In 2025, Jonathan Bush said he stood behind “everything” he did as CEO of Athenahealth. While serving as CEO of Athenahealth, Jonathan Bush faced allegations of sexually inappropriate conduct and a sexually hostile work environment. In 2009, in a case that was settled confidentially, a female employee filed a complaint that alleged Bush made “sexually oriented remarks” towards female employees. In June 2018, Bush abruptly stepped down as CEO while the company explored a potential sale and buyout.
In later interviews, Jonathan Bush blamed an activist campaign from Elliott Management and what he described as “cancel culture” for his removal.
2025: Jonathan Bush Said He Stood Behind “Every Word” And “Everything” He Did As CEO Of Athenahealth. According to Portland Press Herald “Bush said Wednesday he stands behind ‘every word I said and everything I ever did’ as CEO of athenahealth.” [Portland Press Herald, 10/8/25]
Bloomberg: A 2017 Video Captured Jonathan Bush At A Health-Care Industry Event Making Sexually Inappropriate Jokes About A Female Employee, Saying He Wanted To “Jump Down On” One Of His Female Employees And “Do Inappropriate Things.” According to Bloomberg, “In the past week, Bush has apologized for assaulting his ex-wife, and public records have surfaced alleging that he subjected a female employee to what she described as a ‘sexually hostile environment.’ A 2017 video clip seen by Bloomberg of Bush at a health-care industry event features the CEO dressed up as a race car driver, pretending to be the title character from the 2006 comedy ‘Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby,’ and at times reading from a cue card. Midway through the skit, he says he wants to ‘jump down on’ one of his female employees ‘and do inappropriate things.’ He then briefly pauses. ‘Uh, but obviously that’s totally inappropriate and would never happen or be said on a microphone.’ The exact context of the remarks isn’t clear.” [Bloomberg, 6/4/18]
2009: In A Case Filed With The Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination That Was Settled Confidentially, A Female Employee Alleged That Athenahealth CEO Jonathan Bush Made “Sexually Oriented Remarks” Towards Female Employees And Created A Sexually Hostile Workplace. According to the New York Post, “Bush was accused of ogling the breasts of a female employee and ‘making comments about his sex life,’ documents reviewed by The Post reveal. In the March 2009 case, filed also against the company, the female employee, who reported directly to Bush, also accused him of making ‘sexually oriented remarks’ about her and other female employees, the civil complaint, filed with the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination alleges. The MCAD is the state agency charged with enforcing discrimination cases. No longer willing to deal with Bush’s behavior, the employee left the company in 2008 — even though the exit meant forfeiting her ‘IPO bonus’ — a cash payout tied to Athenahealth’s September 2007 initial public offering, she claimed. The case was quickly settled two months later, according to documents filed with the agency. Terms of the settlement are not public.” [New York Post, 5/31/18]
June 2018: Jonathan Bush Abruptly Stepped Down From Athenahealth CEO While The Company Explored A Sale And Weighed A Buyout Offer Days After Reports Of A Sexual Harassment Settlement. According to the Associated Press, “The co-founder and CEO of athenahealth is stepping down and the medical software company is exploring a potential sale. It is already weighing a buyout offer from a frustrated shareholder. The resignation of Jonathan Bush is effective immediately. Athenahealth Inc. said Wednesday that Chairman Jeff Immelt, the former leader of General Electric Co., will become executive chairman. Chief Financial Officer Marc Levine will take on more responsibilities while the company searches for its next CEO. Bush, 49, was CEO, president and board member since co-founding athenahealth in 1997. Levine, meanwhile, joined the company last December after serving as chief financial officer of JDA Software Group Inc. Athenahealth, based in Watertown, Massachusetts, makes medical record, revenue cycle and care coordination products and delivers most of its offerings through cloud-based software. ‘A family, a cause, a company, a country - these things give shape and purpose to an otherwise mechanical and brief human existence,’ Bush said in a statement issued through athenahealth. ‘With that lens on, it’s easy for me to see that the very things that made me useful to the (company) and cause in these past twenty-one years, are now exactly the things that are in the way.’ The executive’s resignation comes a few days after the New York Post reported that several years ago, Bush settled a sexual harassment claim with a former employee.” [Associated Press, 6/8/18]
January 2026: Jonathan Bush Claimed An Activist Investor Orchestrated An Online Campaign, Which He Described As “Cancel Culture,” That He Said Resulted In His Firing From Athenahealth. According to Bush’s interview with The Ray Richardson Show, “BUSH: I'm the only candidate who's been canceled. Standing up for what he believes in. I'm the only candidate who's made major changes to a huge, overregulated bureaucracy. HOST: What was the reference to cancel? I don't know what. BUSH: You can google it. But when an activist investor wanted to take over my company, he created a, you know, a version of me on the Internet. It was mostly not true and got me fired. Which was beautiful, it gave me the freedom and the opportunity to start again, have more kids, fall in love and run for governor of Maine.” [Jonathan Bush Interview – The Ray Richardson Show, 1/9/26] (AUDIO)
January 2026: Jonathan Bush Described His Firing From Athenahealth As “Beautiful” And Said It Freed Him To Restart His Life And Run For Governor. According to Bush’s interview with The Ray Richardson Show, “BUSH: I'm the only candidate who's been canceled. Standing up for what he believes in. I'm the only candidate who's made major changes to a huge, overregulated bureaucracy. HOST: What was the reference to cancel? I don't know what. BUSH: You can google it. But when an activist investor wanted to take over my company, he created a, you know, a version of me on the Internet. It was mostly not true and got me fired. Which was beautiful, it gave me the freedom and the opportunity to start again, have more kids, fall in love and run for governor of Maine.” [Jonathan Bush Interview – The Ray Richardson Show, 1/9/26] (AUDIO)