HUFL’s management team is highly experienced and most of our senior managers have at least 20 years of experience in medical malpractice insurance.
Likewise, HUFL’s board of directors are committed to helping Florida doctors to gain access to affordable and reliable medical professional liability insurance.
Senior Managers
 Steven L. Salman
Chief Executive Officer
Salman has over thirty years of experience in insurance, professional medical malpractice insurance, healthcare risk management. He is recognized internationally for his expertise in professional medical liability insurance. Salman has repeatedly been sought out by companies seeking to form or reengineer a medical liability insurance company. Prior to forming HUFL, Salman was President and CEO of ProNational Insurance Company, President and CEO of Kentucky Medical Insurance Company and Senior Vice President-Corporate Affairs & General Counsel for Sisters of Charity Health Care Systems, Inc. in Cincinnati, Ohio.
He also served as President and CEO of Sisters of Charity's medical malpractice insurance subsidiary MSJ Insurance Company. Salman was also the founder and Board Chair of several newly formed medical malpractice insurance companies during the 1980's. Mr. Salman holds a B.S. in Business Administration from Indiana University and a J.D. from Capital University Law School.
 David W. Lester, CPA
Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
Lester is a CPA with over 28 years of experience in financial management with a strong emphasis in healthcare and medical liability insurance companies. Prior to joining HUFL, Lester was senior vice president of finance for SHPS, a human resources benefits and health management services company headquartered in Louisville. Prior to his tenure at SHPS, Lester served as CFO for Kentucky Medical Insurance Company (KMIC) for 13 years. He also served for 10 years in public accounting with the big 4 firm KPMG Peat Marwick. Lester holds a Bachelor’s degree from Western Kentucky University.
 Joshua M. Salman, MBA
Vice President and Chief Operating Officer
Salman has more than 10 years of experience in medical malpractice insurance with a focus on claims, underwriting and operations. Prior to joining HUFL, Salman oversaw operations for a Fort Lauderdale based technology company and was the key executive in charge of three teams and more than 20 employees. He negotiated, closed and managed strategic partnerships with more than 90 world leading companies, including GE Capital, Pitney Bowes, America Online, IBM and Monster.Com. In addition, he led the design and implementation of all technical processes. Salman graduated from Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana with a BA and has an MBA from Nova Southeastern University in Florida.
 William C. Ludwig, JD
Vice President and Chief Claims Officer
Ludwig has experience in several decades of medical professional liability claims experience. A successful defense trial lawyer, Ludwig has also managed claims for some of the country’s largest and most respected medical professional liability insurance companies. Ludwig received his B.A. degree from Duke University and his J.D. from Capital University Law School.
 David W. McKenney
Regional Vice President of Claims
McKenney brings 30 years of medical professional liability claims management experience to HUFL. Prior to joining HUFL he was Vice President – External Operations for ProAssurance Corporation. McKenney is a national expert in medical liability claims management and medical liability tort reform. He is frequent speaker for medical and professional societies, has been a member of several governmental task forces investigating solutions to the medical liability crisis. A native of Indiana, McKenney holds a BA from Indiana State University.
 Morton C. Bell
Vice President and Chief Underwriting Officer
Bell is a senior insurance executive with over 25 years of experience in professional medical liability insurance. For nearly 20 years, Bell managed the underwriting department for Kentucky's leading medical liability insurance company, Kentucky Medical Insurance Company. He is an expert in insurance policy language, risk analysis, actuarial data, premium determination and reinsurance. Bell also participated in establishing policies and procedures for handling claims, selection of defense attorneys and the insurance company's cash reserve policies. Bell holds a Bachelor's degree from Western Kentucky University and has served as a board member for the KMA Insurance Agency, Health Care Insurance Facility (a reinsurance entity) and the Rural Kentucky Medical Scholarship Fund.
 Ronald J. Goff, M.S.
Vice President and Chief Sales Officer
With more than 25 years experience, Mr. Goff has developed and held high-level operating, sales, and marketing positions with a variety of high-growth healthcare businesses across the U.S. and Europe, including MDexchange, NES Healthcare, PhysicianOne Medical Management, and Andrx Pharmaceuticals. Throughout his career he has been noted for his success in building both product and contract service businesses with multi-state locations, managing multiple sales teams and marketing initiatives and building strategic partnerships with large hospital systems, multi-specialty practices and outpatient centers. Mr. Goff graduated from the University of Maryland and earned his Masters in Business from the Johns Hopkins University. Mr. Goff is also a former U.S. Marine.
