Taking the reins: The Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana Board of Directors has unanimously elected Dr. I. Steve Udvarhelyi as the company’s president and CEO, effective immediately. He was selected after a nationwide search by the board to find a replacement for former president and CEO Mike Reitz, who served in the position for seven of his 40 year career at Blue Cross and announced his retirement last February. The board announced in November that it had selected Udvarhelyi to succeed Reitz, and made it official with a vote Tuesday. Udvarhelyi is an internist and academic medicine physician by training. Before coming to Baton Rouge, he spent nearly 20 years at Independence Blue Cross in Philadelphia, where he served in several roles, most recently as executive vice president.
Supporting those in need: Lane Regional Medical Center has opened Lane Recovery Solutions, a substance abuse treatment program in Zachary. Dr. Louis Cataldie has been tapped as medical director of the new facility, which is located at 4801 McHugh Road, Suite A. The facility will offer structured outpatient addictionology and psychiatric services for adults over the age of 18 who are grappling with addictions to alcohol, prescription medications or other drugs. The program is medically-directed, comprehensive and a highly structured for people who need direct medical supervision but do not require overnight stays in a hospital setting. Physician referrals are not required, according to a news release. Under the program, patients typically receive six hours of care per day, five days a week, for approximately six weeks.
In transition: C.J. “Red” Delatte will lead the business technology consulting engagement team for BIG Networks, a Baton Rouge-based IT company. In the role, Delatte will focus on expanding partnerships, technology consulting capabilities and on solutions offerings to address evolving technology needs of mid-market commercial businesses, and state and local government agencies, the company says in a news release. Before joining BIG Networks, Delatte was co-founder and executive vice president of FirstCall Network Inc in Baton Rouge. He sold the company in late 2014. He also served as division manager and special projects director for East Baton Rouge Parish and director of public safety communications in St. James Parish.
