Healthcare & Medical

Health Connect South Annual Gathering 2026

Health Connect South Annual Gathering 2026 is the largest gathering of healthcare decision makers, innovators, and next-generation leaders in the Southeast. The conference promotes regional health collaborations and serves as a platform to advance the Southeast’s role in the future of health. Attendees experience interdisciplinary partnerships, discussions o…

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95Speakers
49Sponsors
13Sessions
110Companies · in total

Speakers

Programmed at Health, in alphabetical order.

Allan Levey, MD, PhD
Director Emory's Alzheimer's Disease Research Center · Emory University's School of Medicine
Amanda Free
President · Anthem, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Georgia
Amy Burney-Preddy, MHA, MS, CPC
Director of Revenue Integrity · WakeMed
Amy Kappen
Founder and Executive Director · Best Day Ever Foundation
Andy Miller
Correspondent · Kaiser Family Foundation Health News
Anthony Saul
President & COO · Grady Health System
Baha Zeidan
CEO · Azalea Health
Ben Scruggs, PhD
Associate · Hatteras Venture Partners
Ben Thrower, MD
Medical Director of the Andrew C. Carlos MS Institute · Shepherd Center
Bob Crutchfield
Managing Director · 1824 Health Ventures & Mainsail Venture Funds
Brandon Talley, PhD, MPH
Executive Vice President, Chief Impact and Innovation Officer · CDC Foundation
Brian Thompson
Associate Director of Programs and Legal Compliance · Can Do Multiple Sclerosis
Candice L. Saunders, FACHE
CEO & President · Wellstar Health System
Carlos Del Rio, MD
Interim Dean · Emory School of Medicine
Carol Burrell
President & CEO · Northeast Georgia Health System
Carolyn K Clevenger, DNP, RN, GNP-BC, FAANP, FGSA, FAAN
Founding Dean & Professor School of Nursing · University of Georgia
Caylee Noggle
President & CEO · Georgia Hospital Association
Charles Stokes, FACHE
Founding Partner · Relia Healthcare Advisors
Cheryl Preheim
Anchor 11Alive News · NBC Atlanta
Chet Bhasin, FACHE, MBA, MS
Executive Director · Georgia Board of Healthcare Workforce
Chris Franklin
President · LocumTenens.com
Chris Rozell, PhD
Executive Director, Institute for Neuroscience, Neurotechnology & Society · Georgia Tech

Sponsors

The companies behind the program. Tiers as disclosed.

ACHE of Georgia
Amazon Web ServicesPremier Sponsor
AnthemAdvocate Sponsor
ApolloMDChampion Sponsor
Arnall Golden GregoryAdvocate Sponsor
ATDC Georgia TechAdvocate Sponsor
Atlanta Business Chronicle
Atlanta Medicine
Azalea HealthChampion Sponsor
CDC FoundationAdvocate Sponsor
City of Hope AtlantaPlatinum Sponsor
DPI AnesthesiaAdvocate Sponsor
Duke AlumniAdvocate Sponsor
Emory UniversityUniversity Sponsor
Florida State University (FSU Health)University Sponsor
FreshworksAdvocate Sponsor
Georgia Bio/Georgia Life Sciences
Georgia CEO
Georgia Health InitiativeAdvocate Sponsor
Georgia Hospital AssociationAdvocate Sponsor
Georgia Research AllianceAdvocate Sponsor
Georgia TechUniversity Sponsor
Grady Health SystemAdvocate Sponsor
GSU NursingAdvocate Sponsor
Harvard Business School Club of Atlanta
HIMSS Georgia Chapter
Hypepotamus
Jackson HealthcarePremier Sponsor
Kaiser PermanentePresenting Sponsor
Kennesaw State University (Coles College)University Sponsor
King & SpaldingChampion Sponsor
LEK ConsultingAdvocate Sponsor
Liotta ResearchChampion Sponsor
MD Atlanta
Medical College of GeorgiaAdvocate Sponsor
Mercer UniversityChampion Sponsor
MerckAdvocate Sponsor
Morehouse School of MedicineAdvocate Sponsor
MUSC HealthAdvocate Sponsor
National VisionAdvocate Sponsor

Agenda

Selected from 13 sessions.

  • 10:50 – 11:30am

    Breaking Silos: Collaboration as Healthcare’s Competitive Advantage

  • 10:50 – 11:30am

    Funding the Future: Where Healthcare Investment Is Heading

  • 11:35am-12:15pm

    Artificial Intelligence: Accelerating the Next Era of Medicine

  • 11:35am-12:15pm

    Closing the Gap: Advancing Healthcare in Rural America

  • 12:50 – 1:20pm

    Luncheon Keynote

  • 1:25 – 2:05pm

    The Future of Value Based Care

  • 2:10 – 2:40pm

    Exclusive Fireside Chat with the CDC Director

  • 2:45 – 3:25pm

    Remodeling Healthcare’s Digital Future: Helping Rural and Underserved Communities Thrive

  • 2:45 – 4:15pm

    The State of Healthcare: Industry Leaders’ Perspectives – Reimagining Workforce

    (1.5 hours of ACHE In-Person Education credit)

Company intelligence

What does it mean when 110 companies show up, and 17 bet on three roles at once?

110 companies. seventeen are betting more than once.

The numbers below are derived from the speakers, sponsors, and exhibitors on this page, cross-referenced into one ledger. They are the only thing here that 10times.com cannot tell you.

Who's in the room
17All threespeak · spons · exh
32Sponsoringsponsor only
61Speakingspeaker only

In all three roles

Georgia Tech·CDC Foundation·Emory University·Grady Health System·Kaiser Permanente·Morehouse School of Medicine·UCB·ApolloMD·Atlanta Business Chronicle·AWS·Azalea Health·Georgia Hospital Association·Georgia Research Alliance·King & Spalding·Merck·Sharecare·University of Georgia

Speakers by seniority

72% of the speakers carry senior titles: C-suite, Founder, VP, or Director-level.

  • C-suite2324%
  • Founder / Owner55%
  • VP-level66%
  • Director / Head of3436%
  • Manager / Lead44%
  • Other roles2324%

Of 95 speakers · classified by free-text title

Most-represented companies
#CompanyRolesSpeakers
1Georgia TechSponsor · University Sponsor5
2CDC FoundationSponsor · Advocate Sponsor2
3Emory UniversitySponsor · University Sponsor2
4Grady Health SystemSponsor · Advocate Sponsor2
5Kaiser PermanenteSponsor · Presenting Sponsor2
6Morehouse School of MedicineSponsor · Advocate Sponsor2
7UCBSponsor · Advocate Sponsor2
8ApolloMDSponsor · Champion Sponsor1
9Atlanta Business ChronicleSponsor1
10AWSSponsor · Premier Sponsor1
11Azalea HealthSponsor · Champion Sponsor1
12Georgia Hospital AssociationSponsor · Advocate Sponsor1
13Georgia Research AllianceSponsor · Advocate Sponsor1
14King & SpaldingSponsor · Champion Sponsor1
Sponsors by tier
advocate sponsor23
47% of 49
champion sponsor7
14% of 49
platinum sponsor1
2% of 49
premier sponsor2
4% of 49
presenting sponsor1
2% of 49
university sponsor5
10% of 49
unspecified10
20% of 49
At peer events but not here

These companies sponsored two or more peer events recently, but aren't on this program. For an organizer, that's a list of warm prospects.

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Celosphere 2026December 1, 2026Munich2