Medicaid Leadership Academy
August 28-30, 2024
Sofitel Lafayette Square
Washington, DC
The CSG Medicaid Leadership Academy is tailored for members of the legislative and executive branches who are well versed in the intricacies of Medicaid policy and are interested in further discussion and examination of the issues.
Agenda
All events take place in the Paris Ballroom on the Lobby level of the hotel unless otherwise noted.
Wednesday, August 28
1:30 – 2:00 p.m.
Registration
Location: Paris Ballroom Pre-Function
2:00 – 2:30 p.m.
Welcome and Introductions
- Sean Slone, Senior Policy Analyst, CSG
- Shawn Jurgensen, Chief Public Policy Officer and Director of Center of Innovation, CSG
- Cindy Beane, West Virginia Medicaid Commissioner; Co-Host of 2024 CSG Medicaid Policy Academy
Academy Co-Hosts:
- Rep. Kevin Ryan, Connecticut, Assistant Deputy Speaker Pro-Tempore, CSG National Chair
- Juliet Charron, Idaho Medicaid Administrator
2:30 – 3:30 p.m.
Leader Roundtable
Interactive session with attendees on legislative plans for 2025 sessions that could impact Medicaid. Attendees will be invited to respond to three questions:
- What are my Medicaid-related legislative or policy priorities for 2025?
- What piece of Medicaid-related legislation or policy that I have championed should you ask me about?
- What am I hoping to learn at this academy?
3:30 – 4:00 p.m.
The Fiscal State of State Medicaid Programs
An expert on state finances discusses Medicaid’s impacts on recent state spending and the factors that may drive future spending.
Speakers:
- Shelby Kerns, Executive Director, National Association of State Budget Officers
4:00 – 5:00 p.m.
Top Issues in Medicaid 2024
Medicaid experts will discuss the top issues facing the program in 2024, including changes in Medicaid eligibility, recent rules and guidance issued by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, how states are innovating to address the needs of Medicaid populations, and how the outcome of the 2024 election and the Supreme Court’s Chevron decision could impact the future of Medicaid.
Speakers:
- Anna Bonelli, Director of Operations and Strategic Business Development, Institute for Medicaid Innovation
- Jack Rollins, Director of Federal Policy, National Association of Medicaid Directors
- Robin Rudowitz, Vice President & Director, Program on Medicaid & the Uninsured, KFF
5:30 – 7:00 p.m.
Opening Reception
Location: Opaline Brasserie
Thursday, August 29
8:00 – 9:00 a.m.
Breakfast
Location: Opaline Bar
9:00 – 10:00 a.m.
The Federal Government’s Approach to Medicaid
(Q&A with CMS)
A senior official from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services will discuss the administration’s plans for the Medicaid program and how states can work with the agency to serve beneficiaries. A Q&A will follow.
Speaker:
- Perrie Briskin, Senior Policy Advisor, Center for Medicaid & CHIP Services
10:00 – 11:00 a.m.
Future of Innovation in Medicaid
The Institute for Medicaid Innovation conducts an annual survey of Medicaid managed care organizations that provides a window into such areas as high-risk care coordination, maternal and perinatal health, child and adolescent health, behavioral health, long-term services and supports, and social determinants of health. During this annual Medicaid Leadership Academy session, the organization’s founding executive director will discuss the latest survey, areas within Medicaid that are ripe for innovation in the years ahead and what CMS and state Medicaid agencies may be signaling about their priorities moving forward.
Speaker:
- Jennifer Moore, PhD, RN, FAAN, Founding Executive Director, Institute for Medicaid Innovation
11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
Testing New Approaches in Medicaid: Section 1115 Demonstration Waivers
States are using Section 1115 Medicaid demonstration waivers to expand eligibility and benefits and to address state and federal priorities. This session will highlight two of the more recent uses for these waivers: providing housing services and providing reentry services to pre-release incarcerated people.
