Dr. Thomas Frist Jr.

Dr. Thomas Frist Jr. co-founded HCA in 1968 alongside his father and Jack Massey, bringing both medical training and business acumen to the venture. After serving as HCA's president and CEO through the 1970s and 1980s, Frist Jr. became chairman of Columbia/HCA following the 1994 merger. When the Medicare fraud crisis erupted in 1997, Frist Jr. took decisive action—removing Richard Scott as CEO, ending physician partnerships, creating a compliance program, and cooperating with federal investigators. He steered the company through the $1.7 billion settlement and subsequent restructuring, preserving HCA's core assets and market position.

Dr. Thomas Frist Jr. (born 1938) is a Nashville physician, businessman, and philanthropist who co-founded HCA Healthcare in 1968. A graduate of Vanderbilt University School of Medicine and Harvard Business School, Frist served as HCA's president and CEO before becoming chairman of Columbia/HCA after the 1994 merger with Richard Scott's Columbia Hospital Corporation. When federal investigators raided Columbia/HCA in 1997, Frist took control, removed Scott as CEO, and implemented the compliance and governance reforms that enabled the company to survive the $1.7 billion fraud settlement. He later supported the 2006 leveraged buyout and remained a significant shareholder through HCA's 2011 IPO. Frist has donated over $1 billion to charitable causes through the Frist Foundation.