The MHA announced the winners of its 2025 Healthcare Leadership Award June 26 during its Annual Membership Meeting. Each year, the MHA recognizes outstanding individuals who have provided exceptional leadership to healthcare organizations and to the health and well-being of the community. The 2025 recipients are Ben Frederick, associate vice president, advocacy and government relations, Memorial Healthcare, Owosso; and Rosalie Tocco-Bradley, MD, PhD, chief clinical officer, Trinity Health Michigan, Livonia. The MHA will donate $1,000 on behalf of each award winner to the charity of their choice. These funds were provided to the MHA by the family of former MHA President H. Allen Barth.
Frederick has played a pivotal role in securing funding, advocating for policy changes and strengthening provider network integration since he joined Memorial Healthcare in January 2023. His strategic efforts have significantly expanded access to essential services, including behavioral health, maternal care and workforce development. Through his efforts, funding was secured that renovated the operating room suite in the labor and delivery unit, expanded Memorial Healthcare’s inpatient behavioral health services and supported the Memorial Childcare Academy to provide accessible childcare for healthcare employees and to local families. Frederick also established a partnership with Saginaw Valley State University to expand higher education opportunities to Memorial Healthcare employees.
In his role overseeing advocacy and government relations, Frederick can successfully navigate complex regulatory environments, ensuring the hospital remains a financially viable, rural, nonprofit, independent institution. He has worked closely with the MHA and other member hospitals and health systems in advocating for protecting the 340B program at the state level, while engaging with policymakers about the challenges and opportunities facing rural healthcare providers.
Frederick had decades of service before joining Memorial Healthcare, including as a member of the Owosso City Council, Mayor of Owosso and state representative of the 85th District. He is currently involved in numerous Shiawassee County community-based non-profit initiatives. Frederick has asked for his $1,000 monetary award go to the Michigan Brain Injury Provider Council in honor of Tristan McMillan.
Dr. Tocco-Bradley has been instrumental in shaping Trinity Health Michigan’s vision and operationalizing and improving clinical integration, streamlining workflows and ensuring clinicians across the organization have immediate access to patients’ data. She is a driving force behind the implementation of initiatives to address opioid use disorder, enhance population health and served as the incident command chief during the COVID-19 pandemic.
One of her key accomplishments is leading the implementation of TogetherCare, Trinity Health’s first and largest go-live of an electronic health record. TogetherCare has enhanced efficiency and the overall patient experience across all care settings. She has also worked closely in developing new opioid initiatives and advocating for comprehensive strategies to prevent opioid misuse that has brought together not only healthcare professionals, but also public health agencies, advocacy organizations and community groups to address the issue. Dr. Tocco-Bradley also worked very closely with the MHA during the pandemic, providing vital clinical feedback that informed the MHA’s efforts to make sure hospitals and healthcare workers had the resources and regulatory environment to provide care to their patients.
Dr. Tocco-Bradley has left an indelible mark on Trinity Health Michigan, as she is retiring June 30 from her role. At Dr. Tocco-Bradley’s request, the $1,000 monetary portion of the award will go to the St. Louis Center.
The MHA congratulates the winners of the 2025 MHA Healthcare Leadership Award.