Moderator: Lacy Adams, Senior Policy Analyst, CSG Justice Center
Overview of Housing and Reentry Services Waivers
Speakers:
- Dori Glanz Reyneri, Director, Manatt Health
- Elaine Chhean, Senior Policy Associate, National Academy for State Health Policy
States with Pending 1115 Waivers to Provide Reentry Services to Incarcerated Individuals
Arizona, Hawaii, New Mexico, New York, Utah and West Virginia are among the states with a pending 1115 waiver to provide reentry services to incarcerated individuals.
Panelists:
- Amir Bassiri, New York Medicaid Director
- Cynthia Beane, West Virginia Medicaid Commissioner
- Dana Flannery, New Mexico Medicaid Director
- Carmen Heredia, Arizona Medicaid Director
- Judy Mohr Peterson, Medicaid Director and Administrator for Med-QUEST, Hawaii Department of Human Services
- Jennifer Strohecker, Utah Medicaid Director
12:00 – 1:00 p.m.
Lunch
Location: Opaline Bar
1:00 – 2:00 p.m.
Health Innovation Roundtables
In a series of short presentations, private sector health interests discuss innovations in medicine and health care delivery that touch the Medicaid population and potential policy activities to support them.
- Amazon Web Services (AWS) – Use of cloud computing and other technologies to address workforce needs.
Presenter: Nick Aretakis, Medicaid Transformation Leader
- Dexcom – Maternity Care – Continuous Glucose Monitoring tools
Presenter: Carolyn Grant, Senior Manager, State Government Relations & Policy, Dexcom
- Novo Nordisk – How states are tackling obesity rates and working towards a healthier population.
Presenter – Ann Vermillion, Regional Lead, State Government Affairs
- Philips – Pregnancy+ App
Presenter: Evan Hoffman, Director, State Government Relations
2:00 – 4:00 p.m.
Medicaid Coverage Across the Life Spectrum
Experts and attendees from key states will discuss how Medicaid programs are innovating to serve eligible populations across the life spectrum in areas like maternal and perinatal health, behavioral health services and long-term services and supports. Plus, an update on how state Medicaid programs are addressing social determinants of health for all populations.
Topic: Safer Childbirth Cities Grants
Merck for Mothers and its partners award Safer Childbirth Cities grants to organizations engaged in activities related to postpartum care services, perinatal care, reducing disparities for childbearing women, maternal and infant mortality, homelessness and housing.
Speakers:
- Lashelle Stewart, Executive Director, Baltimore Healthy Start, Inc.
- Stephanie Spencer, Executive Director & Founder, Urban Baby Beginnings (Norfolk, VA)
Topic: Doula Services/Coverage for Pregnant Women/Postpartum Benefits
- Kansas Secretary of Health & Environment Janet Stanek
Topic: Kansas Medicaid program’s addition of coverage of doula services for women and newborns.
- Oklahoma Medicaid Director Traylor Rains
Topic: SoonerCare 1115 Waiver Amendment to enroll pregnant women with income between 134% & 185% of the federal poverty level and American Indian/Alaska Native members.
- Wisconsin Secretary of Human Services Kirsten Johnson
Topic: Wisconsin’s pending postpartum coverage 1115 waiver
- Rep. Randy Fine, Florida
Topic: Florida Managed Medical Assistance’s postpartum care benefits.
Topic: Modernizing Behavioral Health Systems
- Sandra Wilkniss, Senior Program Director of Population & Public Health, National Academy for State Health Policy
Topic: Modernizing Behavioral Health Systems
- Juliet Charron, Idaho Medicaid Administrator
Topic: Idaho’s Behavioral Health Transformation Demonstration and behavioral health plan contract.
Topic: Services for Seniors, Individuals with Disabilities, Individuals with HIV/AIDS
- Rep. Rob Nosse, Oregon
Topic: Oregon’s Project Independence Waiver to provide services to seniors and adults with disabilities, including those with unpaid family caregivers.
