Guest Speakers

Mr. Goldberg is an Operating Partner of Arsenal where he focuses on networking and sourcing transactions for the healthcare team. Prior to joining Arsenal in 2014, Mr. Goldberg was a Managing Director, Corporate Development of Endo Pharmaceuticals. Previously, he was a founding Partner of ProQuest Investments and the founding CEO or founder of three biotechnology companies that were acquired or taken public. In addition, he also held executive positions at Becton Dickinson and at GSK. He received his M.B.A. from Harvard Business School and B.A. from Harvard College.

Douglas is a leader in accelerating growth of digital and biohealth companies through innovative business development that delivers value and results. As an entrepreneur and intrapreneur he has crafted innovative solutions using technology, process improvement and human ingenuity. He is a thought leader in digital therapeutics, population health and precision health. He is the author of 11 books health and technology and delivered over 300 talks and workshops for leading health and life sciences organizations. Recently, Doug served as the AVP and Innovation Officer for the Inova Center for Personalized Health where he led the development of new value and outcome based clinical and business relationships with global life sciences and medical device companies. The Inova Center for Personalized Health is 117 acre campus on the Washington DC beltway that is being transformed into a translational research, drug discovery and innovation center.

Jocelyn Guyer provides policy analysis, strategic advice and technical support to states, foundations and a range of other clients on delivery system reform, Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) with a particular focus in recent years on behavioral health issues.

With decades of health policy work, Jocelyn possesses a nuanced perspective on a variety of policy, regulatory and legal issues. She has done work for the American Medical Association, the American Association for Addiction Medicine, the American Academy of Pediatrics, and numerous states and foundations, among other clients.

Prior to joining Manatt, Jocelyn was a founding member and co-executive director of the Center for Children and Families (CCF), a health policy center at Georgetown University. She provided advice to national policymakers and advocates on health policy and safety net programs. Jocelyn managed CCF’s review of federal health reform regulations and its annual 50-state survey on Medicaid and CHIP eligibility rules. During her tenure as a senior researcher at Georgetown University, Jocelyn helped Maryland implement the Affordable Care Act and establish its marketplace.

As an associate director with the Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured, Jocelyn analyzed issues in health care for vulnerable Americans, including Medicaid waivers, the implications of the Medicare Part D drug benefit for impoverished seniors and people with disabilities, and the expected impact of transforming the financing of Medicaid.

At the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, Jocelyn assisted states and advocates with implementing family-based coverage expansions, advised congressional offices on creation of CHIP initiatives, and designed policy initiatives to link Medicaid and other social supports. She also served as a legislative research assistant to the late Sen. Daniel Patrick Moynihan (D-NY).

Throughout her career, Jocelyn has been a speaker at national gatherings of state officials, provider organizations, advocacy groups and foundations. She has presented to members of Congress, as well as state and local officials, on the future of children’s coverage, transforming Medicaid, addressing social drivers of health, mental health, and substance use disorder issues.

Darryn specialises in information law in the health sector, including data protection, confidentiality and freedom of information.

He has over 7 years’ experience advising clients in the health and care and wider public sectors. His key clients include medtech and digital health companies, NHS commissioners and providers, independent operators of health and social care, higher education institutions and regulators.

Darryn’s experience includes, advising large public and private healthcare organisations on their GDPR-implementation programme, conducting data protection gap analysis exercises, and defending data breach litigation.

He is also regularly instructed in important strategic projects, such as recent patient information sharing arrangements across Berkshire, North Central London, and South East London. In addition, he has previously advised the Information Commissioner on health-sector specific aspects of information and public law.

Relevant experience includes:

Advising the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority on complex data protection issues, arising out of transfers of personal data required as a result of a change in service provision.
Defending information law claims brought against public authorities, including data breaches and appeals against Freedom of Information Act decisions (including FOI appeals to the First-tier Tribunal).
Advising on a complex data sharing framework required to support a higher education data analytics provider merger.

As the former HHS Task Force Director, Mia led the nation-wide effort to promote free-market, pro-patient health care reforms at the state level. In her immediate past position she served as an executive at a Texas-based child and family services provider, where she led the strategic planning and program development efforts for the agency.

From serving as a former presidential appointee at the US Department of Health and Human Services, to her work contributing to leveraging resources in the design of community based models of care for at risk populations, Mia’s experience shows her early and lifetime commitment to furthering free market principles in government in the spheres of health and human services.

A proud Texan, Mia holds a Bachelor of Arts in Government from the University of Texas at Austin; she then later earned a Healthcare MBA from George Washington University in Washington, DC. In her spare time Mia follows trends in home design, catching up with friends and family and listening to classical music.

