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Piedmont Healthcare Retirement Plan
The Piedmont Healthcare Retirement Plan was founded in 1962 by Piedmont Hospital, Inc., the predecessor to what is now one of Georgia's largest healthcare...
Piedmont Healthcare Retirement Plan
The Piedmont Healthcare Retirement Plan was founded in 1962 by Piedmont Hospital, Inc., the predecessor to what is now one of Georgia's largest healthcare systems. The plan operates a consolidated retirement structure with Plan Administrator Vicki Cansler overseeing day-to-day administration under CFO Tom Arnold and CEO Kevin Brown. It includes both a legacy defined-benefit component and the 401(K) TOMORROWPLAN, a defined-contribution vehicle covering roughly 23,000 employees and administered by Fidelity Investments. Investment strategy is anchored by a liability-hedging portfolio designed to match the duration of promised retiree benefits, a common posture for hospital-system pension plans managing long-dated liabilities. Beyond the core fixed-income and hedging allocations, the plan holds direct interests in income-producing medical real estate, including the Piedmont West Ambulatory Surgery Center and a medical office building in Metro Atlanta. It also participates in a joint venture with Encompass Health through Piedmont Encompass Rehabilitation Hospitals LLC, giving the plan exposure to inpatient rehabilitation facility operations. The plan's governance sits within Piedmont Healthcare's finance and treasury apparatus under CFO Tom Arnold, with Executive Vice President Michael Mandl providing oversight across finance, real estate, and philanthropy. The Piedmont Healthcare Foundation, led by Chief Philanthropy Officer Kelly Kerner, represents the organization's adjacent charitable vehicle, though the retirement plan and foundation maintain separate balance sheets and fiduciary mandates. The plan does not publicly disclose its total assets or deployment figures, making external sizing difficult. Structurally, the plan operates as a corporate pension fund embedded within a large nonprofit health system — a governance model that differs from multi-employer or public-sector retirement systems. The healthcare real estate holdings represent a rare direct-ownership posture, giving the plan both an investment return and a strategic alignment with Piedmont's clinical footprint. This co-investment model with Encompass Health creates a capital structure where retirement assets support clinical infrastructure that generates the revenue ultimately funding the plan itself.
General information
Firm type
Pension Fund
Year founded
1962
Location
Region
North America
Country
United States
City
Atlanta
Corporate office
Atlanta, GA, United States
Principals
Kevin Brown
President and CEO, Piedmont Healthcare, Inc.
Tom Arnold
CFO, Piedmont Healthcare and Treasurer of the Foundation
Michael Mandl
Executive Vice President
Vicki Cansler
Plan Administrator, Consolidated Retirement Plan
Kelly Kerner
Chief Philanthropy Officer and President of the Foundation
Sector focus
Frequently asked questions
Who oversees investment decisions for the Piedmont Healthcare Retirement Plan?
Investment governance falls under Piedmont Healthcare's finance leadership. CFO Tom Arnold serves as Treasurer of the Foundation and oversees the plan's financial strategy, while Executive Vice President Michael Mandl manages the real estate and finance functions that intersect with the plan's direct property holdings. Day-to-day plan administration is handled by Vicki Cansler in her role as Plan Administrator for the Consolidated Retirement Plan.
Does the plan hold direct real estate assets, and how are they structured?
Yes. The plan holds direct interests in at least two healthcare-related properties: the Piedmont West Ambulatory Surgery Center in Atlanta and a medical office building in Metro Atlanta. These are not REIT investments — they are direct ownership stakes in facilities tied to Piedmont's clinical operations, creating a direct alignment between the plan's real estate returns and the health system's facility needs.
What is the relationship between the retirement plan and Piedmont Encompass Rehabilitation Hospitals?
Piedmont Healthcare and Encompass Health operate a joint venture called Piedmont Encompass Rehabilitation Hospitals LLC, and the retirement plan is listed as a co-investor in that vehicle. This gives the plan direct exposure to inpatient rehabilitation facility operations, which are part of the post-acute care continuum that Piedmont's broader health system serves. Encompass Health is one of the largest operators of inpatient rehabilitation hospitals in the United States.
How is the 401(k) component structured, and who administers it?
The defined-contribution portion operates under the name 401(K) TOMORROWPLAN. Fidelity Investments serves as the plan administrator, covering approximately 22,947 eligible Piedmont Healthcare employees. This vehicle sits alongside the legacy defined-benefit structure, giving participants access to both an employer-funded pension and a self-directed retirement savings account.
What is the governance relationship between the retirement plan and the Piedmont Healthcare Foundation?
The retirement plan and the Piedmont Healthcare Foundation are separate legal entities with distinct fiduciary duties. Kelly Kerner serves as Chief Philanthropy Officer and President of the Foundation, while the retirement plan operates under the CFO's finance and treasury structure. The plan's assets are not commingled with philanthropic funds, though both entities ultimately serve the Piedmont Healthcare ecosystem.
Does the plan disclose its total assets under management?
No. Piedmont Healthcare does not publicly disclose the retirement plan's total asset size. As an ERISA-governed corporate pension plan, it files Form 5500 annually with the Department of Labor, but those filings are not typically surfaced in public-facing investor communications. The absence of disclosed AUM is common among single-employer hospital-system retirement plans.
What is the investment philosophy behind the plan's liability-hedging portfolio?
The plan maintains a dedicated liability-hedging investment portfolio, which suggests a liability-driven investment strategy focused on matching the duration and cash-flow profile of promised retiree benefits. This approach is standard for mature corporate pension plans managing long-dated liabilities to current and former hospital employees. The fixed-income and hedging allocations serve to immunize the plan against interest-rate and longevity risk, while the real estate and joint-venture holdings provide return-seeking exposure.
Profile maintained by Altss using OSINT (open-source intelligence), regulatory filings, licensed data partners, and verified direct submissions. Read the methodology. Last updated: . Continuous refresh with full update cycles at least every 30 days.
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