- Sen. Alice Mann and Rep. Robert Bierman, Minnesota
Topic: Minnesota’s amendment to Minnesota Reform 2020 to provide targeted set of home and community-based services to seniors in need of nursing facility level of care.
- Rep. Holly Stover, Maine
Topic: Maine’s 1115 Demonstration for Individuals with HIV/AIDS
Topic: Addressing Health Related Social Needs (HRSN) and Social Determinants of Health (SDOH)
- Alexa Wohrman, Senior Advocacy Advisor for the Health Care by Food Initiative, American Heart Association.
- Sen. Elgie Sims and Rep. Camille Lilly, Illinois
Topic: Illinois investments in Healthcare Transformation Capital Improvement Projects to fund efforts to address health-related social needs and reduce disparities in historically underserved communities.
- Rep. Kevin Ryan, Connecticut
Topic: Connecticut’s pending 1115 waiver amendment to the Substance Use Disorder Demonstration to provide a limited package of reentry benefits to pre-release inmates.
- Jennifer Strohecker, Utah Medicaid Director
Topic: Medicaid Reform 1115 Demonstration Waiver and SDOH provisions
5:00 –
Small Group Dinners
Attendees can stop at CSG registration desk to sign up for one of six restaurants: Georgia Brown’s (Southern), Old Ebbitt Grill (American), Bobby Van’s Steakhouse (Steak & Seafood), Zaytinya (Mediterranean), Il Piatto (Italian), or Joe’s Seafood, Prime Steak and Stone Crab (Seafood). Groups will depart at 4:50pm from the front of the hotel.
Friday, August 30
8:00 – 9:00 a.m.
Breakfast
Opaline Restaurant
9:00 – 11:00 a.m.
Challenges Facing the Medicaid Program
Panelists will discuss how such challenges as workforce shortages, shifts in eligibility, and an outsized role in long-term care financing are impacting the Medicaid program as well as what states and others are doing to help address those challenges.
Topic: Workforce Challenges
- Hemi Tewarson, Executive Director, National Academy for State Health Policy (health care workforce)
- Clese Erikson, Deputy Director, Health Workforce Research Center, Fitzhugh Mullan Institute for Health Workforce Equity, The George Washington University (behavioral health workforce)
- Sean Slone, Senior Policy Analyst, CSG (long-term care workforce)
- Lori Smetanka, Executive Director, The National Consumer Voice for Quality Long-Term Care (INVITED) (Minimum Staffing Standards for nursing homes)
Topic: Future of Eligibility & Enrollment
- Allexa Gardner, Research Fellow, Center for Children and Families, Georgetown University
Topic: Tools to Improve Medicaid
- Vincent Quan, Co-Executive Director, Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (randomized evaluations to improve state Medicaid programs)
Topic: The Road Ahead for Medicaid
- Suzanne Bierman, Managing Director, Sellers Dorsey; Former Nevada Medicaid Director (2019-2023)
- Christina Ramsay, Program Officer – Federal and State Health Policy, The Commonwealth Fund
11:00 – 11:05 a.m.
Concluding Remarks, Online Survey and Adjournment
Speakers
Nick Aretakis
Medicaid Transformation Leader
Amazon Web Services (AWS)
Nick Aretakis is a Medicaid transformation leader for Amazon Web Services’ Health and Human Services team. In this role, he enables Medicaid agencies to improve the Medicaid experience through delivering transformative technology – starting with the customer’s business and working backwards. Prior to AWS, Nick authored and led delivery-focused federal policies and national oversight as a deputy director at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). At CMS, Nick spearheaded rescue efforts between states and healthcare.gov, allowing 4.3 million people to gain access to care, and transformed the federal oversight process for Medicaid systems into an outcomes-based, delivery-focused policy.
