Maria Alexander Maria Alexander is the Senior Director of Government Channels for Mount Sinai Health System, where she oversees Mount Sinai’s participation in the Medicare Shared Savings Program and advises on other government payer programs and policy. Prior to joining Mount Sinai in 2018, Maria spent six years at the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), most recently as a Division Director in the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Innovation (CMMI). During her time at CMS, Maria helped develop the Pioneer ACO Model, the Comprehensive ESRD Care Model, and worked on several initiatives focused on dual eligible populations. Maria holds a BA from Tufts University.
Travis Broome Travis Broome is the senior vice-president of policy and economics at Aledade, Inc. He guides Aledade and partner physicians through the policy, strategy and economics of value based health care. Joining Aledade shortly after its start, he worked on nearly every aspect from business development for both practices and payers, to early analytics, to serving as an ACO executive director for Aledade Louisiana ACO. Prior to Aledade, he spent seven years at the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services in roles ranging from regulation writing to quality improvement to management. Mr. Broome earned his masters of public health and business administration from the University of Alabama at Birmingham.
Emily Brower Emily Brower serves as senior vice president of clinical integration and physician services for Trinity Health, one of the largest multi-institutional Catholic health care delivery systems in the nation, serving more than 30 million people across 22 states. In this role, she provides leadership and strategic direction within the evolving accountable healthcare environment, with an emphasis on clinical integration and transformation under alternative payment models. Ms. Brower joined Trinity Health from Atrius Health, where she last served as vice president of population health, building and executing the essential capabilities required to achieve strong financial and clinical outcomes within integrated care models under value-based reimbursement, particularly for publicly insured populations. Her Medicare ACO team delivered year over year improvement in cost and quality, and the highest per-capita savings in an independent evaluation of the Pioneer model. Prior to Atrius Health, Ms. Brower spent fifteen years in operational, financial, and contracting leadership roles at Urban Medical Group, a Massachusetts non-profit healthcare organization specializing in the care of medically complex, chronically ill populations across a community-based, long-term care continuum. During that time, she launched a PACE program and other innovative, capitated contracts for medically complex populations and served as Principal Investigator for a multi-year research project analyzing cost and quality outcomes to support payment reform. Ms. Brower received her BA from Smith College and MBA from the New York University Stern School of Business.
Sean Cavanaugh Sean Cavanaugh is the Chief Commercial Officer and Chief Policy Officer at Aledade. Founded in 2014, Aledade partners with independent practices, health centers, and clinics to build and lead Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs) anchored in primary care. Through these practice networks, Aledade empowers physicians to stay independent, focus on their patients, and thrive financially by keeping people healthy. Sean has previously served as the Deputy Administrator and Director of the Center for Medicare at the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. He was responsible for overseeing the regulation and payment of Medicare fee-for-service providers, privately-administered Medicare health plans, and the Medicare prescription drug program. Previously Sean was the Deputy Director for Programs and Policy in the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation, where he was responsible for overseeing the development and testing of new payment and service delivery models, including ACOs and medical homes. Prior to that, Sean was Director of Health Care Finance at the United Hospital Fund. He has also served in senior positions at Lutheran Healthcare, the New York City Mayor's Office of Health Insurance Access, and the Maryland Health Services Cost Review Commission. He attended the University of Pennsylvania and the Johns Hopkins School of Hygiene and Public Health.
Greg Dadlez Greg is charged with driving Ochsner Health and its partners to maximize performance on value based agreements representing over $2B in spend annually. He works with clinical and operations leaders to develop and scale projects impacting cost, utilization, quality and risk optimization across Ochsner Health Network. Greg leads the strategic program management, business analysis and practice performance advisory teams. Greg has been at Ochsner for over 9 years. Starting as an administrative fellow, Greg has served in many roles across Ochsner Health ranging from clinic operations through clinical integration. Most recently Greg served as the director of operations for Ochsner Accountable Care Network and medical action planning analytics for Ochsner Health Network. Greg received his master's degree in health administration from Virginia Commonwealth University.
