Behavioral health care veteran Corbin Petro has announced she will take over as president of Elevance’s (NYSE: ELV) Carelon Behavioral Health.
Petro previously served as founder and CEO of substance use disorder startup Eleanor Health. Under her direction the addiction treatment provider raised more than $100 million for its value-based care offering.
In addition to her entrepreneurial work, Petro has also worked in the public sector. She serves as chief operating officer for Massachusetts Department of Medicaid.
“Few health-related challenges are more significant (or growing faster) than those related to mental health, substance use, and other behavioral health conditions,” Bryony Winn, president of Carelon Health, said in a LinkedIn post. “Serving over 60 million members across all 50 states, the Carelon Behavioral Health team is already addressing these important issues every day, and I can’t wait to see the even greater impact they will have under Corbin’s leadership.”
Carelon Behavioral Health, previously named Beacon Health Options, is part of Elevance’s health service division. The Boston-based provider serves members nationwide and works with health plans, employers, government agencies, providers and individuals.
In 2020 Elevance purchased Beacon Health Options and announced a rebrand of the operation to Carelon Behavioral Health in 2023.
Petro replaces Glenn MacFarlane, who served as president and CEO of Carelon Behavioral Health, from 2021 until July of 2024.
Elevance has placed a large focus on its behavioral health business over the last year. In April the company revealed that it inked two large behavioral health focused state contracts worth up to $740 million in the first quarter of the year.
“Carelon Behavioral Health uniquely sits at the intersection of risk and care delivery as one of the largest behavioral health companies in the country—scale and breadth that can drive significant impact,” Petro wrote in a LinkedIn post. “Over the past year, my perspective has evolved through advising more than 20 companies & investors, from pre-market to Fortune 500, VC to PE. The founders (mostly underrepresented) I’ve advised inspire with their passion to solve a complex problem, and I empathize with how hard it is to build a company from 0 to 1. Similarly, mission drives so many leaders of larger companies—with a focus on impact at scale.”
