AHLA Announces Carol Carden as President-Elect Designate

WASHINGTON, D.C. — AHLA is pleased to announce that Carol Carden has been elected as President-Elect Designate. As Managing Principal of Compensation Valuation, Planning & Design at PYA, a leading health care consulting and accounting firm, Carden brings more than three decades of health care valuation expertise to this leadership role. She currently serves on the AHLA Board of Directors, having previously served on and chaired the Women's Leadership Council.

"Carol's deep expertise in health care valuation and her proven leadership make her an exceptional choice for this role," said Mark S. Kopson, President of AHLA. "Beyond her prolific contributions to health law education through speaking and publishing, Carol exemplifies the spirit of collaborative camaraderie that defines AHLA at its best. I look forward to continuing to work alongside her as we advance our mission and serve as a welcoming professional home for all health law professionals."

"I am honored to serve as AHLA's President-Elect Designate," said Carden. "Throughout my career, AHLA has been an invaluable resource for professional development and education. I look forward to working with AHLA's membership to advance the mission of delivering authoritative educational content and serving as a professional home for all who engage with health law."

At PYA, Carden provides business valuation and related consulting services to health care organizations of all types. Her primary areas of expertise include valuation, compliance, and compensation design. She regularly performs compensation valuations and compensation plan design and has appraised businesses for mergers, acquisitions, and commercial litigation matters.

A prolific author and frequent national speaker on health care valuation topics, Carden has contributed to the Wiley Finance Series book, Financial Valuation Applications and Models, and the BVR/AHLA Guide to Healthcare Industry Compensation and Valuation, among other publications.

David S. Cade, Chief Executive Officer of AHLA, added, "Carol's depth of knowledge in health care compensation valuation, compliance, and her dedication to the health law community bring a distinguished perspective to AHLA's leadership. Her longstanding commitment to AHLA's mission and her proven record as a board leader make her exceptionally well positioned to serve as President-Elect Designate. I am confident that Carol's leadership will strengthen AHLA as a professional home for the health law community."

Carden earned a Bachelor of Science in Accounting from Western Kentucky University. She holds the Certified Public Accountant (CPA), Accredited in Business Valuation (ABV), Accredited Senior Appraiser (ASA), and Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE) credentials. In 2013, the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants inducted her into the Business Valuation Hall of Fame. Forbes named her a 2025 Best-in-State CPA in its inaugural list and recognized her on the inaugural America's Top 100 CPAs for Valuations list. Locally, she serves as a board member and treasurer of Leadership Knoxville and as treasurer of the Knox Education Foundation.