Director of Operations and Strategic Business Development
Institute for Medicaid Innovation
Anna Bonelli is the director of Operations and Strategic Business Development at the Institute for Medicaid Innovation (IMI). Prior to joining IMI, Anna served as a senior policy advisor in the Center for Medicaid and CHIP Services, where she helped lead Medicaid unwinding by coordinating the whole-of-government initiative to ensure states reviewed eligibility for 93 million people. Before leading the unwinding effort, she managed the behavioral health and substance use disorder portfolio for Medicare and Medicaid in the Office of the Administrator. In that role, she was instrumental in implementing the SUPPORT Act as an advisor to the administrator and the principal deputy administrator by overseeing 49 projects across the agency and liaising with White House offices on behalf of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). Anna worked on a range of other federal financing policies, including managed care supplemental payments, home- and community-based services, and federal matching percentages. Prior to CMS, Anna spent two years on detail to the Senate Finance Committee co-leading the Medicaid and CHIP portfolio. In that role, she advised the committee chair and developed bills that became law on a range of policies, including long-term CHIP funding and financing. Anna also spent 14 years at the US Government Accountability Office, where she led complex research projects and evaluations of federal programs and policies, resulting in recommendations to Congress and federal agencies. In that role, Anna planned, designed, and implemented year-long projects with multiple methodologies, led teams, and handled sensitive Congressional clients.
Perrie is a Senior Advisor at the Center for Medicaid and CHIP Services. Prior to CMS, Perrie worked in the Office of the Secretary at the Department of Health and Human Services. Prior to her federal service, Perrie worked on expanding health coverage and access globally with the organization Population Services International. She holds a B.A. from Barnard College and a MBA/MPH from University of California, Berkeley.
Elaine F H Chhean joined NASHP in June 2021 as special assistant to the executive director. Since April 2024, she is a senior policy associate with the Behavioral, Population, and Public Health team where she leads projects on housing and supporting individuals returning from incarceration. She also works on payment and delivery system reform as part of the Coverage, Cost, and Value team. Prior to joining NASHP, Elaine provided technical assistance to state health policy leaders as part of the National Governors Association, Center for Best Practices and the Duke-Margolis Center for Health Policy. Elaine began her career at Maryland’s Medicaid agency, working on behavioral health policy. Elaine has a Master of Public Health from the University of Maryland, where she also worked in the Dean’s office, and has a BS in Biological Sciences and BA in Cultural Anthropology from UMBC.
Deputy Director
Health Workforce Research Center, Fitzhugh Mullan Institute for Health Workforce Equity, The George Washington University
Ms. Erikson is the Deputy Director of the Health Workforce Research Center on Emerging Health Workforce Issues at The George Washington University and a member of the senior leadership team of the Fitzhugh Mullan Institute for Health Workforce Equity. She is currently the Principle Investigator on a three-year behavioral health workforce study funded by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. She has published peer review articles on structural racism, telehealth, the workforce implications of new care delivery models, accountable care organizations, care coordination roles in value-based care, consumer interest in seeing nurse practitioners and physician assistants, primary care and specialty-specific workforce issues, and medical school enrollment trends. Before joining GW, Ms. Erikson was senior director of the Center for Workforce Studies at the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC). She received her Master of Public Affairs from the Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas.
Allexa (Allie) Gardner is a Research Fellow at the Georgetown University McCourt School of Public Policy’s Center for Children and Families (CCF). Her work focuses on Medicaid and CHIP eligibility, enrollment, and program administration as well as section 1115 Medicaid demonstration projects. She has been with CCF for six years. Allie graduated with a B.S. in Economics from the University of Alabama and received her MPP from Georgetown’s McCourt School.