Matt is Professional Staff Member at the Ways & Means Committee’s Health Subcommittee, where he advises Chairman Jason Smith (R-MO) and Committee Members on Medicare Parts A and B and leads Chairman Smith’s rural health care access initiative. Matt is a native of Sioux City, Iowa and earned undergraduate and graduate degrees from the University of South Dakota. He began his career in 2011 at the Ways & Means Committee. After four years at the Committee, he joined the Office of then-Representative Kristi Noem (R-SD), who was a member of the Committee. After Rep. Noem left Congress, Matt served as Senior Advisor to the Administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. Following his time in the administration, Matt briefly left public service to join multinational law firm Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP, where he consulted and lobbied for a range of clients. Matt rejoined Rep. Smith’s Ways & Means Committee staff in 2023. He resides in Alexandria, VA with his wife and three young children.

Kendall Hussey is a Manatt Health Senior Advisor with extensive health policy and strategic advocacy experience in the legislative and regulatory health care arenas.

Kendall works on key issues across the health care industry and advises clients on legislative and regulatory developments that may influence business interests and decisions. She assists with the research, development and implementation of legislative strategies for her clients and advocates on behalf of clients in congressional lobbying efforts, including coalitions of health care providers, medical professionals, patient advocates and other stakeholders. Kendall has helped clients navigate the complex annual federal appropriations process and has also worked on and negotiated various aspects of major health care bills in the past decade, as well as regulations that have come from them.

Prior to joining Manatt, Kendall worked for U.S. Senator Richard Burr on the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions committee, assisting the Subcommittee on Bioterrorism and Public Health Preparedness in the development and passage of the Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness Act (P.L. 109-417), along with preparation and coordination of hearings and markups, performing research on various legislative projects, and meeting with constituents and stakeholders on health policy issues. She has prepared Congressional hearings and roundtables with U.S. Senators, federal and state government officials, and private and public health representatives to discuss biodefense and public health preparedness issues, as well as other legislative opportunities. Prior to her work in the Senate, she worked at a Washington-based government relations firm that assists trade associations, companies, cities and universities in their dealings with the federal government.

Charlotte Ivancic joined Tarplin, Downs & Young, LLC in 2015 as a partner after more than a decade on Capitol Hill serving as a health care policy advisor to members of the United States Senate and United States House of Representatives. She worked for Senator Bill Frist during his time as a Majority Leader, and more recently for Speaker Paul Ryan and Speaker John Boehner. Charlotte was instrumental in developing Speaker Ryan’s Medicare proposals while he was Chairman of the House Budget Committee. Later, she lead the effort to secure passage of historic legislation to repeal Medicare’s sustainable growth rate physician payment formula and replace it with a new payment system that rewards quality. Before working for Congress, Charlotte was a health care attorney in a D.C. regulatory practice. She also worked at Children’s Hospital in Boston prior to attending law school at Boston University, where she concentrated in health law.

Katie Keith served as the deputy assistant to the president and deputy director of the White House Gender Policy Council. In her role, she oversees the Council’s domestic policy portfolio, including issues related to health, economic security, and education. Established in 2021 by President Biden, the White House Gender Policy Council advanced gender equity and gender equality in domestic and foreign policy.

Keith was the founding director of the Health Policy and the Law Initiative at the O’Neill Institute. Her work focuses on providing technical assistance for policymakers and public education on health policy legal issues with an emphasis on access to coverage, affordability, transparency, and equity.

Prior to her service, Keith was also an associate research professor at Georgetown University’s Center on Health Insurance Reforms and provides “Following the ACA” rapid response analysis for Health Affairs where she is a contributing editor. She is an adjunct professor at the Georgetown University Law Center, where she teaches a course on the Affordable Care Act.

Keith is a co-founder of Out2Enroll, a national initiative to connect LGBTQ+ people with coverage options, and an appointed consumer representative to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners. Her analysis has been featured in national and state media outlets across the country, and her publications have appeared in the Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics, Health Affairs, and the Journal of Health Politics, Policy and Law, among others.

Prior to joining the O’Neill Institute, Keith served as faculty at the Center on Health Insurance Reforms, advised nonprofit and foundation clients on ways to secure state and federal health care priorities, and served as both an AmeriCorps program director in Las Vegas and as a Peace Corps volunteer in Ghana.

Keith received her J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center, her Master’s in Public Health from Johns Hopkins University, and her B.A. from the University of Texas at Austin.

