Kansas City University (KCU) President and CEO, Marc B. Hahn, DO, received the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) Health Policy Fellowship (HPF) Lifetime Achievement Award at their annual alumni retreat for notable and sustained accomplishments in health policy, as well as demonstrable commitment to service to others in his public and personal life.
The RWJF Health Policy Fellows Program is a mid-career program administered by the National Academy of Medicine. It is comprised of an immersive orientation with leaders from health care, policy and politics, then followed by placement as a full-time, contributing participant to the legislative or executive branches of government.
A 1998-99 alumnus of the fellowship, Hahn served as advisor to the US Senate Committee on Finance working for its chair, Senator William Roth (R-DE) focusing on issues pertaining to the Medicare and Medicaid systems. Hahn was sponsored at the time by the leadership of the Pennsylvania State University’s College of Medicine where he was a professor and division chief in pain medicine and palliative care.
He describes his experience as an RWJF Health Policy Fellow as pivotal in his decision to enter the field of academic administration where he could directly impact the training of future physicians, scientists and health professionals to better impact access to care.
“I am blessed and humbled by this recognition,” Hahn said. “Without a doubt, the RWJF HPF program transformed my professional life. The skills, the experiences and the long-lasting relationships I gleaned from the fellowship changed how I thought about and ultimately impacted health care.”
Hahn was nominated by Barbara Ross-Lee, DO. He is the first osteopathic physician to receive this RWJF Health Policy Fellowship Lifetime Achievement Award. It was presented at the National Academy of Medicine during the HPF annual alumni retreat in Washington, D.C., on October 15, 2022.
