Autobiography of Healthcare Innovator and Humana Co-Founder David Jones to Be Published in September

A story of friends, family, hometown values – and an entrepreneur who changed American healthcare

LOUISVILLE, Ky.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--
The autobiography of Humana co-founder and longtime CEO David Jones will be published and available in September.

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The autobiography of Humana co-founder David Jones will be published in September. Entitled “David A. Jones – Always Moving Forward,” it is the story of the young Louisville lawyer who borrowed $1,000 to start a company that became Louisville-based Humana – one of the nation’s largest health insurance companies. The book is being published posthumously. The initial draft was complete just prior to when Jones passed away in September of 2019. The book will be published by Old Stone Press. Book details and reviewer inquiry information can be found by visiting oldstonepress.com. (Photo: Business Wire)

The book – entitled ‘David A. Jones – Always Moving Forward’ – is the story of a young lawyer in Louisville who borrowed $1,000 to build a nursing home. That modest investment turned into Humana – first, the largest nursing home company in the U.S., then the largest hospital corporation, and today one of the nation’s largest health insurance and integrated care companies, with 65,000 employees and annual revenue over $90 billion.

The book will be published by Old Stone Press. Book details and reviewer inquiry information is linked here.

The book depicts Jones’ profound impact on American healthcare. He shares dozens of firsthand accounts and personal insights, including:

• The controversy regarding for-profit medicine: Jones explains why he was “proudly not non-profit.”
• The artificial heart: The world watched as a Humana team successfully implanted an artificial heart in a human. (Known as the Jarvik-7, the artificial heart helped keep a man alive for 620 days.)
• A 16-year-long Eastern European humanitarian mission: After the collapse of the Berlin Wall and Eastern European economies, President George H. W. Bush asked Jones to help rebuild the Romanian healthcare system, which had been devastated by war and a corrupt dictator.
• 9/11: Jones and 23 Humana executives were at Ground Zero when the planes hit the Twin Towers. They share the harrowing story.
• Life lessons learned: For example, “Family first.” And “You don’t have a clear idea unless it fits on the back of a business card.” And “There’s nothing being done that can’t be done better.”
• Business failures as well as successes.

Jones also provides insight into his civic and philanthropic endeavors, which were done largely anonymously throughout his life. His top cause was education. He gave generously to advance public and private education at all grade levels, including the Yale University Law School, Middlebury University, and Simmons College (a Historically Black College and University in Louisville). His final legacy is The Parklands in Louisville, one of the largest metropolitan parks completed this century – a nationally acclaimed project led by Jones and his son Dan.

This book is being published posthumously. The first draft was complete when Jones was diagnosed with multiple myeloma. He passed away in September of 2019.

In 2021, Jones’ family decided to complete the project. His son David A. Jones, Jr., led the effort. “The complete story of Dad’s role in modern healthcare – and his decades of business and philanthropic leadership at a global level – is one that should be shared,” he says. “Yet, while the impacts of his actions and examples were big, most of all he cherished the people who were with him on the journey. They gave him a special sparkle, which shines through this book.”

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Dan Hartlage
502-741-0969

[email protected]

Source: Old Stone Press