Judy Faulkner Biography & Net Worth 

Judy Faulkner is the founder and chief executive officer of the healthcare software company Epic Systems, located in Wisconsin, the United States. She started the company back in 1979 with the initial name of Human Services Computing. Married to Dr. Gordon Faulkner, residing in Madison, Wisconsin, Faulkner was born in the year 1943 in Wisconsin. She attended Dickinson College and the University of Wisconsin, graduating with a bachelor’s degree in mathematics and a master’s degree in computer science, respectively. Once she had graduated from the University of Wisconsin, Mrs. Faulkner started the Human Services Computing Company, which later became Epic Systems. The company was launched with a $6,000 investment, part of which came from Mrs. Faulkner’s parents. Today, she and her family own 43 percent of Epic Systems. In 2013, Forbes magazine called her “the most powerful woman in healthcare”. She later appeared in the magazine’s 2016 list of the world’s billionaires where she was ranked number 722 with a net worth of over 3 billion dollars. In 2018, Forbes magazine once again named her on the list of America’s Richest Self-Made Women. Her company was once headquartered in Madison Wisconsin but has since moved to Verona, Wisconsin. According to recent statistics, around 40 percent of the entire United States population will become clients of Epic System. The company’s most important clients are some of the largest hospitals in the United States, including Johns Hopkins, Cedars-Sinai, and the Cleveland Clinic. The remainder of this article talks about every important detail that there is to know about this billionaire who is known to live a very modest lifestyle.

Early Life

Judith R. Faulkner was born in August 1943 in Wisconsin, the US. Her parents, Louis and Del Greenfield have been mentioned as the people that inspired her early interest in health care. During her childhood, her mother, Del, worked as the director of Oregon Physicians for Social Responsibility, while her father, Louis, was a pharmacist.

She was brought up in the Erlton neighborhood of Cherry Hill in New Jersey. After completing her studies at Moorestown Friends School in 1961, she enrolled in Dickinson College from which she graduated with a bachelor’s degree in mathematics. She then attended the University of Wisconsin in Madison from which she earned her master’s degree in computer science.

Professional Life

In 1979, shortly after completing her master’s at the University of Wisconsin, Judy Faulkner worked with Dr. John Greist to co-found Human Services Computing which they started in a basement at 2020 University Avenue in Madison, Wisconsin. The company, which later became Epic Systems, was started with a $70,000 investment from family members and friends, but has never taken investment from private equity or venture capital, and remains a privately held company to this day.

Mrs. Faulkner takes pride in the fact that Epic System is a homegrown company that has never acquired another company. She has also stated they will never go public.

Today, Epic Systems holds the medical records of more than 200 million people. Mrs. Faulkner and her family currently own 43 percent of the company.

Achievements: Awards & Honors

In 2013, Forbes magazine called her “the most powerful woman in healthcare”. She later appeared in the magazine’s 2016 list of the world’s billionaires, where she was ranked number 722. In 2018, Forbes magazine once again named her on the list of America’s Richest Self-Made Women. She was also listed by Forbes as one of America’s Top 50 Women In Tech 2018.

Personal Life

Judith Faulkner is the wife of Dr Gordon Faulkner, a paediatrician. The couple has three children and lives in Madison, Wisconsin.

In 2016, Faulkner joined other billionaires like Bill Gates and signed The Giving Pledge, committing to give 99 per cent of her fortune to charity.

Judy Faulkner Net Worth

Judy Faulkner, co-founder and chief executive officer of the Verona, Wisconsin-based healthcare software company, Epic Systems, saw her net worth grow by 167 per cent from March 2020 through August 2021, according to a report by the Wisconsin Examiner on August 27, 2021. According to the report, Ms Judith Faulkner’s net worth was pegged at $2.5 billion as of March 18, 2020. As of August 17, 2021, her net worth was $6.68 billion. As of this moment, Forbes magazine reports that she has a net worth of $5.5 billion dollars.

Judy Faulkner’s net worth has been primarily drawn from her successful company, Epic System, which still continues to pay her for her roles as the company’s co-founder and chief executive officer. The company designs and implements health care software systems. It is now one of the most successful companies of its type in the United States. The company has developed multiple applications, including “Care Everywhere”, an application for patient information exchange, and “BedTime”, a bed management application.

Despite that she is a billionaire and ranks as one of the top 50 women in tech in the United States, Mrs. Judy Faulkner maintains a very low profile and lives a decidedly ordinary lifestyle.