Richmond-area attorney is first elected chair of VCU Health

A Richmond-area attorney has been elected chair of the Virginia Commonwealth University Health System, the first elected chair in the health system’s history.

Glen Allen lawyer and accountant Diana Cantor was elected to chair the VCU Health board on Monday. Her term began immediately and will run until June 30, 2028.

“It’s an honor to step into this role for the VCU Health Board of Directors,” Cantor said in a statement. “VCU Health has extraordinary momentum and an essential mission: to improve and save lives while helping more Virginians access the care they need.”

A certified public accountant and a member of the state bars of Virginia, Florida and New York, Cantor is the wife of former U.S. Rep. Eric Cantor, who served as the chamber’s majority leader from 2011 to 2014. Currently a partner at New York investment firm Alternative Investment Management, she served for more than a decade as founding chief executive of the Virginia College Savings Plan, the state agency overseeing Virginia’s Section 529 college savings plans. She is a past chair of the Virginia Retirement System and was previously a vice president at Goldman Sachs.

“Ms. Cantor has been a trusted voice on our board, consistently bringing thoughtful perspectives and an unwavering commitment to our mission,” VCU Health CEO Dr. Marlon Levy said in a statement.

First appointed to the board by then-Gov. Glenn Youngkin in 2023, Cantor was reappointed earlier this year by Speaker of the House of Delegates Don Scott, D-Portsmouth.

Cantor, who was serving as acting chair, is the first person elected as the board’s chair since a new law was passed requiring the VCU president step away from leading the health system. Prior to the change in the law, former VCU President Eugene Trani and current VCU President Michael Rao were required to serve as the health system’s chair.

The law was changed following review by the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission, which determined VCU and its president maintained too much influence over the health system and stated that the health system’s board lacked expertise in real estate and finance.

Gov. Abigail Spanberger signed a bill earlier this year that enacted JLARC’s recommendations and asked Rao to step away from chairing the VCU Health board.

The review followed a failed real estate deal VCU Health entered into in 2021 to build a new office tower in downtown Richmond, where the health system was expected to be the lead tenant.

That deal eventually fell apart, costing VCU Health $73 million to exit the contract.

In a statement, Rao said Cantor “is an ideal chair” for VCU Health.

“For several years, I have advocated for a lay chair who is elected to lead the VCU Health board,” Rao said. “I look forward to continuing to work with Diana in this role.”

VCU Health also announced that it extended Levy’s contract for four years. He began serving as interim CEO of VCU Health in 2022 before being named to the position on a permanent basis in 2024.

On July 1, Levy relinquished his second role as VCU Health senior vice president, as required under the same law that led to Rao stepping away from chairing VCU Health. The senior vice president role was eliminated.