Zsolt Kulcsar, DO, is a dedicated healthcare professional specializing in Telemedicine and Virtual Care. He received his medical education from New York College of Osteopathic Medicine and completed his internship at North Shore Long Island Jewish at Plainview Hospital. Dr. Kulcsar further honed his expertise through his residency at New York Presbyterian (NYP) Queens and a fellowship at Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center. With a focus on providing accessible and convenient healthcare services, Dr. Kulcsar offers high-quality care to a diverse range of patients, from infants to adults. He utilizes telemedicine to ensure that patients can access timely care from the comfort of their homes, prioritizing health management and preventive care. His broad experience enables him to deliver compassionate, patient-centered care in a virtual setting, helping individuals across different age groups improve their well-being.

Chiquita Brooks-LaSure is the former Administrator for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), where she will oversee programs including Medicare, Medicaid, the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), and the HealthCare.gov health insurance marketplace. She previously acted as the managing director at Manatt Health. Ms. Brooks-LaSure also served in the Obama administration at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) from 2010 to 2014, first as director of coverage policy in the Office of Health Reform and then as deputy center and policy director for the Center for Consumer Information and Insurance Oversight at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. She was a visiting scholar at Deakin University in Melbourne, Australia. Ms. Brooks-LaSure received her master of public policy degree from Georgetown University.

Jennifer Lav (she/her) is a Senior Attorney in the National Health Law Program’s D.C. office. Her work focuses on issues related to Medicaid, disability, home and community-based services and community-based mental health services, and federal health care reform. She also serves as the co-chair of the Consortium for Constituents with Disabilities Long Term Services and Supports Task Force.

Before joining the National Health Law Program, Jennifer was a staff attorney and then a managing attorney at Disability Rights D.C. at University Legal Services (DRDC), the Protection & Advocacy Program for the District of Columbia. While at DRDC, she supervised the agency’s mental health advocacy, focusing on increasing access to community-based services for youth and adults, investigating abuse and neglect in facilities, and protecting and expanding autonomy and choice for District residents with disabilities. She also served as class counsel in several longstanding cases against the District government, including Petties vs. District of Columbia, which reformed the delivery of education services to DC students with disabilities, and Brown v. District of Columbia, a case on behalf of nursing facility residents seeking to access Medicaid-funded community-based services and supports.

Prior to joining DRDC, Jennifer was a staff attorney at the Alabama Disabilities Advocacy Program (the Protection and Advocacy program for Alabama) and a clinical lecturer at the University of Alabama School of Law. Her work in Alabama focused on education, mental health services, juvenile justice, and Medicaid advocacy.

Jennifer received her B.A. from Hampshire College and her J.D. from Columbia Law School. Upon graduation, she clerked for Judge Myron H. Thompson, U.S. District Court, Middle District of Alabama, and was subsequently awarded the Bernstein Litowitz Berger & Grossmann LLP Postgraduate Fellowship in Civil Rights Law.

Kate is the President of Leone Strategies, and previously served the Staff Director for the U.S. Senate Democratic Steering and Outreach Committee. Prior to that, she was the senior vice president of government relations and a member of the Feeding America executive team. She served as general counsel for U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen’s (D-NH) office. Before that, she spent 12 years as the chief health counsel to Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid (D-NV). During her time with Senator Reid, Kate covered health care for the Leader and served as the lead staffer on health reform and the Affordable Care Act (ACA) — an act she played an instrumental role in shaping and passing in the Senate. Other reform legislation Kate led for Senator Reid includes the Children’s Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Amendments Act, and the FDA Safety and Innovations Act.

Kate has also served as counsel to the previous Senate Democratic Leader, Tom Daschle (D-SD), and worked as a senior policy advisor on the Senate Democratic Policy Committee. Her additional experience includes working on health care matters as an attorney for the U.S. Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division.

Craig Lipset (he/him/his) leads at the forefront of innovation in clinical research and medicine development. He is an advisor to technology and biopharmaceutical companies, leading universities, and the venture community, bringing vision and driving action at the intersection of research, digital solutions, and patient engagement. Craig was the Head of Clinical Innovation and Venture Partner at Pfizer, on the founding Operations Committee for TransCelerate Biopharma, and on the founding management teams for two successful startup ventures (Perceptive Informatics and Adnexus Therapeutics). During that time, Craig designed and launched multiple industry firsts — from the first fully remote/virtual clinical trial for a new medicine to the first returning of results and data to research participants.

He currently serves on the Board of Directors for the Decentralized Trials & Research Alliance (Co-Chair), Foundation for Sarcoidosis Research and the MedStar Health Research Institute, and, as well as on the Editorial Board for Therapeutic Innovation & Regulatory Science. Craig is an Adjunct Assistant Professor in Health Informatics at Rutgers University, and an Adjunct Instructor at the University of Rochester Center for Health + Technology.

