Rogers picked to lead hospital association

Earl Rogers

The Georgia Hospital Association has picked its government relations leader, Earl Rogers, to succeed longtime President Joe Parker.

The transition will take place in July.

Rogers has worked as GHA’s chief lobbyist since 2005. Parker, who is retiring, has been the organization’s president and CEO since 1986.

“Earl has done a phenomenal job of leading our association through some incredibly difficult challenges in the political arena, and he is widely known throughout the state as a respected statesman and an effective leader,’’ said GHA Chairman William Moore, president and CEO of Atlanta Medical Center, in a statement.

“We look forward to Earl’s leadership during a time when the challenges for the Georgia hospital community continue to mount,” the statement added.

The 2013 General Assembly session, which begins this month, promises to be a tumultuous one for the hospital industry, with the Medicaid provider fee up for renewal. Hospitals are unified in supporting a new formula for the fee. But the renewal effort has sparked opposition among conservatives, who describe the fee as a “bed tax.’’

Rogers, an Augusta native, served as the main lobbyist for the Georgia Chamber of Commerce from 1996 to 2005.