President and CEO, Northeast Delta Dental
Tom Raffio assumed the role of President and CEO of Northeast Delta Dental in 1995. Before that, he served as Senior Vice President of Delta Dental of Massachusetts and Director of Group Healthcare Management Reporting at John Hancock Insurance.
Under Raffio’s leadership, revenue grew from $57 million in 1995 to more than $483 million in 2023. Raffio’s commitment to the principles of continuous quality improvement led to the creation of its Guarantee Of Service ExcellenceSM (GOSE) program, backing up seven facets of service with customer refunds—the first such comprehensive program in Northern New England. The company evolved into an industry leader recognized for its outstanding business practices. Raffio also oversaw the launch of the Health through Oral Wellness®, an oral health assessment program that provides additional benefits to qualified at-risk patients.
Northeast Delta Dental has grown from 50 to 200 employees, earning a reputation as "Employer of Choice" based on best practices and numerous awards. It was named one of the 25 Best Small Companies to Work for in America for five consecutive years, and one of the Best Companies to Work For in New Hampshire for ten years.
During Raffio’s presidency, the Northeast Delta Dental network of participating dentists grew from 935 in 1995 to 1,874 in 2023. He spearheaded the creation of the Northeast Delta Dental Foundation, which supports oral health programs in Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont each year by investing over a million dollars. To address a shortage of dentists in under-served communities, he stimulated the funding of scholarship programs at schools of dental medicine, and annual contributions to dental education loan repayment programs encouraging dental students to practice in Northern New England.
Raffio lobbied tirelessly for adult Medicaid dental benefits for over 25 years with other dedicated advocates and legislators. On July 1, 2022, a bill was finally signed into law, providing dental benefits to over 90,000 adult New Hampshire Medicaid recipients and on April 1, 2023, these recipients were covered for dental care.
An engaged civic leader, he is currently a member of the Board of Trustees of Dartmouth-Hitchcock, a member of the Delta Dental Plans Association Board of Directors, Chair of the New Hampshire Coalition for Business and Education, Chair of the Arthritis Leadership Council of Northern New England, a member of the Business and Industry Association, a Board Member and former Chair of the Board of Early Learning New Hampshire, Chair of the Franklin Pierce College of Business Advisory Board, and a member of the Conference Board’s Committee for Economic Development. He is Incorporator and Chair of the Board of ExcellenceNorth Alliance, Board Member and Chair of New Hampshire Business Committee for the Arts, Chair of the Bow Schools Foundation, member of the New Hampshire Scholars Leadership Board — which he also serves as a Champion — and member of the Fisher Cats Foundation.
Raffio has been recognized for providing leadership to the community through numerous awards including: Business NH Magazine’s 40 Influential Leaders (2024); the 22nd Annual Garden Party Honoree, Moore Center (2023); the Nicholas J. Halias Award (2023); the Erik Cogswell Memorial Award by Seacoast Mental Health Center (2022); the Arthritis Foundation’s Champion Award (2022); and the Campus Compact for New Hampshire Presidents’ Community Partner Award (2022). An author of many books as well as an avid runner, Raffio’s latest publication is Stories From the Starting Line, including interviews with over 60 runners- from Gold Medal Olympians, Boston Marathon Winners and Mount Washington Road Race Champions to weekend warriors and everyone in between.
Raffio earned an undergraduate degree at Harvard University, an MBA from Babson College, and designation as a Fellow of The Fellow, Life Management Institute (FLMI). He is proud to be a 1997 graduate of Leadership New Hampshire. He lives in Bow, New Hampshire with his wife Ellen, granddaughter Havanna and his beloved pets: German Shepherds Kolton and Ice and two cats. When Raffio is not at work you can find him running with his wife or working out at the gym.