U.S. chief tech officer steps down, switches roles

Todd Park, who helped oversee the launch of healthcare.gov, will return to Silicon Valley as part of White House team trying to recruit top technology talent into government service and channel ideas from the tech community.

Reuters: Tech Chief Behind Healthcare.gov Leaves White House – Source
The U.S. chief technology officer who oversaw the troubled rollout of healthcare.gov is stepping down and moving into a new role recruiting top Silicon Valley talent into government, a source familiar with the situation said on Friday. Todd Park, a successful tech entrepreneur who became a top adviser to President Barack Obama, will move to the West Coast as part of a White House team at the end of the month, the source said on condition of anonymity because the news has not been made public. In his new role, Park will help channel ideas from the tech community, as well as keep government updated on how technology is evolving, the source added (Felsenthal, 8/22).

Modern Healthcare: Todd Park Stepping Down As U.S. Chief Tech Officer, Returning To Silicon Valley
Todd Park, well-known in health care IT circles as a founder of Athenahealth and Castlight Health, is leaving his post as White House chief technology officer by year-end but won't be done with government, Fortune has reported. He'll be moving back to the West Coast, leading an effort to help recruit new tech talent to the government. Before government, Park was a successful tech entrepreneur. As of Friday, the combined market capitalization of the Athenahealth and Castlight totaled approximately $6 billion. Park moved to government in August 2009, becoming chief technology officer at HHS. There, he championed open data for consumers and government. At this year's Health Datapalooza conference, he identified the "blue button" initiative, which allows patients to download their health data, and the increasing openness of government datasets, as key megatrends shaping the future of health care (Tahir, 8/22).