Craig has received the red jacket ‘hall of fame’ recognition among the PharmaVOICE most inspiring people in the life sciences. He has been recognized among Pharmaceutical Executive’s Emerging Leaders, CenterWatch Top 20 Innovators in Clinical Trials, the Medicine Maker Power List and the AlleyWatch Who’s Who in eHealth. He studied Music at Brandeis University and earned a Master of Public Health from Columbia.

Cindy Long was the Administrator of USDA Food and Nutrition Service (FNS), appointed Sept. 13, 2021. Ms. Long previously served as the Deputy Administrator for FNS Child Nutrition Programs. She was responsible for all aspects of federal administration of the child nutrition programs, including the National School Lunch Program, School Breakfast Program, Child and Adult Care Food Program, Summer Food Service Program, and the Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program. In this role she has led FNS’ implementation of the most significant restructuring of these programs in a decade.

Ms. Long has also served FNS in other roles, including leadership of FNS regional offices and research and analysis initiatives in support of domestic nutrition assistance programs. She has vast experience in budget and appropriations issues, including several years with the Office of Management and Budget. She also has extensive experience in the private and nonprofit sectors.

Ms. Long has a MPA in public policy and economics from Princeton University’s School of Public and International Affairs, and a BA in economics from the University of Notre Dame. She has received numerous recognitions and awards, including multiple USDA Honor Awards.

Megan Hauck Marshall has spent her career shaping public policy and advising officials at the highest levels of government. She has developed a unique skill set combining in-depth knowledge of policy, Senate procedure, and the complex budget process.

Currently Megan is the Founding Partner of Red+Blue Strategies. Previously she launched Nathanson+Hauck. Red+Blue Strategies delivers a partner-focused approach and personal commitment to client’s issues.

Prior to launching Nathanson+Hauck, Megan served most recently as Health Policy Advisor to Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY). She worked directly with members of the Republican Conference to develop health policy addressing Medicare, Medicaid, and FDA reauthorization. Megan was the chief architect of the Senate Republican Conference strategy on the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010.

From 2005 to 2007, Megan served as a Special Assistant for Legislative Affairs to President George W. Bush. She advanced the President’s agenda on Capitol Hill with respect to legislation arising in the Senate Finance (health and welfare), Budget, Health Education Labor and Pensions, and Agriculture Committees, and guided several key appointees through the confirmation process.

During President Bush’s 2004 re-election campaign, Megan was Deputy Policy Director with responsibility for health policy. In addition to developing policy for the second term agenda and promoting the President’s health care accomplishments through media appearances, Megan assisted in the President’s debate preparation and staffed the RNC Platform Committee as it drafted the 2004 Republican Party Platform.

Megan’s executive branch service began in 2003, when she was named Deputy Assistant Secretary for Human Services Legislation at the Department of Health and Human Services where she worked with Congress on policies related to Medicaid, welfare, and private health insurance.

Before joining the Administration, Megan spent eight years in the office of Senator Don Nickles (R-OK), working on key health care legislation including the Patients’ Bill of Rights and the Medicare Modernization Act.

She is a graduate of James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Virginia.

Paul B. Masi is the Executive Director of the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC), a nonpartisan federal commission that advises the U.S. Congress on Medicare payment, quality, and access issues. Prior to his current role at MedPAC, Mr. Masi served as the Unit Chief of the Health Systems and Medicare Cost Estimates Unit at the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), where he led an analytic team in producing baseline projections of Medicare spending, estimating the federal budgetary effects of legislation affecting Medicare, and providing technical assistance on legislation under consideration by the Congress. Mr. Masi previously served as MedPAC’s assistant director, a principal analyst at the CBO, and a research associate at The Urban Institute. He earned an M.P.P. from the University of California at Berkeley and a B.A. in Economics from Davidson College.

Alison has advised clients on product liability and safety issues, especially in the healthcare sector, for over 25 years. She has acted in litigation brought under the Product Liability Directive for a large range of corporate defendants and their insurers.

She acted for the successful defendant in Relph v Yamaha, the first case in the UK under the Consumer Protection Act. She has been instructed by defendants in multi-party pharmaceutical and healthcare product liability litigation, including the coordination of the Hepatitis C group litigation for the National Health Service in A & Others v National Blood Authority. This resulted in the most substantive examination of the European Product Liability Directive to date.

Alison was instructed in respect of the Northwick Park Clinical Trial of TGN1412. She has acted for AstraZeneca in respect of insurance recoveries in the Seroquel litigation and for GSK in the MMR Vaccine litigation.

She has been involved in high profile trans-national litigation, including acting on behalf of Rio Tinto plc in the House of Lords case of Connelly. She has also acted in claims where defendant companies have faced legal challenges on jurisdiction and limitation, including the case of Brooks & Others v The Boots Company PLC.

