Charlotte Yeh

Dr. Charlotte Yeh is the Chief Medical Officer for AARP Services, Inc. (ASI), the wholly-owned taxable subsidiary of AARP. ASI manages the carrier relationships for and performs quality control oversight of the wide range of products and services that carry the AARP name and are made available by independent carriers as benefits to AARP’s almost 40 million members.

In her role, Dr. Yeh works with the independent carriers that make health-related products and services available to AARP members, to identify programs and initiatives that will lead to enhanced care for older adults. She directs AARP Services’ efforts to meet expanding member expectations in healthcare, and leads new process improvement programs focused transforming health care delivery in the areas of quality, safety and efficiency.

Dr. Yeh has become widely recognized for her deep commitment to the consumer voice in health care, in addition to being a sought-after speaker on issues that matter to people 50+ as they age, such as brain health, caregiving, hearing, care coordination and healthy living. Dr. Yeh’s work at ASI reflects her passionate interest in the vitality and resilience that come with aging, as well as her belief that health care should be about helping people live successfully every day.

Dr. Yeh has more than 30 years experience in healthcare. She is a board-certified emergency physician, trained in emergency medicine at UCLA. She practiced emergency medicine for thirteen years at Newton-Wellesley Hospital in Massachusetts, where she also served as the chief of the department for seven years. Dr. Yeh also worked for eight years as Physician-in-Chief for the Department of Emergency Medicine at Tufts Medical Center in Boston, before being named Carrier Medical Director for the National Heritage Insurance Company, a contractor for Medicare Part B claims for Northern New England.

From 2003 to 2008, Dr. Yeh served as Regional Administrator at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services in Boston. In her position there, she was responsible the Medicare, Medicaid and SCHIP programs across the six New England states. During her tenure, Dr. Yeh directed the implementation of the Medicare Modernization Act, the single biggest expansion of the Medicare program since its inception more than forty years ago.

Dr. Yeh is a former member of the Boards of the American Hospital Association, the Center for Health Design, the Massachusetts Hospital Association, the Massachusetts College of Emergency Physicians, the Health Research and Education Trust, and the American College of Emergency Medicine. She is the former chair of the Massachusetts Trauma Committee and former medical director of the Metropolitan Boston Emergency Medical Services Council. She has lectured frequently on blending clinical practice with the legal requirements of the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act, which guarantees access to emergency care.

Committed to connecting underserved communities to better health care while addressing the cultural values of the many diverse members AARP serves, Dr. Yeh participates on a number of important councils, committees and boards, including the Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts Foundation Board, the Optum Labs Scientific Advisory Board, and the HX360 Advisory Board.

Dr. Yeh has received numerous awards and honors for her efforts on behalf of patients. In October 2012, OCA awarded Dr. Yeh a National Asian Pacific American Corporate Achievement Award for her leadership and commitment to diversity in the workplace. In April 2011, Dr. Yeh was the recipient of The American Hospital Association 2011 Board of Trustees Award. She was also the recipient of the 2010 Outstanding 50 Asian Americans in Business Award. In 2009, she was awarded the Rx for Excellence Award by the Massachusetts Medical Law Review for promoting safety, quality and risk management in health care. Dr. Yeh received the 2006 President’s Award from the Metropolitan Boston Emergency Services Council and was awarded the Secretary’s Award for Distinguished Service from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services in 2004. In 2003, she received Massachusetts College of Emergency Physicians’ Pinnacle Award. Dr. Yeh accepted the John Mills Award for Outstanding Contributions to Emergency Medicine in 1999 and in 1995 received the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Public Service Award for her strong advocacy on access to emergency services.

Dr. Yeh received a bachelor's degree from Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois and her medical degree from Northwestern University Medical School in Chicago. She completed her internship in General Surgery at the University of Washington at Seattle and her residency in Emergency Medicine at the University of California at Los Angeles.