Steve Norton Joins Elliot Health System

Steve Norton

Steve Norton, the former executive director of the NH Center for Public Policy Studies in Concord, has been appointed as senior VP of strategic planning and government relations of Elliot Health System in Manchester.

Norton served 12 years as the executive director of the center, a non-profit and non-partisan think tank whose mission is to enhance and enrich the policy conversations on issues of critical importance to NH’s future. He stepped down at the end of August to take a pause in his career, reflect on his goals, and balance his professional and family responsibilities.

It wasn't a long pause though. He starts his new position with the Elliot on effective Oct. 2, 2017. “Elliot is extremely proud to welcome Steve to our senior team,” says Doug Dean, president and CEO of Elliot Health System. “There is no one more adept at the study of healthcare trends, coupled with the skill to analyze data to provoke intelligent and thoughtful consideration of the future healthcare needs of the state, than Steve Norton.”

Norton is known for his work around public policy. “Steve will bring a dimension of thought and understanding to the board and management team as they set strategy for Elliot, and endeavor to educate state policy makers about the complexities of healthcare and the impact of the decisions being made in Concord. My expectation is that Steve will have great influence on our thinking, decision making, and strategy, and this will, in turn, help the people we serve,” Dean says.

In addition to his many speaking engagements and research projects, Norton has also served as an adjunct professor at the University of NH. Prior to joining the Center in 2005, Norton worked for the NH Department of Health and Human Services, most recently as the state’s Medicaid director.  Between 1990 and 1998, Norton worked as a research associate at the Urban Institute in Washington D.C. where he conducted health services research. 

Norton and the Center were presented with the Cotton Mather Cleveland Leadership Award in 2016, given to a graduate and/or supporting organization of the Leadership New Hampshire program whose professional and community activities best exemplify the goals and aspirations of the organization. He was identified in 2012 and 2013 as one of NH’s most influential policy makers by Business NH Magazine, and selected as one of NH’s 25 up and coming leaders in 2008. He is the former president of the board of directors of the NH Center for Nonprofits, a former board member with Onpoint Health Data and currently sits on the Federal Reserve Board’s New England Public Policy Advisory board and the Concord Zoning Board.