Aside from litigation, Alison often advises on matters of product safety and regulation as well as product recall.

Alison regularly contributes articles and lectures on product liability law. She read Law at Oxford and Cambridge Universities.

Rose Mollitor is a seasoned healthcare policy and strategy leader with extensive experience in Medicare innovation, public policy, and government programs. As Executive Director of Medicare Product Innovation and Strategy at Aetna, a CVS Health Company, she leads efforts to enhance Medicare Advantage offerings and drive innovative healthcare solutions. Prior to Aetna, Rose held key roles at the White House Office of Management and Budget, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and the National Economic Council, shaping federal healthcare policy and strategic initiatives.

Viraj Narayanan is the Co-CEO of Cornerstone AI, and works alongside founder and co-CEO Michael Elasoff to scale its highly intelligent, automated software platform which has created unparalleled efficiencies while enabling confidence in the fidelity of data needed to answer critical scientific questions.

Prior to joining Cornerstone, Narayanan served as Chief Commercial Officer for Ontada, a McKesson business (NASDAQ: MCK). Under his leadership, they developed first-in-class capabilities to leverage unstructured data and a common data model to create new, higher value recurring products, including the initial commercial sales.

Previously, Narayanan served as the General Manager and Senior Vice President of the life sciences business at COTA, an oncology real-world data and analytics company. He led the scaling of COTA’s life sciences business from the ground up, bridging the gap between stakeholder needs, including the go-to-market strategy for the business unit. Under Narayanan’s leadership, COTA’s real-world data supported sponsors’ regulatory submissions, including an FDA approval in 2021 while achieving double digit growth consistently over 4 years.

Earlier in his career, Narayanan served as a Principal with Decision Strategies International, a Heidrick & Struggles Company (NASDAQ: HSII), as well as a research analyst at Centocor and for the University of Pennsylvania, focusing on natural language processing. He is the author of several thought leadership articles on the role of data in clinical research. Narayanan holds a B.S. in Decision Science from Carnegie Mellon University and an MBA from the Wharton School of Business.

Mindy Nunez Duffourc is an Assistant Professor of Law at Maastricht University in the Netherlands, where she conducts research and teaches as part of the Faculty of Private Law and the Maastricht Law and Tech Lab.

Mindy is also part of the Penn State Dickinson Law research team working on the EU-funded CLASSICA project, Validating AI in classifying cancer in real-time surgery. She researches in the area of comparative health law and technology. Her work has appeared in NPJ Digital Medicine, American Journal of Law and Medicine, Illinois Journal of Law, Technology & Policy, Tulane Journal of International and Comparative Law, Harvard International Law Review Blog, Indiana Health Law Review, and is forthcoming in Springer’s AI, LAW & BEYOND. She was previously an Assistant Professor of Lawyering at NYU and a Lecturer in civil procedure and health law at the University of Passau in Germany. She also served as an Alexander von Humboldt German Chancellor Fellow conducting comparative health law and risk management research and as a Joachim Herz Fellow at Bucerius Law School in Hamburg researching liability for AI in medicine.

Mindy received her J.D. from the University of North Carolina and subsequently practiced law for 12 years as a member of the bar in Illinois and Louisiana. She expects to defend her Ph.D. Dissertation, Liability for Negligent Risk Management in the United States and Germany, at the University of Passau in Summer 2023.

Wendell Primus was the Senior Policy Advisor on Health and Budget issues to Speaker Nancy Pelosi for 18 years. In that capacity, he was the lead House staffer in developing the Affordable Care Act. He also played a major role in the SGR legislation in 2015 and various budget agreements. The drug pricing legislation that was part of the Inflation Reduction Act was his proudest staff accomplishment. He also worked closely with Rep. Karen Bass on the Families First Child Welfare Act.

Prior to this appointment in March 2005, Dr. Primus was the Minority Staff Director at the Joint Economic Committee for two years. He also was Director of Income Security at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities where much of his work was centered on Unemployment Insurance. He served in the Clinton administration at the Department of Health and Human Services before his resignation. Prior to his appointment at HHS, he was Chief Economist for the House Ways and Means Committee and Staff Director for the Committee’s Subcommittee on Human Resources. At Ways and Means, he worked on the 1983 Social Security Amendments and numerous budget reconciliation bills affecting Medicare in the 1980s. He was also profiled in the New York Times for his work on the 1990 Budget agreement. Dr. Primus received his Ph.D. in economics from Iowa State University.

Rahul is Counselor for International Affairs at the U.S. Treasury Department, where he advises on a range of international financial and economic issues, including the International Monetary Fund and World Bank, G7 and G20, trade and investment, sustainability, and international financial regulation.

