ApolloMD Taps Veteran Insiders to Steer Hospitals Through Financial Storms

ATLANTA, GA – January 14, 2026 – As American hospitals continue to navigate a treacherous economic landscape defined by rising costs and persistent staffing shortages, physician-led practice management organization ApolloMD has announced a series of strategic leadership appointments. The moves signal a deliberate strategy to reinforce its hospital partnerships by leveraging deep internal expertise, promoting long-tenured executives into critical operational and financial roles.

The Atlanta-based company has named Evan Howell as its new Chief Operating Officer and promoted Tennille Lizarraga to Chief Revenue Cycle Officer. Amy Katnik, a long-time revenue cycle leader, will transition to an Executive Advisor role, ensuring continuity through her planned 2027 retirement. These changes come at a time when hospital operating margins remain perilously thin—hovering at a median of just 0.8% in fiscal year 2023, a stark contrast to pre-pandemic levels of 2.3%.

In a statement, ApolloMD CEO Dr. Yogin Patel emphasized that the appointments are designed to deliver what hospitals need most in the current climate: “operational reliability, financial performance, and continuity of leadership.”

A Strategic Bet on Homegrown Expertise

In an industry often characterized by executive turnover, ApolloMD’s decision to elevate leaders with nearly two decades of experience each within the organization is a significant strategic choice. This 'homegrown' approach focuses on leveraging institutional knowledge and proven performance to provide stability for its hospital partners.

Evan Howell, the new COO, brings firsthand clinical and operational knowledge gained over nearly 20 years with the company. Tennille Lizarraga’s promotion to CRCO is the culmination of a career that began at ApolloMD as an Accounts Receivable Representative. This deep-seated experience is what the organization is banking on to help its partners weather ongoing financial pressures.

“These leaders reflect who we are as an organization, experienced, accountable, and deeply committed to our hospital partners, our clinicians and our patients,” said Dr. Patel. The strategy suggests a belief that leaders who have grown with the company and understand its partners' long-term challenges are best equipped to create sustainable solutions, rather than external executives who may require a lengthy onboarding period.

This commitment to continuity is further underscored by Amy Katnik’s transition to Executive Advisor. She will continue to provide strategic guidance to the revenue cycle teams, a move she noted is intended to ensure “continuity and stability during a critical time of ongoing financial and operational pressure.”

The Revenue Cycle Lifeline

The promotion of Tennille Lizarraga to Chief Revenue Cycle Officer places a spotlight on what has become a critical lifeline for hospital solvency. With healthcare providers facing immense financial strain—one in five reports losing over $500,000 annually due to claim denials alone—effective revenue cycle management (RCM) is no longer a back-office function but a core strategic imperative.

Lizarraga’s journey from an entry-level role to the C-suite gives her a ground-up understanding of the entire financial workflow, from coding and billing to complex denials management. This perspective is invaluable as hospitals navigate an increasingly complex reimbursement landscape, including the shift toward value-based care models that reward quality outcomes over service volume. These new models require sophisticated data analytics and adaptable RCM processes to manage financial risk and track new performance metrics.

“Revenue cycle stability is essential to hospital sustainability,” Lizarraga stated. “My priority is ensuring our partners have transparent, accountable, and high-performing revenue cycle operations they can trust.”

Her leadership will be crucial as the industry rapidly incorporates advanced technology. Artificial intelligence and machine learning are revolutionizing RCM by automating claims processing, predicting denial patterns, and streamlining patient billing. Having a leader with a fundamental understanding of the underlying processes is essential to successfully implement these technologies and ensure they deliver on their promise of increased efficiency and accelerated cash flow.

From Clinician to Chief Operator

Perhaps the most telling appointment is that of Evan Howell to Chief Operating Officer. Howell is a Physician Assistant-Certified (PA-C), bringing a clinician’s perspective to a top operational role. This move reinforces ApolloMD’s identity as a physician-led organization and directly addresses one of the most significant pain points for modern hospitals: the disconnect between administrative goals and bedside realities.

U.S. hospitals are grappling with a severe staffing crisis that has driven up labor costs by over $42 billion in just two years and made replacing a single registered nurse a $56,300 expense on average. In this environment, operational decisions about staffing models, patient flow, and clinical workflows have profound financial and clinical consequences.

“Hospitals need partners who understand both bedside realities and operational complexity,” Howell said. His dual expertise is positioned to bridge that gap. As COO, he will oversee not only operations but also recruiting and credentialing, allowing him to develop strategies that are both economically efficient and clinically sound. A leader who has experienced the daily challenges of patient care is uniquely equipped to design systems that support clinicians, reduce burnout, and improve retention—factors that are now inextricably linked to a hospital's financial health.

This clinically-informed approach is central to enhancing operational efficiency. By aligning staffing with patient demand and streamlining workflows in a way that makes sense to care providers, hospitals can improve throughput, reduce wait times, and ultimately enhance the quality of patient care. Howell’s appointment represents a commitment to solving operational puzzles not just with spreadsheets, but with a deep understanding of the human element of healthcare delivery.

By fortifying its leadership with seasoned, internally-developed experts, ApolloMD is making a clear statement to its hospital partners. The strategy is to counter market volatility with stability, to fight financial uncertainty with proven performance, and to solve complex operational challenges with leaders who have experience on both sides of the healthcare equation. In doing so, the company aims to provide the steady hand that health systems need to not only survive the current economic climate but to build a more sustainable foundation for the future.