Longtime Union Pacific Railroad executive Lance Fritz has been named the new chair of the Nebraska Medicine Board of Directors effective July 1, 2025. Fritz has been a member of the Nebraska Medicine Board since 2016 and succeeds James Linder, MD, who announced earlier this year his planned departure as health system CEO after June 30. Dr. Linder will remain as a special advisor to the Board.  

Fritz says Nebraska Medicine is uniquely well-positioned to continue thriving as a leading health care organization.   

“The thousands of people who make up this extraordinary organization are focused on supporting our community for the long haul,” Fritz says. “It’s an honor to lead an engaged Board of Directors that provides well-informed and diligent oversight, counsel and feedback to the leadership team.”    

Fritz led Union Pacific Railroad as Chairman and CEO from 2015 until his retirement in 2023. He was inducted into the Omaha Business Hall of Fame in 2024.  

Nebraska Medicine was formed in 2016 through an innovative public-private partnership that included Clarkson Regional Health Services and the University of Nebraska Board of Regents. The Board of Directors has responsibility for the governance of Nebraska Medicine, an independent, nonprofit organization. The board is made up of leaders in business, health care and academics – including leaders with deep ties to UNMC and Clarkson College.   

Michael Ash, MD, began his tenure as Nebraska Medicine CEO on July 1 and says the caliber of leaders who make up the board is unmatched.  

“I could not think of a more gifted group of leaders to make up the Nebraska Medicine Board,” Dr. Ash says. “Just as Nebraska Medicine provides the type of care no other health system in our region can, our board brings elite leadership, experience and guidance.”  

Adding to that expertise is Dr. Linder, who will serve as a special advisor to the board after nearly seven years as Nebraska Medicine CEO and one year as board chair. 

“I look forward to continuing to share my interests and experience in health care, academics and business with the board as it continues to chart the future path for Nebraska Medicine,” says Dr. Linder. “Most importantly, I do so with full confidence in Dr. Ash as CEO and in Lance as board chair. The health system is truly in excellent hands.”   

“Our patients and the communities we serve can expect us to be excellent stewards of this world-class institution, to leave it in better shape at the end of every year than it was when we entered the year,” says Fritz. “They can expect us to be good listeners as a board - to be humble, diligent, determined, caring and decisive.  In other words, keep doing what we are doing today, only better.”  

Being a Nebraska Medicine Board member carries great responsibility; however, its members are not paid for their membership and service on the board.