Steve Leffler, the president of UVM Medical Center, officially took the reins Wednesday as the new head of the rebranded UVM Health network. The new leadership signals a new vision for the hospital network, he and its board leadership say — one that emphasizes the hospitals’ work over the network’s.

Sunny Eappen’s resignation as the president and CEO at the network came the same week in mid-September that the state’s main health care regulator, the Green Mountain Care Board, set restrictive budget conditions on UVM Medical Center and its sibling hospitals. Still, Tom Golonka, chair of the network’s board of trustees, said he was surprised by Eappen’s decision to leave.

As he was getting ready for a joint board meeting to discuss the issues that the care board raised during hearings abou

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