Mark Birdwhistell is the Senior Vice President for Health and Public Policy for the University of Kentucky. In this capacity, he leads all government relations for the university in the Office of Government Relations and Public Policy.
Prior to starting in this position in 2024, Birdwhistell served in senior leadership roles in both the private and public sectors, including as the vice president for health administration and chief of staff for UK HealthCare, secretary for the Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services, and chief executive officer for CHA Health. He has over 40 years of experience in health care and public policy, and he was previously selected by former Kentucky Governor Matt Bevin to lead the effort to transform Kentucky’s Medicaid expansion program.
Birdwhistell earned his Master of Public Administration from the University of Kentucky Martin School for Public Policy and an undergraduate degree from Georgetown College in Georgetown, Kentucky.
The University of Kentucky College of Public Health is undergoing a review by the Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH) for re-accreditation. Part of this process includes the invitation to provide third-party comments. Anyone, including students, alumni, employers, community partners, etc., is allowed to share relevant information about the college directly with CEPH. If you would like to provide input to CEPH to inform their review, send your comments to submissions@ceph.org by May 4th, 2025.