Carolyn Grant
Senior Manager, State Government Relations & Policy
Dexcom
Carolyn Grant is Senior Manager, State Government Relations & Policy at Dexcom where she tracks, monitors and educates others about the medical evidence, coverage policy trends, and standards of care associated with the use of a Continuous Glucose Monitor (CGM) for Diabetes management. Carolyn has been with Dexcom since 2019. Dexcom is a pioneer in continuous glucose monitoring (CGM), developing innovative technology that has transformed how people manage diabetes. Dexcom products are part of people’s daily lives, empowering them to live confidently and feel more in control, free to pursue their dreams. With more than 8,000 employees across the globe, Dexcom is dedicated to creating life-changing CGM solutions.
Evan Hoffman
Director, State and Local Government Relations
Philips
Evan Hoffman serves as Philips Director of State and Local Government Relations. In this role, he leads Philips state and local government affairs efforts across in the United States, working closely with mayors, city councilors, state legislators and governors. Evan works with state policymakers on advancing policies that achieve the quadruple aim of improving the patient and staff experience, improving patient outcomes, while lowering the cost of care. Evan frequently works with State Medicaid agencies, State Departments of Health and other health-focused policymakers. He frequently speaks on issues surrounding telehealth, maternal health and increasing access to care. Before Philips, Evan stood-up and led the state government affairs operations at the Global Business Alliance (known formerly as OFII), an association of hundreds of U.S. subsidiaries of international-businesses. Evan graduated from the University of Maryland and loves to golf, play tennis and root for the local sports teams!
Prior to coming to NASBO, Kerns served as Deputy Director at the Idaho Department of Labor, having previously worked in the Idaho Division of Financial Management from 2009-2019 (the state’s budget office). In her prior position as Budget Bureau Chief, she led staff in developing, presenting, and advocating for the Governor’s Executive Budget. As a past member of NASBO, Kerns served for two years on the association’s Executive Committee. Kerns received a master’s degree in business administration from Northwest Nazarene University and a bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Idaho.
Stacey Mazer is a consultant and former Senior Staff Associate with the National Association of State Budget Officers (NASBO) in Washington, D.C. In this capacity, she has been responsible for monitoring and analyzing the impact of federal health and Medicaid decisions on states as well as tracking human and social service developments within states. Mazer also produced a weekly Health Care Issues Update distributed to NASBO members and served as staff lead for the association budget and grants. Prior to joining NASBO, she worked for the Congressional Budget Office and the Finance Department for the City of Baltimore. Mazer is a graduate of Syracuse University where she also earned a Master’s degree in Public Administration from the Maxwell School of Public Affairs and Citizenship.
Jennifer E. Moore is an internationally recognized leader in Medicaid and maternal child health. With more than 30 years of experience, her work, at the intersection of clinical practice, research, and policy, positions her as a thought leader and a passionate advocate for the Medicaid program and the individuals, families, and communities it serves. As the founding executive director of the Institute for Medicaid Innovation (IMI) and assistant research professor at the University of Michigan medical school’s department of obstetrics and gynecology, Dr. Moore focuses her efforts on strategically bringing together payers, clinicians, researchers, and government to design and evaluate innovative approaches to address maternal health issues such as alternative payment models, inequities and disparities, social determinants of health, community voice and partnership, and a full range of perinatal specific topics. Dr. Moore’s current grant-funded research projects include work with the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation to assess Medicaid access and coverage through the first national longitudinal survey of Medicaid managed care organizations in key categories, including value-based purchasing, high risk care coordination, women’s health, pharmacy, child and adolescent health, long-term services and supports, behavioral health, social determinants of health, telehealth, and equity and disparities. She is also leading a W.K. Kellogg Foundation funded national midwifery and Medicaid learning collaborative to increase access and coverage to high-value, evidence-based maternal models of care that are underutilized in the Medicaid program. She is also involved in the Advancing Health Equity learning collaborative focused on reducing disparities through payment and delivery system reform among other groundbreaking work led by the Institute for Medicaid Innovation.
