New In-House Role Strengthens Self-Funded Advisory as Employers Seek Guidance Grounded in Clinical Evidence
FORT WORTH, Texas, Feb. 19, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Higginbotham, a broad-based, employee-owned insurance, financial services and employee benefits firm headquartered in Texas, announced that Samuel Isaac Ritter, M.D., has joined the firm as medical director for employee benefits. Dr. Ritter will be based in the firm’s Dallas office.
The move reflects a shift Higginbotham is seeing across its employee benefits work, with an increasing number of employers moving toward alternative funding arrangements, including self-funded health plans. In a self-funded model, the employer funds its employees’ claims while partnering with a carrier to administer the plan and provide network access. In that environment, Higginbotham believes that clients will benefit from a clinical perspective on care pathways and intervention options, rather than simply focusing on plan options and pricing.
“As more employers move into self-funded arrangements, we have found that the conversation changes from shopping plans to managing outcomes,” said Rusty Reid, chairman and CEO of Higginbotham. “Dr. Ritter brings a practicing physician’s perspective onto our team so that we can help clients move forward with decisions grounded in evidence and care.”
Ritter will serve as a client-facing clinical resource within Higginbotham’s employee benefits practice, with a primary focus on supporting self-funded clients and teams. He will help assess complex situations and provide clinical context as employers evaluate population health patterns, emerging treatments and changing standards of care. Ritter will travel regularly to meet clients wherever they are located across Higginbotham’s footprint and work closely with leaders of the firm’s self-funded and population health teams, including Jeff Wood, vice president of self-funded health solutions and Katelynne (Katie) Callender, population health director.
“Healthcare is opaque, costs are inflating and it’s unclear which interventions drive value,” Ritter said. “In that kind of environment, it’s easy to get jaded and assume this is about turning employee health care into a dollars-and-cents equation. I want to decouple that assumption. If you take really good care of people and they’re healthier and feeling better, one of the effects is that costs go down. My North Star is helping employers take better care of the people they cover, using evidence-based recommendations and clear guidance.”
Higginbotham actively recruited Ritter because of his unique background and skillset as a practicing emergency physician who also has experience advising large health systems at McKinsey & Company and held a leadership role at Elysium, a health and longevity startup.
“Sam’s a unicorn: he’s an ER physician — and that’s going to continue — who also has consulting and startup experience,” said Carter English, Higginbotham Chief Business Officer for Employee Benefits. “He can assess complicated situations quickly, communicate clearly and take initiative to build the structure we need. Sam will help clients evaluate what’s clinically appropriate — and help us build out our medical advisory bench to serve clients in this growing space.”
Ritter earned a bachelor’s degree in ecology and evolutionary biology from Princeton University, a Doctor of Medicine degree from the University of Florida College of Medicine and a master’s degree in health care administration from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He completed an emergency medicine residency at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center and is board-certified in emergency medicine by the American Board of Emergency Medicine. He currently serves as an attending emergency physician at Baylor University Medical Center, part of Baylor Scott & White Health, where he was recognized as 2019 Physician of the Year.
ABOUT HIGGINBOTHAM
Higginbotham is an employee-owned leader in insurance, financial services and employee benefits. Since 1948, the firm has combined national reach with local expertise, ranking as the 18th largest independent insurance brokerage in the U.S. in 2025 according to The Hales Report. Higginbotham delivers customized programs supported by its Day Two Services®, ensuring clients receive proactive guidance and support throughout the life of every policy.
Guided by a values-driven culture, the firm is committed to its employees, clients, carrier partners and the communities it serves. Learn more at higginbotham.com.
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SOURCE Higginbotham
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