USA Health’s Natalie Fox named to Becker’s list of 95 Academic Medical Center CEOs to Know
Fox oversees the strategy, performance, and operations at USA Health, the academic health system for the University of South Alabama, which includes more than 7,200 employees, three hospitals, a cancer institute and more than 40 healthcare delivery sites.
By Casandra Andrews
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For the second year in a row, Natalie Fox, DNP, PNP-BC, CEO of USA Health, has been named to Becker’s Hospital Review’s list of 95 Academic Medical Center CEOs to Know 2026, recognizing her leadership at the University of South Alabama’s academic health system.
In 2024, she was among only 42 individuals in the U.S. named to Becker's Hospital Review Rising Stars: Healthcare Leaders Under 40 list.
Fox oversees the strategy, performance, and operations at USA Health, which includes more than 7,200 employees, three hospitals, a cancer institute, and more than 40 healthcare delivery sites. She has been a dedicated leader at USA Health since 2011, serving in roles to advance population health and reduce barriers to care.
Academic medical centers are often home to the most complex patient care and the most consequential medical research. The centers also function as a training ground for the next generation of the healthcare workforce. “Leading these institutions demands a rare combination of clinical vision, research acumen, academic leadership and operational command,” according to the editors at Becker’s. The CEOs recognized on the 2026 list are redefining what is possible at the highest levels of medicine.
As part of the recognition, Fox also has been invited to serve as a speaker at Becker’s CEO and CFO Roundtable planned for November in Chicago.
Previously an assistant administrator and chief nursing officer for the USA Health Physicians Group, Fox played a critical role in leading the system’s COVID-19 testing and vaccination response in partnership with the City of Mobile. For this work, she was given a Mobile Community Health Leadership Award and an Exceptional Citizenship Award in 2022. That same year, she also received Alabama’s Top Nurses Lifetime Achievement Award for her enduring contributions to the nursing profession.
In addition to her executive duties, Fox has been appointed by Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey to the Alabama Certificate of Need Review Board and serves as the USA president’s designee on the board of the new Alabama School of Healthcare Sciences. Fox earned her bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees in nursing from the USA.
