George DeVries

American Specialty Health
Co-Founder, Chairman, and CEO

George DeVries co-founded American Specialty Health (ASH) in 1987 with only a few thousand dollars, working from a second bedroom in his condominium. His goal was to develop specialty health care programs and integrate them into traditional medical plans offered by Fortune 500 employers, insurance companies, and health plans. Over the years, George has guided ASH’s growth to become one of the nation’s largest health services organizations, providing a broad range of technology-enabled musculoskeletal provider networks, fitness and exercise products, and health management programs. Through the years, George has been honored as the National Entrepreneur of the Year for Health Sciences (Ernst & Young), Regional Entrepreneur of the Year for Health Sciences (San Diego), AHIP Innovator’s Award, and was appointed by President Clinton in 2000 to serve on the White House Commission on Complementary and Alternative Medicine Policy. George was named an Outstanding Alumnus in 2001 by the University of California San Diego (UCSD), where he received his Bachelor of Arts degree.

In 2011, he was honored as one of “50 Distinguished Alumni” out of more than 130,000 alumni during UCSD’s 50th anniversary celebration. He received his high school degree from the Culver Academies in Culver, Indiana, a college preparatory boarding school, and currently sits on its Board of Trustees. With offices in Carmel, Indiana (Indianapolis area), Fort Worth, Texas, San Diego, California, and Columbia, South Carolina, ASH currently provides its programs for more than 52 million covered Americans and employs more than 1,500 people. Through George’s focus on hiring and developing an exceptional management team and through the company focus on maintaining a culture of health and excellence, ASH has received numerous awards. ASH has been named one of the “Best Places to Work in San Diego” by both San Diego Magazine and the San Diego Business Journal, the “100 Best Places to Work in Healthcare” by Modern Healthcare magazine, the Best and Brightest Companies to Work For, the Best and Brightest in Wellness, the Best and Brightest in Wellness Elite Provider, one of the “Healthiest Employers in San Diego” by the San Diego Business Journal, and other awards.