GREENSBORO, N.C. (WGHP) — Cone Health President and Chief Executive Officer Mary Jo Cagle is stepping down from her role due to a “serious family health matter”, the company announced Wednesday. Her last day will be May 31.
Beginning on June 1, Cone Health’s current interim chief operating officer, Bernard Sherry, will serve as interim CEO. Cone Health has initiated a nationwide search for the next CEO.
Cagle earned her undergraduate and medical degrees at the University of Alabama. For 17 years, she was a practicing obstetrician/gynecologist affiliated with the Bon Secours Health System in Greenville, South Carolina.
“I was chair of the department of OB/GYN, eventually becoming chief of staff,” she said. “And our chief medical officer had resigned to take a job elsewhere. And our CEO there asked me if I would stop in on an interim basis while they did a search.” That interim job would become permanent.
In Jan. 2011, she moved to Greensboro to become an executive vice president and chief quality officer for Cone Health. She’d eventually become chief medical officer, then chief operating officer.
In June 2021, in the heart of the pandemic, she became the first physician and the first female president and chief executive officer of Cone Health.
“I was hired to come in to give physicians a greater voice in leadership,” she told me. “So this was an evolution that happened over time that a physician should be in this role. I (also) think the significance of a woman in this role says more about who works in healthcare at Cone Health. 84% of our employees are women.”
Cagle’s accolades include recently being named one of Modern Healthcare’s Leading Women of 2025, being named a Grassroots Champion by the American Hospital Association and being one of the 50 Most Influential Clinical Executives by Modern Healthcare. Under her leadership, Cone Health has been named by U.S. News & World Report as one of the top hospitals in 2024-2025 as well as a Best Regional Hospital for Equitable Access.
“It has been a joy and privilege to lead this system. I’m incredibly proud of all we’ve accomplished to increase access to care, enhance patient safety and care quality,” Cagle said. “The future is bright as Cone Health leverages new approaches, capabilities and data to make proactive wellness care affordable and accessible for all.”
