ST. LOUIS 鈥 George Paz, who grew up here and would later lead Express Scripts as it grew into the nation鈥檚 largest pharmacy benefit manager and St. 亚洲无码鈥 largest company, has died. He was 67.
Paz died Sunday, Oct. 23. An obituary from the family did not disclose a cause of death but said he died 鈥渦nexpectedly.鈥
Paz was born in 1955, the grandson of Mexican immigrants who settled near Fairmont City. He attended high school in O鈥橣allon, Missouri, and later he and his brother became the first members of his family to attend college. Paz earned business administration and accounting degrees from the University of Missouri-St. 亚洲无码.
UMSL鈥檚 campus would later become the site of Express Scripts headquarters in north St. 亚洲无码 County, which Paz had built in the mid-2000s, cementing thousands of jobs in the region.
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Paz was noted for his no-frills approach to leadership. His office there was no bigger than most of his employees. He parked in an unreserved, lower-level spot in the campus garage. UMSL student artwork lined the walls.
He began at Express Scripts in 1998 as chief financial officer. By 2003, he was president and by 2005, CEO. The following year, Paz was elected chairman of the board, and he led the company for a decade as it became a behemoth in the health care sector, climbing to No. 22 on the Fortune 500 list. But he never took all the credit.
鈥淓very time you congratulate George on the company鈥檚 success, he says: 鈥業t鈥檚 the team,鈥欌 Ward Klein, former president of business group Civic Progress told the Post-Dispatch in 2011.
By the time Express Scripts was acquired by health insurer Cigna in 2018, some 4,700 people worked for the company locally and 26,000 worldwide, managing prescription drug benefits for more than 83 million Americans.
Paz retired as CEO in 2016, though he remained chairman until Express Scripts merged with Cigna in December 2018.
As the leader of what was the region鈥檚 largest company by revenue for several years, Paz was involved in many local causes. He chaired Civic Progress, the former St. 亚洲无码 club of big company CEOs, and he served as a director and chairman of the Federal Reserve Bank of St. 亚洲无码.
Paz, who finished his degree in the evenings while working in accounting at General American Life Insurance Co., was especially passionate about education. He was chair of the UMSL Chancellor鈥檚 Council and a member of its executive committee. He was a former trustee at both Washington University and St. 亚洲无码 University. And he was the longtime chairman of Logos School.
Paz was an avid golfer and enjoyed hiking and skiing in Colorado, where he owned a mountain home. He loved spending time with his grandchildren and cheering on the St. 亚洲无码 Blues and St. 亚洲无码 Cardinals 鈥渨ith his wife and best friend, Melissa鈥 Oster Paz, the family said in his obituary.
In addition to his wife of 20 years, Paz is survived by three daughters and 10 grandchildren.
A memorial service will be held in mid-November, though a date has not yet been announced.