Rick Foerster Rick Foerster leads Privia Health's national Value-Based Care and Population Health strategy and operations, one of the most successful Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs) in the country. He is responsible for performance in all value-based care programs, including Medicare Advantage, Medicare, Commercial, and Medicaid, across over 750,000 patient lives. Rick was one of Privia's first employees and helped the company grow to what it is today. He has led teams across the company including Implementation, Operations, Customer Service, Training, Communications, and Strategy. Prior to Privia, Rick was a consultant at Mercer advising clients in the strategic planning and implementation of their health and welfare benefits for their employees. Rick is a graduate of the University of Richmond, where he earned his bachelor’s degree in Political Science.
Mark Gwynne President and Executive Medical Director for UNC Health Alliance, University of North Carolina's Clinically Integrated Network of over 6000 employed and independent providers and 14 hospitals, Next Generation and MSSP Accountable Care Organizations, and Population Health Services Organization. Dr. Gwynne brings experience developing high value clinically integrated networks and data driven, value-based care delivery to complex patients across diverse geographic regions which have generated over $100M in new value revenue over the past three years. Dr. Gwynne is particularly interested in new alternative payment models designed to address the key driver of health outcomes, minimize health disparities and control costs across populations. He has significant experience in effectively integrating care between healthcare settings including ambulatory providers, hospital systems, post-acute partners and community-based organizations.
Board-certified in Family Medicine, Dr. Gwynne continues his patient care in the office and hospital and serves as an Associate Professor of Family Medicine at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine. He completed his residency and fellowship in Family Medicine and faculty development at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill where he remains on faculty.
Kathy Harris Kathy Harris is the ACO Executive Director for Equality Health Direct (EHD), a REACH ACO based in Phoenix, AZ. Kathy has over 30 years of experience in various operational and leadership roles for Medicare and Medicaid managed care plans in the Arizona market. Kathy’s ACO experience began in 2012 when she joined Banner Health Network where she oversaw a variety of Alternative Payment Models including Pioneer ACO, MSSP in three markets, Bundled Payment Comprehensive Initiative (original and plus), Comprehensive Primary Care (original and plus), Primary Care First, Oncology Care Model, Comprehensive ESRD Care and Kidney Care First. Additionally, Kathy has experience in managing the network’s success in value-based contracts with commercial payers, including Medicare Advantage, Medicaid, Employer insurance and Marketplace. Kathy holds a bachelor’s degree in business management.
Jessica Hohman Jessica Hohman, MD, MSc, MSc is a primary care physician in the Department of Internal Medicine. She also serves as President and Medical Director of the Cleveland Clinic Medicare Accountable Care Organization. In this capacity, Dr. Hohman oversees over 90,000 beneficiaries, with a particular focus on designing interventions to improve healthcare quality and value. She has led a portfolio of population health programs—including the development of a data-driven utilization management program for high-cost, high-need patients, the creation of a high-intensity home-based rehabilitation program to provide a post-acute care alternative to facility-based care, and the design of tools to reduce low-value care and improve end-of-life care for patients as part of Value-Based Operations. Dr. Hohman is also a physician investigator in the Center for Value-Based Care Research. She has presented at national meetings and co-authored publications on health IT, telemedicine, healthcare financing, and post-acute care. She maintains an active clinical practice, seeing both outpatients and inpatients and is involved with the teaching and mentorship of Case Western and Cleveland Clinic Lerner School of Medicine students and residents. Previously, Dr. Hohman served as the co-founder and Chief Medical Officer of CarePort Health (now a WellSky subsidiary), an end-to-end platform managing patient transitions across the care continuum and early pioneer in post-acute outcomes management. Her prior work experience spans health technology, academic, and governmental sectors, including positions at LSE Health, the Massachusetts Health Connector, and Michael Porter’s Institute for Strategy and Competitiveness based at Harvard Business School. Her co-authored studies of value-based initiatives were published in the Harvard Business Review and are used as core teaching materials in Harvard Business School’s healthcare curriculum.
A native of Akron, Ohio, Dr. Hohman attended Miami University on a full academic scholarship. There she graduated Summa Cum Laude with degrees in history and chemistry. She subsequently earned an MSc Health Policy, Planning, and Financing and an MSc Social Research Methods (Health Economics) as a Marshall Scholar at the London School of Economics. Dr. Hohman graduated from Harvard Medical School and completed Internal Medicine-Primary Care residency at UCSF followed by General Internal Medicine Fellowship at Harvard. She was recently elected to serve a three-year term on the Alumni Council of Harvard Medical School.
