Member Bios

Donna Johnson serves as sole practitioner in the law firm of Donna L. Johnson, P.C. She previously served as a partner with the law firm of Neighbors, Lett & Johnson, LLC and an associate in the Atlanta office of Holland & Knight, LLP. Johnson is a member of the State Bar of Georgia, the American Bar Association, the State Board of Nursing Home Administrators and a member of First Congressional United Church of Christ. She received her bachelor's degree in psychology from the University of Virginia , her master's degree in business administration from Georgia State University and her juris doctorate degree from Georgia State University College of Law.

Robert Lipson, M.D. is the president and chief executive officer of WellStar Health Systems. He is a member of the governing council of the American Hospital Association, the Georgia State University Public Health Policy Committee, Kennesaw State University Advisory Board for the Executive MBA and Nursing Program, the chief executive officer council for Blue Cross Blue Shield of Georgia and of the Marietta Kiwanis. He graduated from Tulane University School of Medicine and received his master's degree of business administration from Kennesaw State University. Lipson and his wife, Livvy, have two children.

Dan Maddock is the chief executive officer and president of Taylor Regional Hospital and the Taylor Health Care Group. He previously served in an administrative capacity at Candler General Hospital and Healthcare Network. Maddock serves as a diplomate of the American College of Healthcare Executives and on the boards of Secure Health Plans of Georgia, Hemophilia of Georgia, Healthcare Service Center , Salvation Army and the Central Georgia Cancer Coalition. He received his bachelor's degree from Franklin College , his master's degree from Butler University and a master's of business administration from Xavier University . Maddock and his wife, Debra Ross-Maddock, have one child and two grandchildren.

Ronnie Rollins serves as chief executive Officer of Community Health Systems, an integrated health delivery system headquartered in Macon , Georgia . Community Health Systems consists of a series of non-profit, post-acute care providers in the areas of skilled nursing services, assisted living services, rehabilitation therapy, medical supplies, pharmacy services, insurance, information technology and real estate development. Prior to beginning his health care career in 1986, Rollins was a partner with a regional accounting firm with a primary practice interest in long-term care. Rollins is a member of the American College of Health Care Administrators and has been involved in the Georgia Nursing Home Association for many years. He is an ordained deacon and member of First Baptist Church of Gray where he has served as chairman of the board of deacons. Rollins also serves on the executive committee of the board of directors of First Presbyterian Day School and is a former Rotarian. He graduated Magna Cum Laude from the University of Georgia School of Accounting. Rollins and his wife, Sherri, have two children.

Representative Austin Scott first elected in 1996, represents House District 153 and serves as Chairman of the House Governmental Affairs Committee. Scott is a graduate of the University of Georgia and the owner and president of The Southern Group, LLC. He is also a member of the National Association of Insurance Financial Advisors.

Dr. J. Melvin Deese, Jr. is a native of Columbus, Georgia , and graduate of the University of Georgia. He received his Orthopedic Residency Training at Tulane University School of Medicine in New Orleans, Louisiana, and then completed a post graduate fellowship in Surgery and Disorders of the Foot and Ankle at the University of Texas, Health Science Center in Houston, Texas. Dr. Deese is the President and Founder of Summit Sports Medicine. He recently co-founded the Georgia Society of Ambulatory Surgery Centers which addresses the issues and concerns of surgery centers statewide.

Senator Don Balfour was first elected to the State Senate in 1992. He serves as the chairman of the Senate Rules committee. He also serves on Appropriations, Education and Youth, Ethics and health and Human Resources committees and is an ex-officio member of the Insurance and Labor committee Balfour earned a B.S. degree in accounting from Bob Jones University and is an executive for Waffle House, Inc. Also he serves on the board of the Georgia Chamber of Commerce, National Council of Chain Restaurants (NCCR) and co-chairs the Republican Legislative Campaign Committee. Senator Balfour's wife, Ginny, has been a registered nurse for Children's Health Care of Atlanta, Egelston campus, for 21 years.

Joseph “Rusty” Ross, Esq., is a Cum Laude graduate of Vanderbilt University with a B.S. in business and economics. He also holds two degrees from the University of Georgia : a Cum Laude J.D. from the School of Law and an M.B.A. from the School of Business . Ross practiced commercial and health care law for 14 years with Hunter, Maclean, Exley and Dunn, PC. Since 1996, he has been employed by Memorial Health University Center, Inc., and currently serves as the Senior Vice President and General Counsel for Memorial health. He is a member of the American Bar Association and State Bars of Georgia , Florida and South Carolina . He is also a member of the American Health Lawyers Association and the Georgia Academy of Healthcare Attorneys.

Richard Holmes has been a member of the Board of Community Health since 1999. He was elected Chairman in August 2006. As Chairman, he also serves as a member of the State Commission on the Efficacy of the Certificate of Need Program.

Richard is Senior Vice President of Metro Atlanta Region for Georgia Power. He joined Georgia Power in 1974. In his current role, he has operational responsibilities for Georgia Power’s 1.2 million customers in the metropolitan Atlanta area. This responsibility includes electric operations, sales and marketing, customer service/business offices, governmental relations, and community and economic development. In 2004, Richard served as the Corporate Compliance Officer for the company.

He earned his BBA from Columbus State University and his MBA from Atlanta University. He also completed the Harvard University Business School Program for Management Development.

Richard also serves on the boards of Literacy Action, Kennesaw State University Foundation, American Association of Blacks in Energy, Atlanta Branch NAACP, Atlanta Beltline Partnership, McPherson Local Planning Redevelopment Authority Board, and the Atlanta Police Foundation. In 1999, he served as Chairman of the Cobb Chamber of Commerce, becoming the first African-American to lead the second largest chamber of commerce in Georgia.
Richard is a graduate of Leadership Georgia, Leadership Atlanta, Leadership Cobb, Leadership Columbus and the Regional Leadership Institute.

A native of Columbus, Georgia, Richard and his wife Linda reside in Peachtree City and have two sons, Stephen and Mark.

Rhonda M. Medows, MD, 43, a family physician, served as the secretary of the agency for health care administration for the state of Florida from 2001 to 2004 during the administration of Governor Jeb Bush. In this position, she led Florida's Medicaid program that serves 2.3 million people, employed 1,600 staff and had a $13 billion Medicaid budget. In addition, her agency regulated the state's health care facilities and managed care organizations. Previously, Dr. Medows practiced medicine as a family physician at the Mayo Clinic, served as a health plan corporate medical director, and as a medical consultant in the healthcare industry. She received her bachelor's degree from Cornell University and her M.D. from the Morehouse School of Medicine. She completed her residency in New York.