Before joining the Biden administration, Rahul was a Managing Director at Lazard in New York where he advised businesses, investors, and governments on a range of financial and strategic matters, including mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, capital markets, and related issues. His transaction experience spanned the intersection of healthcare, technology, and consumer/retail as well as that of markets and public policy. Rahul founded and led the firm’s special opportunities unit and advised on transactions representing over $200 billion in deal value.

Rahul also directed the Next Bretton Woods Group at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, a global convening forum for rising leaders in economic and financial policy across the G20 economies. Previously, he served as a staff economist for the Council of Economic Advisers at the Obama White House, a consultant for the World Bank, and an advisor to England’s Chief Medical Officer.

Rahul has been named a Truman Scholar, Forbes 30 under 30, Economic Club of New York Fellow, Atlantik-Brücke Young Leader, French-American Foundation Young Leader, BMW Foundation Responsible Leader, Council on Foreign Relations Corporate Leader, and one of Business Insider’s “top dealmakers in digital health,” and he has authored a range of articles, policy briefs, and book chapters on economic issues. He has also served on the board of the Schuyler Center for Analysis and Advocacy and the Lazard Foundation, and was an outside economic advisor for the Biden-Harris presidential campaign.

Rahul received graduate degrees from Oxford and the London School of Economics as a Marshall Scholar, and graduated summa cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa from Rice University with degrees in engineering and economics.

Erin Richardson is Chief of Staff in the Office of the Administrator. Erin joins CMS with a breadth of health policy experience in the federal government, on Capitol Hill, and in the private sector. She most recently held the role of Senior Vice President and Counsel at the Federation of American Hospitals. Prior to that, she served as Senior Policy Advisor at the White House Domestic Policy Council where she focused on Medicare and health information technology policy development and execution.

Alistair is a senior public lawyer with many years’ experience advising public and private sector bodies. His core practice covers public, regulatory and commercial matters, including:
-Defensible decision-making: For example Alistair regularly advises NHS clients on requirements as to reasonableness, consultation, equalities and governance in relation to service reorganisation. In the education sector, Alistair recently worked with Julian Gizzi to conduct a review for Ofsted into alleged inspection irregularities;
– Implementing organisational change: For example, Alistair advises Post Office Limited on all public law matters relating to its Network Transformation and Crown Transformation programmes;
– Avoiding, bringing and defending judicial review: In early 2016, Alistair had conduct for NHS England of R (Keep Wythenshawe Special Ltd) v NHS Central Manchester CCG and Ors [2016] EWHC17 (Admin);
– Information law, including complex FOI or subject access requests and related challenges to the Information Commissioner, in the First tier-Tribunal and in the courts;
– Defending or challenging public procurement decisions: Alistair acts for claimants and defendants in procurement litigation, recent clients including insurers, NHS bodies, pharmaceutical companies and housing associations – he regularly takes cases to the Technology and Construction Court, and has advised on appeals to Monitor under the health-specific legislation.

Alistair is an expert on the devolution agenda, spending seven months on secondment with NHS England,
advising exclusively on devolution, including:
– Working closely with Government lawyers on the Cities and Local Government Devolution Act 2016 as it passed through Parliament;
– Integral part of NHS England team working on Devo Manc programme;
– Helping shape NHS England’s approach to health and social care devolution;
– Gaining a deep understanding of the ways in which health and social care commissioners and providers can share functions and pool budgets using the new legislation;
– Gaining a thorough insight into the inner workings of NHS England.

He regularly advises on integrated health and social care projects, including a long relationship with North West London commissioners and providers, dating back to the Integrated Care Pilots in 2009 to the ongoing award-winning Whole Systems Integrated Care Programme.

In addition, Alistair has particular expertise in the information sharing arrangements required for integrated care programmes, having advised programmes in North West London, Lewisham and Greenwich, West Kent and Sutton amongst others.

As Chief Operating Officer & General Counsel, Louise leads legal, regulatory, risk, and tax affairs, oversees the execution of portfolio company transactions, and is responsible for coordinating the Group’s overall operations, including the interface with third-party professional advisors. She is also involved in business and funding strategies and target company due diligence.

Since mid-2020, Louise was a partner in Pacific Bridge Capital (PBC), which develops startups within mission-driven themes. Louise’s principal responsibilities at PBC included providing legal, accounting, and administrative support and managing portfolio company and investor relations.

Prior to joining PBC, Louise spent the majority of her career as a partner in leading global law firms (Dechert, Dewey Le Boeuf), based in New York, London, and Dubai. Her corporate finance practice focused on securities offerings and mergers & acquisitions in emerging markets. She has significant experience working in the Middle East/North Africa, Central Asia, the Caucasus, the Commonwealth of Independent States, and Central and Eastern Europe. During her law firm tenure, Louise was regularly recognized as a leading lawyer and expert by leading legal periodicals and international ranking publications, including International Financial Law Review, The Legal 500, and Chambers, as well as The Financial Times. She acted as lead partner on several award-winning, “first-of-their-kind” transactions.

