Entrepreneur shared how he helped build a top healthcare company
- By Gilien Silsby
John Molina ’89, chief financial officer of Molina Healthcare, has followed one guiding principle throughout his career: “Do well by doing good.”
The largest Latino-owned business in the country, Molina Healthcare oversees more than 4 million Medicaid beneficiaries in 16 states. Many speak limited English and have no more than a fourth-grade education.
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| John Molina '89 |
“These are our nation’s most financially vulnerable individuals and families,” Molina told 120 USC Law students and friends during the Feb. 16 installment of the “Conversations with the Dean” speaker series, hosted by Dean Robert K. Rasmussen.
“My father founded our company 30 years ago to help patients who were not fortunate enough to have full access to healthcare,” he said. “He was an emergency room physician, and saw that patients without a doctor would visit emergency rooms for minor ailments. He knew that this led to higher costs and longer waits for people with true emergencies. That’s why he set up Molina Healthcare.”
Today, Molina Healthcare is a public company offering flexible care focused exclusively on government-sponsored healthcare programs for low-income families and individuals. As chief financial officer, Molina oversees the company’s acquisitions, which have been plentiful in the past decade.
Even though Molina worked in the family business since he was a teenager – at first sweeping floors, stocking shelves and filing medical records – he never imagined he would choose a career with Molina Healthcare.
“I graduated from Cal State Long Beach, and wanted to be an economics professor,” he said. “My father suggested I go to law school. I told him I didn’t know if I wanted to practice law, but he pointed out that I could get a legal education and not necessarily be a lawyer.”
Molina said it was the best advice he ever received. Even though Molina dabbled in law upon graduation, he didn’t enjoy the daily grind of the law firm. He was more interested in returning the family business. “I realized working at a law firm wasn’t for me on the second day.”
A few months after graduating from USC Law, Molina helped his father expand the company fourfold, quickly putting to work the skills he learned in law school.
”When I joined Molina, the business was growing rapidly – we went from three offices to 12 literally overnight because Maxicare healthcare filed for bankruptcy, and we took over its offices,” Molina said. “My law school education was invaluable because I learned how to negotiate and get a deal done. I can articulate and argue both sides of an issue, which is invaluable in my business.”
Molina’s advice to USC Law students was simple: pursue what you love and don’t be afraid to take an untraditional path. “I have a soft spot for law grads who do something other than practice law after graduation,” Molina said. “What’s most important is following your passion.”
-Photos by Lori Craig
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