Co-Executive Director
Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Vincent Quan is co-executive director of J-PAL North America. Together with Laura Feeney, his co-executive director, Vincent leads the office’s efforts to reduce poverty by ensuring policy is informed by rigorous evidence in the North America region. Vincent provides strategic direction to the policy and training teams and oversees partnership development and outreach for the office. He works closely with policymakers, practitioners, researchers, and donors to promote evidence generation and increase the use of evidence in policy making. Prior to his role as co-executive director, Vincent led the policy team at J-PAL North America. He has extensive experience translating the results from randomized evaluations into action, promoting a culture of evidence-informed policy across the region. Vincent oversaw J-PAL North America’s efforts to cultivate lasting relationships with partners across the evidence-based policymaking ecosystem, including government policymakers, philanthropic leaders, and nonprofit heads. He also launched multiple new initiatives, including the Education Technology and Opportunity Initiative and the Covid-19 Recovery and Resilience Initiative, to generate important studies to identify effective solutions to address poverty. Under Vincent’s leadership, research catalyzed by J-PAL North America directly informed policy across all levels of government, including federal recommendations and state policies on education. Before joining J-PAL, Vincent worked at the Prison Law Office, where he conducted research to improve conditions of confinement in prisons across California, and at the Legal Aid Society in New York City, where he assisted low-income residents in navigating the criminal court system. He holds a master’s in public administration from Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs and a BA in history from UC Berkeley.
Christina Ramsay, M.P.H., is the program officer for the Commonwealth Fund’s Federal and State Health Policy program. She supports the program’s efforts to inform federal and state policymakers about research and analysis conducted by the Fund and its grantees. Prior to rejoining the Fund, Ramsay served as a legislative assistant for U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen on health issues, as well as topics related to disability, nutrition, and Social Security policy. Earlier in her career she was the senior program associate for the Commonwealth Fund’s Controlling Health Care Costs and Advancing Medicare programs, for which she was responsible for issue monitoring as well as research, data analysis, writing, and presentation. She holds a B.S. in psychology, with a concentration in neuroscience, from Yale University and an M.P.H. in health policy from the Yale School of Public Health.
Dori Glanz Reyneri is a director with Manatt Health, an interdisciplinary policy and business advisory practice of Manatt. Dori provides policy research, analysis and project implementation support for health care industry clients, including states, providers, plans, foundations and associations. Her work encompasses a broad array of issues, such as health care reform, Medicaid, the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), delivery system reform and payment and reimbursement reform. Prior to joining Manatt, Dori was a Medicaid program examiner with the U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB), Healthcare Division. In that role she monitored the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services’ (CMS) administration of the Medicaid program and execution of the Affordable Care Act. Her responsibilities included reviewing and providing analysis on regulations and other policy guidance, tracking state activity on Medicaid, leading OMB review of all state requests to provide family planning services through waivers, and helming the agency’s oversight and financial management of the Vaccines for Children Program. Dori also focused on the Medicaid expansion, Exchange interactions, quality, benefits, health IT, eligibility, payment and delivery system reform, and uncompensated care hospital payments. Before OMB, Dori was a program analyst for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Recovery Act Office. While at HHS, she was the lead analyst on HHS Recovery Act press and public affairs and intergovernmental initiatives. She was previously an executive aide, office manager and policy analyst for Representative Mark Strama in the Texas House of Representatives.
Jack Rollins joined NAMD in April 2014. He is responsible for the association’s policy work, including analysis of legislation and regulations impacting the Medicaid program, convening Medicaid Directors and their staffs to identify and build consensus around policy objectives, and articulating members’ consensus positions via comment letters and other communications to federal policymakers and Medicaid stakeholders. In his time at NAMD, Jack has focused specifically on the areas of Medicaid prescription drug coverage, managed care, and long-term services and supports. Prior to joining NAMD, Jack interned at a safety net hospital association, a small lobbying firm specializing in healthcare issues, and performed policy work for a nonprofit organization of women state legislators. Jack received an Masters of Public Health focused on health policy from the George Washington University and a B.A. in philosophy and government from the College of William and Mary.
