhancing our healthcare platform, we had anticipated a period of hyper-growth and were well-prepared for the current pandemic situation. Government experts anticipate daily visit volumes for virtual care providers will increase from 50,000 to 100,000 industrywide during the pandemic.”
Jones has served as MDLIVE’s chairman for more than three years and is the founder and managing partner of Bedford Funding, a healthcare technology-focused private equity firm having $1.4 billion in assets under management. Jones has spent much of his career as an operating executive for a wide range of private and public companies in the U.S., U.K. and Canada. He was chief operating officer of London-based Shandwick plc, which during his tenure became the largest public relations firm in the world through acquisitions. Before this, he led the transformation and ultimate sale of Markham, Ontario-based Geac Computer Corp., a publicly listed business intelligence software company. As its chairman and CEO, Jones led two public company acquisitions and their integration. The Wall Street Journal named Geac the No. 1 performing global stock in 2001. After this, Jones was named one of the top-10 CEOs in Canada by the National Post newspaper.
As chief financial officer, Shirley will oversee all finance and business planning activities at MDLIVE. He has more than 20 years of financial leadership experience in healthcare and technology-focused businesses with a track record of building high performing teams, driving strategy and raising capital to support growth. Most recently, he was the chief financial officer for Catasys Inc. (NASDAQ: CATS), where he led the finance, human resource and strategic partnership functions of the company through a period of tremendous growth. Prior to joining Catasys, Shirley served as the chief financial officer of Sentient Science Corp. and GE Intelligent Platforms Software. He earned a bachelor’s degree in finance from DePaul University and participated in General Electric Co.’s Experienced Financial Leadership Program.
As chief operations officer, Copilevitz will oversee MDLIVE’s call center, clinical operations, credentialing and provider services, and business analytics. He brings to the company more than 20 years of experience in consumer-driven businesses and management consulting for high-growth businesses, most recently with Walgreens Co. At Walgreens, Copilevitz was vice president of the customer offer development team, where he launched business initiatives to support the overall growth. Before this, he led Walgreens’ retail business strategy transformation and oversaw the business insights team. Earlier in his career he worked with Bain & Co. on strategy and performance improvement projects across multiple industries. Copilevitz earned a bachelor’s degree in mathematical methods in the social sciences and economics, magna cum laude, from Northwestern University and an MBA in finance and real estate management from Northwestern’s Kellogg School of Management.
About MDLIVE
MDLIVE offers convenient and affordable virtual healthcare services to more than 40 million members nationwide. Our network of board-certified physicians, dermatologists, psychiatrists and therapists are specially trained in virtual care and are committed to the highest quality treatment and the best possible patient experience. We leverage technology and artificial intelligence to simplify and streamline, connecting providers and patients whenever and wherever it’s most convenient, often within just minutes. To learn more about our expanding product suite and our partnerships with major health plans, hospital systems and employers, visit www.MDLIVE.com, download our app, or text “Sophie” to MDLIVE (635483) to register.
Editor’s Note: Executive photographs available on request