TALLAHASSEE, Fla. ---------- Sept. 17 2012

A Tallahassee health center decides to part ways with its CEO.

The Bond Community Health Center Board of Directors voted not to renew the contract of President/CEO J R Richards. The board is now actively searching for a replacement.

Richards was placed on paid administrative leave back in May of 2012 following his second DUI arrest.

The following statement was released by the Bond Community Health Center:

On Wednesday, September 12, 2012, the Board of Directors of the Bond Community Health Center voted not to renew the contract of its President/CEO J R Richards. Mr. Richards’ contributions to the Bond Community Health Center have been extraordinary, and he has shepherded this agency into a new era and expanded its services; however, the Board felt it was time to move into a new direction in both management and governance," said Bond Board Chairman, Dr. Joseph L. Webster, President of the Webster Surgical Center. The Bond Community Health Center, founded nearly thirty years ago, is a federally qualified health center devoted to meet the health care needs of all people, to include both insured and uninsured patients. The Bond Community Health Center currently provides health care services in four locations--the Bond Community Health Center, the Kay Freeman Health Center, the Bond-Apalachee Wellness Center, and the Bond-Housing Authority Healthcare Center.

During its search for a new President/CEO, the Center will be led by its Executive Management Team to include the Chief Medical Officer (CMO), Dr. Temple Robinson, the Chief Financial Officer, Mr. Mark Northcutt, and Ms. Deborah Weeks, the Chief Administrative Officer and Interim CEO. "The Bond Community Health Center Board of Directors is confident that the Center's Executive Management Team will continue to provide the level of competent leadership that will maintain the quality delivery of services to our clients and the community-at-large," says Dr. Webster.