Kristie Hammonds is President & CEO of Frontier Health, the region’s leading provider of behavioral health services. Frontier Health is the region’s leading provider of behavioral health, mental health, substance abuse, co-occurring, intellectual and developmental disabilities, recovery, and vocational rehabilitation services, and has been providing services since 1957. Its mission is to provide quality services that encourage people to achieve their full potential. Frontier Health served over 69,000 individuals last year.
Hammonds began her career working in the adolescent residential setting working with emotionally disturbed children and adolescents then expanded her experience to include case management and utilization management. Hammonds has held several key positions in the managed care sector as a Provider Relations Specialist, Network Manager and then the Regional VP of Network Management for Integrated Solutions Health Network, a provider network and Northeast Tennessee’s first accountable Care Organization. After her tenure in managed care, Hammonds was then led back “home”, to Frontier Health, to serve as the Senior Vice President of Operations in 2014. Hammonds’ personal passion is to see that anyone struggling with addiction, or a mental health need feel safe reaching out for help and have quick access to needed services.
Hammonds serves as chair and / or member on a variety of community, regional, and statewide boards and committees. She is currently a member of the Northeast Regional Health Council, and a member of the Tennessee Association of Mental Health Organization’s Board of Directors as Legislative Chair. Further, she serves on the Executive Council of the Strong Accountable Care Community as Chair and Co-Chairs the Strong ACC’s Bright Start TN Northeast Region Steering Committee. Hammonds is also a Board member for the Johnson City Chamber, and Eastman Credit Union.
Mrs. Hammonds has a Bachelor’s Degree in Social Work from East Tennessee State University and a Master’s in Business Administration from Milligan College.