 Thomas W. Mueller, CPA
Vice President of Finance - Controller
Mueller’s depth and breadth of experience in insurance accounting and regulatory reporting spans 24 years. He has 13 years of experience specific to the medical professional liability insurance industry. In addition to 12 years at Kentucky’s leading medical liability insurance company, Kentucky Medical Insurance Company, Mueller also worked in other industries such as manufacturing and engineering. He worked for five years in public accounting with the Big Four firm of Deloitte Touche. Mueller holds a Bachelor’s degree in Accounting from Bellarmine University and earned his CPA in 1981. He is also Chairman of the Board for Kentucky Telco Federal Credit Union.
 Theresa Zimmerman, RN, JD, ARM, CPHRM, DFASHRM
Vice President of Risk Management
Prior to coming to HUFL, Terie served as Vice President, Chief Quality Risk Counsel and VP of Ancillary Services for Community Mercy Health Partners. She has over twenty years experience in healthcare, risk management, and law. She has written, spoken and been faculty in both state and national forums on legal, compliance, patient safety, leadership and risk management topics.
Terie currently serves as President for the American Society of Health Care Risk Management. She is past president of the Ohio Society of Healthcare Risk Managers and was awarded the 2003 Ohio Risk Manager of the year award. She has been awarded the certificate of recognition and designation of Distinguished Fellow by ASHRM in 2008 and was co-awarded the ASHRM Journal Author Excellence Award in 2007. Terie holds the ARM and CPHRM designations in risk management. She is a graduate from the Patient Safety Leadership Fellowship Health Forum, Intermountain Advanced Training Program in Health Care Delivery Improvement and the IHI Patient Safety Officer Executive Development Program and has served on Boards of the Society for Ohio Healthcare Attorneys and the Ohio Patient Safety Institute and others.
Our Managers and Directors
 Ellen L. Barton, JD, CPCU
Consulting Risk Manager
Prior to joining HUFL, Ms. Barton held positions as Vice President, Claims and Health Care Practice Leader, Aon Risk Services, Inc. and Vice President, Legal Services for American Radiology Services, Inc. Ms. Barton has also served as General Counsel for Franciscan Health System (1993-1996) and as Senior Vice President Legal Services (1994-1996). Ms. Barton sat on the Board of Directors and served as Chairperson of Preferred Physicians Insurance Company and holds membership in the American Health Lawyers Association—in which she currently serves as Chairperson of the Risk Management Affinity Group of the Hospitals and Health Systems Practice Group. Ms Barton is a former President of the American Society for Healthcare Risk Management (ASHRM) and is also a recipient of the American Society for Healthcare Risk Management’s Distinguished Service Award. In 2001, the ASHRM Modules Program –“The Barton Certificate in Healthcare Risk Management,” – was named in her honor.
Ms. Barton is a graduate of Rosemont College and received her J.D. degree from the University of Cincinnati. She also holds the distinction of Chartered Property and Casualty Underwriter. Ms. Barton has conducted numerous seminars on risk management issues on a national as well as regional level and has published articles in related areas.
 John R. Tanner, MD, JD
Consulting Risk Manager
Dr. Tanner’s extensive experience in both law and healthcare makes him an insightful professional to lead Healthcare Underwriters risk management department. After many years as the former Director of Emergency Services at Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami and practicing internal medicine, Tanner earned his law degree. He has handled many medical malpractice cases and has become well-known in both the legal and medical communities as an expert on medical liability. Tanner holds a law degree from Nova Southeastern University Law School and is licensed in Florida. He graduated cum laude from Ohio State University College of Medicine and is a Diplomat with the American Board of Internal Medicine.
Charles Gagliano
Director of Technology
Gagliano is a technology professional with over 12 years of experience in network design, security, and telecommunications. Prior to joining HUFL, he was involved in supporting several large organizations including SunGard/Investran, LensExpress, and Bluegreen Corporation. For most of his career, Gagliano has focused on establishing secure and stable network environments. He studied at Florida Atlantic University and holds several certifications from Microsoft and CompTIA. He is also a regular contributor on several technology support forums and periodicals. |