Gary Jacobs Gary Jacobs is the Executive Director of the VillageMD Center for Public Policy. He is a seasoned health care executive with a wide breadth of experience in the government’s market and a concentration on Medicare Advantage, Medicaid, Medicare Supplement, long term care, public and private exchanges, individual products and payer/provider collaborations. He has a successful history of developing, selling, and acquiring health care companies. Recognized for quickly assessing the big picture and implementing workable plans to increase revenue and profitability targets, Gary has a keen understanding of public policy and its role in influencing a program’s profitability and ultimate success.
Natasha Jivani Natasha Jivani, Director in Population Health is the MSSP lead across the CommonSpirit Health Enterprise. She launched Dignity Health’s three initial MSSP ACOs in 2017 and set up a new ACO for the organization under Pathways. She partners with the Care Coordination, Data Analytics, and Quality teams to manage the operational, and financial ROI of value-based initiatives. In addition, she identifies strategic opportunities in the Medicare and commercial contracting space to deepen CommonSpirit’s participation in value-based payment models.
Prior to her work at CommonSpirit, She was a Manager at Avalere Health, based in Washington, D.C., where she provided strategic and analytical support to a range of clients including health systems, health plans, health technology vendors, and life sciences companies related to the Affordable Care Act and the broader shift to value-based care. At Avalere, she also conducted quantitative and qualitative analyses to inform policy positions for clients on new payment and delivery models (e.g., accountable care organizations, bundled payment), health information technology, exchanges, and Medicare and Medicaid reimbursement and facilitated annual advocacy planning sessions for provider and plan clients, identifying priority issues based on feasibility of change, political environment, and financial impact. Natasha also interned at CMS prior to Avalere, where she served as a member of the national Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) Eligibility Expansion Team, supporting state efforts to update eligibility determination and enrollment processes.
Thomas H Kloos Thomas H. Kloos, MD, is Vice President Atlantic Health System, President of the Atlantic ACO and executive director of the Atlantic Health MSO, a management services organization which supplies management services to both the Atlantic ACO and Optimus Healthcare Partners ACO. The two ACO's serve both the MSSP program and commercial relationships and encompass over 76,000 attributed Medicare beneficiaries and over 370,000 commercial attributed beneficiaries Over 30%% of those beneficiaries are in at-risk contracts. Both ACO’s have been in the MSSP programs since inception. He was a NAACOS board member and past chair. He is a board member of Optimus Healthcare Partners, a physician established ACO. He has served as past president and medical director of Vista Health System IPA. Dr. Kloos is a board-certified internal medicine practitioner and has been a NCQA recognized level 3 Patient Centered Medical Home (PCMH). He graduated from the University of Louisville Medical School in 1979 and from Rutgers University in 1975.
Jessica Landin As Chief Operations Officer, Evolent Care Partners, Jessica is responsible for operations strategy and performance (including clinical operations, payer partnerships, governance and network engagement), for Evolent’s business unit focused on partnerships with independent provider groups/IPAs transitioning to value-based care. During her nearly six years at Evolent, Jessica has led operations and payer partnerships for a 1,000+ provider, a 230,000 life multi-payer Clinically Integrated Network (CIN) and Accountable Care Organization that generated nearly $100M in savings over 5 years. Jessica has also contributed to the implementation of innovative programs and development of best practices across Evolent’s Value-Based Services division.
Prior to joining Evolent, Jessica spent 10 years focused on improving health care quality and adoption of evidence-based medicine, reducing unnecessary costs, establishing strategic partnerships, and driving patient value in various leadership roles with a national provider-led organization and a regional 15-hospital collaborative. Jessica has partnered directly with physicians and other clinicians throughout her career to build effective collaborations, reduce barriers and improve quality of care. She earned her Master of Healthcare Administration and B.A. in Journalism from The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and is a Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives.