Robin Rudowitz is vice president at KFF and director of the Program on Medicaid and the Uninsured, where she oversees all work on Medicaid, the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) and low-income populations including coverage, eligibility, financing, delivery systems, access and long-term services and supports. Prior to joining KFF in 2004, Rudowitz was a senior manager at the Lewin Group, a health policy and management consulting firm. Rudowitz has worked on budget and health policy issues in various government agencies, including the Office of Legislation at the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, the Office of the Chief Financial Officer for the District of Columbia, the Congressional Budget Office and the Ways and Means Committee for the New York State Assembly. Rudowitz holds a bachelor’s degree in policy analysis and a master’s degree in public administration from Cornell University.
Sean Slone
Senior Policy Analyst
The Council of State Governments
Sean Slone is a senior policy analyst in the Center of Innovation at the national headquarters of The Council of State Governments (CSG) in Lexington, Kentucky. In recent years, he has staffed projects on long-term care, mental health policy and the future of work and directed the organization’s Medicaid policy education programs. Previously, as CSG’s Director of Transportation & Infrastructure Policy, he spent a decade (2008-18) staffing the organization’s Transportation & Infrastructure Public Policy Committee, organizing transportation-related convenings in Washington, D.C. and around the country and writing for CSG publications. A journalist by training, his career also has included a decade as a producer for C-SPAN in Washington, D.C. and five years as a producer/reporter for Kentucky Educational Television, where he covered the Kentucky General Assembly.
Lori Smetanka is the Executive Director of the National Consumer Voice for Quality Long-Term Care, the leading national nonprofit advocacy organization representing consumers receiving long-term care and services in nursing homes, assisted living facilities, and home and community-based settings. As Executive Director, Lori oversees and contributes to the organization’s policy, advocacy, and program activities; leads the organization’s fundraising efforts; establishes strategic partnerships with organizations and federal agencies working on issues related to the provision of long-term services and supports; and establishes the strategic direction of the organization.
From 2004 – 2016 she served as the Director of the National Long-Term Care Ombudsman Resource Center, providing technical assistance, training, and support to the 53 State and more than 570 local long-term care ombudsman programs across the country. Prior to that role, Lori served as Law and Policy Specialist at the Consumer Voice, where she provided policy analysis, consultation, education, technical assistance, and training on long-term care issues. She received a B.A. from Indiana University of Pennsylvania, and a J.D. from the University of Dayton School of Law.
Executive Director & Founder
Urban Baby Beginnings (Norfolk, VA)
Stephanie Spencer is known and respected by the maternal and newborn health community in the Richmond and Hampton Roads areas and holds several roles in promoting safer motherhood and newborn health. She is the Founder and Executive Director of Urban Baby Beginnings. Through her work, Stephanie has been a vocal and consistent advocate for improving maternal health equity, seeking ways to provide access to high quality maternal and newborn community support for all mothers and their children. She has worked on state and local teams and initiatives to address disparities such as employment, health and nutrition, and education. Her program also trains mothers through its community doula workforce innovation program, putting mothers back to work with a sustainable living wage. Stephanie received her Bachelor’s in Nursing at Regent University and her Bachelor’s in Leadership studies with a concentration in Economics and Finance from Virginia State University. She has worked in the community as a public health Registered Nurse and home health.
Lashelle Stewart is the Executive Director for Baltimore Healthy Start, Inc. She is a native Baltimorean and received her undergraduate degree at Coppin State University, a historically black college/university in Baltimore City. She received her MBA from the University of Maryland. Lashelle is also a graduate of the UCLA/Johnson & Johnson Healthcare Executive Program and a member of Johns Hopkins Urban Health Institute’s Bunting Leadership Fellowship’s inaugural graduates. She has provided services to families for over twenty-five years. Lashelle has a passion for working with mothers and babies and takes pride in delivering services that will have multi-generational impact. Lashelle currently serves on numerous committees, advisory groups and coalitions including the Board of Directors for the National Healthy Start Association, Maryland Breast Feeding Coalition and Behind the Smile and the Governor appointed Community Health Worker Advisory Committee. Lashelle joined the Baltimore Healthy Start as the Deputy Director in 2015. She has served as the Executive Director since 2017.