Louise is a member of the Supervisory Board of Eurohold AG (an insurance and energy conglomerate) and a Co-Founder and former Director of Dira Foundation (providing education scholarships in Tanzania).

Louise earned her BA from Bowdoin College and her JD from Harvard Law School. She is admitted to the New York and Massachusetts Bars and was qualified as a foreign solicitor in England & Wales and accepted as legal consultant by the Government of Dubai Legal Affairs Department.

Heidi Ross is the Vice President of Policy and Regulatory Affairs at the National Organization for Rare Disorders (NORD). Heidi has built a career out of her passion for domestic and global health policy, and she joined NORD in January 2020. Prior to joining NORD, Heidi worked for nearly five years at Malaria No More, where she worked as the Director of US Policy and Advocacy, and Africa Programs. Prior to her time at Malaria No More, Heidi worked on Capitol Hill for nearly eight years in both the House of Representatives and the Senate. Heidi holds a Bachelor of Science in Psychology from Northern Arizona University and a Master of Public Health with a focus on health policy from the George Washington University.

Sarah Schmidt is the health policy director to Senate Minority Whip John Thune (R-S.D.). Schmidt is a health policy expert with over a decade of experience in legislative strategy and federal advocacy in roles in both the U.S. House and Senate, a government agency and a Fortune 5 company. She is a strategic thinker with demonstrated success translating business priorities into achievable policy goals. Schmidt is considered a trusted advisor with extensive bipartisan relationships across Capitol Hill, the Administration, business community and healthcare industry leaders.

Previously she was a vice president and head of government affairs at Palantir, the big-data-analytics giant co-founded by Peter Thiel. She briefly registered as a Palantir lobbyist working on health-care and government issues.

Schmidt previously worked as a lobbyist and senior director at Aetna and CVS Health. Before leaving for the private sector, she handled health-care portfolios for Rep. Michael Burgess (R-Texas) and then-Sen. Rob Portman (R-Ohio).

David Schwartz brings more than 20 years of health care policy and legal experience to his role as vice president public policy and government affairs at CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield.

Schwartz leads a team focused on federal legislative advocacy, public policy and regulatory engagement. Under his leadership, his team collaborates with key internal and external stakeholders and advocates for CareFirst’s innovative policy priorities.

His central focus is the development of strategic relationships to advance CareFirst’s transformative health care agenda and provide better health outcomes for members and communities throughout the region.

Prior to his experience in the health care insurance industry, Schwartz spent 10 years on Capitol Hill at the heart of legislative policymaking and then served as the Head of Global Policy at Cigna Corporation.

Manan has decades of US and international health policy, equity, advocacy, public affairs, and communications experience in the pharmaceutical sector. Prior to BMS, Manan was Vice President, and Head of Global Public Affairs for LEO Pharma. Before that, Manan was at Biogen and spent a decade at Novo Nordisk where he first worked in US State government affairs and advocacy, prior to leading the emerging markets region public affairs, based in Zurich, Switzerland. Manan is also an adjunct faculty member at Fairleigh Dickinson University and Rutgers University. He has designed and currently teaches numerous courses including Social & Economic Determinants of Health, Politics & Public Health, Issues in Global Health and Mental Health Advocacy. Manan received his MBA from the University of Illinois-Urbana Champaign, and Master of Public Affairs & Politics from Rutgers University. He did his undergraduate studies at American University. He also has done post-graduate studies at the University of Cambridge, UK, and has a Public Leadership Credential from the Harvard Kennedy School of Government.

Dana is a seasoned advocate and health care policy expert with over 25 years of policy, political, campaign, and legal experience. Prior to Keefe Singiser Partners, Dana served as Senior Vice President for Policy, Campaigns, and Advocacy at Planned Parenthood Federation of America. As a senior member of the staff for over seven years, she was a strategic leader of the organization’s response to the unprecedented attacks on reproductive health care and of the organization’s efforts to protect and expand women’s health care. She worked extensively with Cabinet members, Senators, Members of Congress, senior federal officials, and coalition partners, and appeared frequently in the media.

Corinne leads the national Healthcare Regulatory team advising on all aspects of healthcare law from patient care/consent issues through to statutory powers, governance and assurance. Her health work includes a wide range of areas of advice and reputational management for businesses within the health and social care sector.