Jessica Martensen Jessica Martensen is the Vice President of Population Care Management for Essentia Health. She is responsible for the development and oversight of care management programs for over 180,000 beneficiaries throughout Minnesota, North Dakota, and Wisconsin.
She has a broad range of nursing leadership experience spanning ambulatory, public health, and post-acute settings and is passionate about quality, patient safety, and operational efficiency.
Growing up in North Dakota, she has a special interest in rural healthcare and promoting health equity.
Jessica graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing and a Bachelor of Art in Spanish from Dickinson State University, Dickinson, ND. She has her Master’s in Business Administration in Rural Healthcare from the College of St. Scholastica, Duluth, MN, and is a Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives.
Melanie Matthews Melanie Matthews is the dynamic, creative and innovative CEO at Physicians of Southwest Washington (PSW) and president at MultiCare Connected Care. She brings more than 20 years of operations, financial, human resources and product marketing experience in health care services for specialty populations. Her passion for public policy and engaging legislatures has propelled her as the “voice” of physician health policies. Since she joined the company in 2016, Ms. Matthews has maintained the core principals in which PSW was founded on and expanded business lines to include MSO services including credentialing, coding and compliance and the implementation of CMMI innovation models such as the Next Generation ACO. Her extensive knowledge in post-acute care provides strategic focus in reducing overall cost of care as well as provider and beneficiary engagement.
Prior to PSW, Ms. Matthews served for three years as vice president of operations for Prestige Care, Inc., where she was responsible for regulatory and financial operations and outcomes for 38 skilled nursing facilities and two Medicare home health agencies in a four-state northwest region. Among her other accomplishments, she serves as co-chair for APG – Risk Evolution Taskforce, was selected by the American Health Care Association as a "National Political Ambassador" in 2013, and was named a national “Future Leader” in 2012. Ms. Matthews holds a master of science, social gerontology, degree from Central Missouri State University and a bachelor’s degree in human development and family studies from Pennsylvania State University.
Steven Miracle Steven Miracle is currently the Chief Executive Officer for Georgia Mountains Health Services, Inc. a Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) with offices in the Appalachian Mountains Region of rural north Georgia. All locations of the organization are designated by NCQA as a Patient Centered Medical Home (Level As CEO, Mr. Miracle has guided the growth of the organization through acquisitions and the start up of new access points. In addition, under his leadership the organization pioneered an ER Diversion Demonstration Project in conjunction with a hospital partner and began a Rural Health WorkForce Development Project in conjunction with a Georgia medical school.
In 2015 Mr. Miracle became Chair of the Management Committee for the ACC of Georgia at its inception and continues in that position. ACC of Georgia is an FQHC based ACO with in the state of Georgia.
Prior to joining Georgia Mountains Health, Mr. Miracle served in executive positions with a regional PPO and a multi state medical practice. As an entrepreneur, Mr. Miracle has founded or co-founded several health care companies including a physician practice management company which was acquired by a publicly traded medical practice billing company. Early in his health care career, Mr. Miracle served as Chief Financial Officer of a rural hospital. Mr. Miracle currently serves as the Chair of the North Georgia Mountains Crises Network and as a volunteer with his Church.
Sandy Nesin Sandy Nesin, Esq. serves as the chief operating officer for Community Care Partnership of Maine (CCPM) and vice president of operations at St. Joseph Healthcare. Ms. Nesin joined St. Joseph Healthcare in May of 2016 and CCPM shortly thereafter. In addition to these role, Ms. Nesin also serves as the interim chief executive officer for the Schmidt Institute, a research and innovation engine focused on the development and spread of innovative, research-based models of care supporting rural populations across the healthcare continuum. A graduate of the University of Maine (B.A), and the University of Maine School of Law (J.D.), Sandy has experience working in both health care and health insurance operations.
Stephen Nuckolls Stephen Nuckolls is the chief executive officer of Coastal Carolina Health Care, PA, and their ACO, Coastal Carolina Quality Care, Inc. His responsibilities include the direct management of the 60 provider multi-specialty physician-owned medical practice and its ACO. They currently participate in the MSSP’s Enhanced Track and have value based contracts with Medicare advantage as well as commercial plans. The group has a large primary care base and their operations include an Ambulatory Surgery Center (GI Endoscopy), Sleep Lab, Urgent Care, and Imaging Center and 13 other practice locations. Mr. Nuckolls facilitated the formation of the group in 1997 and has served in his current role since that time. Prior to the formation of this organization, Mr. Nuckolls helped guide physicians and integrated hospital organizations in the formation of larger systems.
