LUNGevity Foundation has added a senior healthcare investment banker to its board as it seeks to deepen strategic and financial expertise amid expanding research, care, and advocacy efforts. Jason Bernhard, the Managing Director and Global Chief Operating Officer of Financial Advisory at Lazard, brings nearly three decades of deal-making experience to the nonprofit dedicated to changing outcomes for people with lung cancer.
Bernhard’s appointment aligns with LUNGevity’s effort to leverage private-sector experience to accelerate translational research and improve patient care pathways. His long tenure at Lazard includes leadership roles as Head of Healthcare for North America, Global Co-Head of Healthcare Investment Banking, and membership on the firm’s Investment Banking and Global Executive Committees. He has advised on complex domestic and cross-border mergers, acquisitions, restructurings, leveraged buyouts, and capital raises across the healthcare sector, including biotechnology and healthcare services.
In a parallel development, Bernhard has joined the board of Franklin-based Acadia Healthcare, expanding that board to eight members. Jason Bernhard, Acadia Healthcare signals the company’s intent to strengthen governance with seasoned financial and industry expertise as it navigates shareholder engagement and strategic options. Acadia recently drew attention from activist investor P2 Capital Partners, which disclosed a 7.3 percent stake and indicated plans to engage with management on measures to maximize shareholder value. The company is also considering a potential divestiture of its United Kingdom operations acquired in 2016.
Bernhard’s dual appointments underscore a broader trend of private-sector leaders transferring capital markets and operational acumen to boards of both nonprofit and public healthcare organizations. His experience advising a range of healthcare clients positions him to contribute to organizational strategy, capital allocation decisions, and long-term value creation for stakeholders, whether advancing lung cancer survivability through LUNGevity or supporting Acadia Healthcare’s strategic priorities.
A University of Pennsylvania graduate with an MBA from Wharton, Bernhard began his investment banking career in Merrill Lynch’s Mergers & Acquisitions Group and joined Lazard in 1997. Observers say his presence on both boards will add analytical rigor and transaction experience at a pivotal moment for both organizations.