Hemi Tewarson, JD, MPH is the executive director of the National Academy for State Health Policy (NASHP), a nonprofit and nonpartisan organization committed to improving the health and well-being of all people across every state. At NASHP, Hemi leads an organization that is at the forefront of engaging state leaders and bringing together partners to develop and advance state health policy innovations. Under her direction, NASHP is leading efforts with states in areas including state COVID-19 recovery, health care costs and value, coverage, child and family health, aging, family caregiving, health care workforce, behavioral health, social drivers of health and equity, and public health modernization. Previously, Hemi worked at the Duke-Margolis Center for Health Policy as a senior fellow and served as the director of the Health Division at the National Governors Association’s Center for Best Practices. She also served as senior attorney for the Office of the General Counsel at the U.S. Government Accountability Office addressing Medicaid and related health care topics for members of Congress. She holds a JD from George Washington University, an MPH from George Washington University, and a BA in Psychology, University of Pennsylvania.
Ann Vermillion
Regional Lead, State Government Affairs
Novo Nordisk
Ann covers state policy and government affairs for KY, TN, IN, MO, SD, ND & MT. Prior to joining the Novo Nordisk team, Ann served as a State Representative for the Indiana General Assembly, authoring nearly $1.2B in commitments to public health and health disparities for Hoosiers during her time as a legislator. Ann also brings knowledge from her over 20 years in healthcare and hospital administration.
Senior Program Director of Population & Public Health
National Academy for State Health Policy
Sandra Wilkniss, PhD serves as NASHP’s Senior Program Director of Population and Public Health where she directs programs focused on public health, health system performance and health reform; vulnerable populations and equity; social determinants of health; care coordination; quality of care; and performance measurement. Prior to joining NASHP, she served as Director of Complex Care Policy and Senior Fellow at Families USA. In that role, she led the organizations’ national project on state approaches to equitable distribution of COVID-19 vaccine, collaborating with a broad network of national and state partners, as well as projects on behavioral health integration, and cost and value in health system with a special focus on prescription drug policies. Before that, she spent six years as a Program Director at the National Governors Association Center for Best Practices, advising governors and their senior staff on a variety of issues including: COVID-19 response, behavioral health, social determinants of health, addressing complex care populations in health delivery and payment reform, health as housing and cross-sector strategies in meeting the needs of children, youth and families. She also spent three years in the United States Senate as Senior Legislative Assistant in Health Care to Senators Bingaman and Heinrich, beginning as an American Academy for the Advancement of Science/American Psychological Association fellow in Senator Bingaman’s office. Sandra is a clinical psychologist by training, held faculty appointments at Dartmouth Medical College, University of Illinois at Chicago, and Weil Cornell Medical Center, and was the director of Thresholds Institute, the research and training arm of Thresholds, Chicago’s largest psychosocial rehabilitation organization.
Alexa Wohrman
Senior Advocacy Advisor for Food is Medicine
American Health Association
Alexa Wohrman is the Senior Advocacy Advisor, State for the American Heart Association’s (AHA) Health Care by Food initiative. Prior to this role, Alexa served as Senior Community Advocacy Advisor for the AHA, providing technical assistance and support to AHA’s Government Relations team leading campaigns across 10 states in the Western region of the country. Alexa is a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist and before coming to the AHA, provided medical nutrition therapy in a variety of healthcare settings. She managed public health and nutrition programs for low-income school districts with the Orange County Department of Education in California and worked on public policy advocacy campaigns with the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. She has a Master’s in nutrition science and policy from Tufts University and a Bachelor of Science in nutrition.
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