Mr. Nuckolls earned his BA in Economics from Davidson College and his MAC from UNC’s Kenan-Flagler Business School. He is a founding member of the National Association of ACOs and served in a number of roles on the executive committee including board chair from 2016-2017. In addition to these responsibilities he serves on the board of Community Care of NC as well as several advisory boards and committees for the North Carolina Medical Society and is a frequent speaker on ACOs and related topics.
Kathy Parsons Kathy Parsons serves as the Executive Director for the Central Minnesota ACO as well as serving as the Vice President of Population Health for CentraCare. The Central Minnesota ACO serves a combination of small metro and rural populations and includes four health systems in the Medicare Basic Track E program. Kathy has a strong focus and passion around how to succeed in value-based care in rural communities. As the Vice President of Population Health for CentraCare, Kathy is responsible for the strategic and operational initiatives to create success in its value-based contracts, which include Medicaid, Commercial and Medicare Advantage contracts. In addition to focusing on internal strategy to drive improvement, Kathy is also responsible for several strategic programs including a Coordinated Care Clinic for high risk/high needs populations, Correctional Care services, Occupational/Employer Medicine, and Community Wellness at CentraCare. Recognizing the importance of community initiatives that impact health and outcomes, Kathy is involved in community collaborations including serving on the St. Cloud Mental Health Steering Committee and the Stearns County Human Trafficking Task Force. Kathy earned both her BA and her Master of Hospital Administration degrees from the University of Michigan, and she also holds an MBA from St. Cloud State University.
Melissa Pollock Melissa Pollock is Director of ACO Compliance and Regulatory Affairs for CHESS Health Solutions. With over nine years of experience in value-based health care compliance, Melissa is the Compliance Official for CHESS’s Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs), and has extensive knowledge and experience related to the formation and management of Medicare ACOs. As part of her role, Melissa serves as the CHESS liaison to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), and reviews regulations and educates on the changing value-based care policy landscape. Melissa continues to participate with value-based care trade associations and serve in advocacy efforts to help inform value-based policy making based on CHESS experience and perspective, at both the state and federal level. Prior to joining CHESS, Melissa was responsible for compliance, privacy, and security training initiatives and policy development at Cornerstone Health Care, now Wake Forest Health Network. Melissa holds degrees in Mathematics/Economics and Spanish from Furman University and a Master of Divinity from Regent University.
Kelli Todd Kelli Todd is the ACO Director of Government Programs for UnityPoint Accountable Care (UAC) ACO. Based in Des Moines, Iowa, Kelli sets the strategic vision for the ACO’s government programs and provides day to day leadership and operational management. She brings over 15 years’ experience in both public and private sectors and an expertise in Medicaid, managed care, rural health, insurance exchanges, long-term services and supports, and global health. Kelli previously served as CEO of the Iowa Chiropractic Society setting the vision for the organization with the board and leading overall business strategy. Kelli also led development efforts for the Iowa Healthcare Collaborative, directing strategic visioning, partnership development, and revenue generation. As Iowa transitioned its Medicaid program to managed care, Kelli led the development of the state’s Medicaid Managed Care Ombudsman program, and successfully updated state rules and regulations and resolved operational issues to better serve the state and Medicaid members. She has experience advising state agencies across the country on health care reform policy implementation relating to state-based health insurance exchanges and Medicaid modernization projects.
Kelli is involved with several local organizations including serving as President for the Iowa Rural Health Association and contributes globally as a health care consultant for the Nepal Ministry of Health and One Heart Worldwide nongovernmental organization. She is a former State Commissioner on the Iowa College Student Aid Commission and has been nationally recognized as a candidate for the White House Fellowship Program, selected as a David A. Winston scholar and has received various state and federal competitive awards.
