Chethan Bachireddy, MD, MSc, FACP, FASAM, AAHIVS, is a physician executive and co-founder of EqualCure, which leads the Hepatitis C Center of Excellence for Breakthroughs to Follow-Through, a national initiative supported by a $100 million investment from the OpenAI Foundation. The initiative aims to accelerate progress toward hepatitis C elimination by doubling cure rates within two years across eight states through partnerships between government, healthcare, and community and thoughtful deployment of data and technology.
Prior to EqualCure, Dr. Bachireddy served as Senior Vice President and Chief Health Officer at Harris Health System, the nation’s fourth-largest public healthcare system. He founded the Center for Accelerating Health Outcomes and led system-wide initiatives spanning cardiovascular health, addiction treatment, maternal health, food insecurity, and the development of a learning health system.
Previously, Dr. Bachireddy served as Chief Medical Officer and Chief Clinical Innovation Officer for Virginia Medicaid, where he provided clinical oversight of a $16.2 billion medical benefit and direct oversight of a $1.9 billion pharmacy benefit serving more than two million people. He led statewide reforms that increased treatment with medications for opioid use disorder by 245%, more than doubled hepatitis C treatment, and generated more than $100 million in recurring annual pharmacy savings. During the COVID-19 pandemic, he led Virginia Medicaid’s clinical response and comprehensive telehealth expansion, which enabled more than one million telehealth visits. He also helped design and launch Virginia Medicaid’s community doula benefit and advanced policy reforms expanding access to treatment for HIV, sickle cell disease, and other high-impact conditions.
Dr. Bachireddy is board certified in Internal Medicine and Addiction Medicine and is an HIV Specialist. He served on the American Society of Addiction Medicine’s Presidential Task Force and helped develop national consensus standards for substance use disorder care in hospitals and emergency departments. He holds academic appointments at the University of Houston College of Medicine and Baylor College of Medicine and is a Presidential Leadership Scholar.
He studied economics and neurobiology at Harvard University, received his medical degree from Yale School of Medicine, completed residency in Internal Medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital/Harvard Medical School, and earned a Master of Science in Health Policy Research from the University of Pennsylvania, where he was a National Clinician Scholar.