Drew Altman, who transformed the Kaiser Family Foundation into KFF, a leading health policy research organization, will retire at year-end 2026 after 36 years as CEO. The 75-year-old executive will be succeeded by two senior leaders: Larry Levitt as CEO and Mollyann Brodie as president. Both executives have worked alongside Altman for nearly three decades, helping build KFF into its current influential position in health policy analysis.

Under Altman's leadership, KFF became a primary source of information on controversial health topics including the Affordable Care Act and vaccines. The organization maintains independence with no funding from federal, state, corporate or industry groups. Operating with a $76 million annual budget mostly from its endowment, KFF employs 250 people and provides all information free online, positioning itself as a neutral fact-based resource in polarized healthcare debates.

KFF changed its name in 2023 to distinguish itself from Kaiser Permanente. As healthcare discussions grow increasingly partisan, the organization's commitment to neutral analysis becomes more valuable. "We're in the fact-based information business when much of the world is not," Levitt stated. KFF's trusted reputation, built on Altman's leadership, will likely continue under the new team as health policy disagreements intensify.