She holds a Master of Public Health degree in policy from the University of Iowa and a Master of Health Care Delivery Science degree from Dartmouth.
David Tyson David Tyson serves as the Director of Policy & Regulatory Affairs for Novant Health, where he leads the analysis of state and federal regulations and policies impacting the system’s hospitals, medical group, and value-based programs and contracts. Novant Health is a four-state integrated network of more than 2,400 physicians and over 37,000 employees that provide care at more than 800 locations, including 18 medical centers and hundreds of outpatient facilities and physician clinics. David works with providers and system leaders to develop organizational and operational strategies to adapt to an ever-changing regulatory landscape, particularly in the area of value-based care. His particular areas of expertise include the Medicare Access & CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015 (MACRA) and the Quality Payment Program (QPP), the Medicare Shared Savings Program (MSSP) and Pathways to Success regulations, and provider reimbursement under Medicare Part B. David received his master’s degree from Appalachian State University and holds an undergraduate degree from North Carolina State University.
Jessica Walradt Jessica leads advocacy, implementation and performance management for Northwestern Medicine’s Reimbursement Reform Portfolio including all governmental and commercial value based programs and contracts. Prior to this, she led the Association of American Medical Colleges' policy, advocacy, and data analytic efforts surrounding alternative payment models. She directly supported approximately 60 hospitals’ and provider groups’ efforts to implement Medicare bundled payment programs. Jessica holds an MS in Health Policy and Management from the Harvard School of Public Health and a BA in Political Science from the University of Richmond.
Jessica leads advocacy, implementation and performance management for Northwestern Medicine’s Reimbursement Reform Portfolio including all governmental and commercial value based programs and contracts. Prior to this, she led the Association of American Medical Colleges' policy, advocacy, and data analytic efforts surrounding alternative payment models. She directly supported approximately 60 hospitals’ and provider groups’ efforts to implement Medicare bundled payment programs. Jessica holds an MS in Health Policy and Management from the Harvard School of Public Health and a BA in Political Science from the University of Richmond.
Spenser Weppler Spenser Joined OneCare in 2016 and is currently a Senior ACO Policy Administrator. He worked closely with leadership to help begin the transition from the Medicare Shared Savings Program to the Modified Medicare Next Generation ACO program under the Vermont All Payer Model. He also helped coordinate the Readiness Review and operationalization of the Vermont Medicaid Next Generation Program launched in 2017. Additionally given his previous background in Healthcare Regulation working for the State, he helped coordinate the ACO budget and certification submission process as required by Green Mountain Care Board (Vermont’s Health Care Regulatory Body). He monitors and works closely monitoring and tracking the State legislative processes and any policy/legislation that affects ACO’s, in Vermont.
Before joining OneCare Spenser worked for the State of Vermont for 12 years, first at the Banking, Insurance, Securities and Healthcare Administration (BISHCA), and then at the Green Mountain Care Board (GMCB). While at the GMCB he worked with the State Director for Healthcare Reform helping design and implement various healthcare payment reform models including the Shared Savings ACO programs for Medicaid and Commercial Payers in VT, which were launched in 2014. He was involved in the initial stages of development for the Vermont All Payer Model while at the GMCB before joining OneCare.
Spenser was born and raised in Vermont, and holds a BA from Bowdoin College and MPH with a focus on Healthcare Administration from Boston University. He lives in Williston with his wife and his two young daughters. In his free time he spends time outside with his daughters, skiing, biking and swimming.
Louise Yinug Louise Yinug serves as Senior Policy Analyst at Caravan Health, where she develops and steers messaging on federal policy issues such as Medicare payment, prescription drug pricing, and rural health. In this capacity, she works closely with Caravan’s senior leadership to set the policy agenda and federal affairs strategy for the company. Before joining Caravan, Louise managed a research team at the Congressional Research Service, providing information and analysis to the Congress about executive branch operations. Prior to her time at CRS, she was a senior health policy analyst at the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, where she worked to implement the Affordable Care Act for the Federal Employee Health Benefits Program. She started her federal career at the White House Office of Management and Budget, where she developed policy proposals, tracked legislation, and advised senior agency officials about Medicaid, CHIP, labor, and federal personnel issues.
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