Corinne has extensive experience of:

CQC advice including registration, pre and post inspection issues and factual accuracy challenges,
Regulatory due diligence in transactions, vendors and buyers/ funders
Serious clinical incidents
Advocacy in inquests
Risk management
Governance and Assurance
Board development

Corinne is very experienced in offering urgent, pragmatic assistance to healthcare providers where emergency media sensitive matters arise, whether through complaints, regulatory scrutiny, inquests or inquiries.

Her advice work includes assisting both the public and independent health and social care sector on governance, commissioning and consultation. Corinne is well regarded for her wide sector knowledge, helping public and private sector clients steer strategies through the extensive regulatory, legislative and political backdrop in which they operate. She is often called to advise Boards of public and private health and social care providers on assurance on key areas of risk to their corporate health profile, as well as training and developing Boards in engagement on the importance of robust governance and assurance processes.

Vish Srivastava is Co-Founder & CEO of Century Health, an early stage startup applying AI to clinical data to accelerate access to breakthrough treatments. Prior to this he held product leadership roles at Evidation Health, leading the flagship consumer product with over 5 million users, and at BCG Digital Ventures, building new health tech ventures with corporate partners. Vish holds degrees in Design Engineering, Business, and Psychology from Harvard and Michigan, and is based in sunny Los Angeles.

Nicholas Uehlecke joined Todd Strategy Group in 2021. He is a former Senior Advisor to the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services. In his role, he worked on Medicare, Medicaid, commercial and general insurance issues, health care reform and a range of other topics under the jurisdiction of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and the Health Resources and Services Administration. Nick also spent time working on key areas related to regulatory burden relief, drug pricing, health care data, health IT, health system integration, and efforts to make health care more value-based in America.

Nick also served as HHS staff-lead on the Advancing American Kidney Health Initiative and worked on a range of issues related to the COVID-19 public health emergency, including the administration of the $178 billion Provider Relief Fund.

Prior to HHS, Nick was a Professional Staff Member for the Committee on Ways and Means in the House of Representatives for eight years, working on issues ranging from Medicare’s Parts A and B, Medicare Advantage and Part D, and commercial insurance and Affordable Care Act reforms.

Before Nick’s tenure on Capitol Hill, he spent time as an analyst for the Marwood Group, working on health care as well as financial services, education, and energy policy.

Jannine Versi is the Co-Founder and CEO of Elektra Health, a women’s health company. Elektra provides evidence-based medical care, patient education, and peer support from the menopause transition into the Medicare years. Jannine was previously on the founding team of Cityblock Health, which addresses the medical and social needs of the Medicaid and Dual populations. She has held roles at Google and in the Obama Administration. Jannine earned her BA from the University of Pennsylvania, an MBA from Harvard Business School, and a Fulbright Scholar.

Jessica Weisz, MD, is a general pediatrician at Children’s Health Center at Columbia Heights and an affiliate faculty member of the Child Health Advocacy Institute. She graduated from the Primary Care residency track with a Global Health Certificate from Children’s National Hospital in 2014. She worked in private practice and at a federally qualified health center before returning to work at Children’s National.

In her current role, she provides patient care as well as supervises medical students and residents. Dr. Weisz is helping to develop a multi-modal curriculum to teach students and residents how to incorporate screening and addressing social needs during clinical visits. She is also participating in an initiative to address school absenteeism. She completed the Quality Improvement Leadership Training course through Children’s National in the spring of 2020. She lives with her family in the Columbia Heights neighborhood of Washington, D.C.

Jeff Wu leads the center’s work promulgating policy and regulations for many of the Affordable Care Act’s health insurance reforms, including the Health Insurance Exchanges, the premium stabilization programs, advance payments of the premium tax credit and cost-sharing reductions, the CO-OP program, regulation of qualified health plans, and eligibility and enrollment standards.

He oversees the center’s communications, stakeholder outreach, and data analysis work, and serves as a member of the center’s senior leadership team. He previously served in various policy positions at CCIIO, as an attorney at the law firm of Covington & Burling LLP, and as a management consultant with Oliver, Wyman & Company. He received an A.B. in economics from Harvard College, a J.D. from Stanford Law School, and an M.B.A. from Stanford Business School.

Mara Youdelman is the Managing Director, Federal Advocacy at the National Health Law Program’s Washington D.C. offices. Mara has worked at the National Health Law Program since 2000 on issues that include Medicaid & CHIP, the Affordable Care Act, language access, and civil rights (including Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act and demographic data collection). Mara coordinates the National Health Law Program’s federal legislative and administrative work, leading the organization’s efforts at protecting and expanding access to and quality of health care for low-income and underserved populations. Mara also co-chairs The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights’ Health Care Task Force and its Policy & Enforcement Committee.