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HMA News

Elizabeth Mitchell to keynote HMA’s Spring Workshop on value based care March 5-6 in Chicago

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We are excited to announce that , will provide the keynote address “The Purchaser’s Dilemma: Why Employers Should Demand Value (and Why They Don’t)” at HMA’s 2024 Spring Workshop on value-based care, March 5-6 at the Fairmont in Chicago.

In her role at PBGH, a nonprofit coalition representing nearly 40 private employers and public entities across the U.S. that collectively spend $350 billion annually purchasing healthcare services for more than 21 million Americans and their families, Mitchell represents a coalition of large purchasers – private employers and public entities – across the U.S. mobilizing to create functional health care markets that support high-quality affordable care that produces measurable outcomes. She will talk about the successes and challenges of creating greater alignment on value-based approaches to the $350 billion annual private purchaser spend on healthcare services.

Her remarks – and the input of others engaged in improving our healthcare system – will be unvarnished and focused on solutions to advance value-based care. Be part of this exciting discussion among top industry experts, health plan executives, state and federal leaders, and policy experts in working sessions to generate new solutions and actions to get us to the next level of quality and value.

HMA News

Fueling Change: Reflecting on a Year of Successful Collaboration

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While 2023 was challenging for many, it was also a year of successful partnerships and action that fueled positive change in the lives of individuals and within communities nationwide. This short video highlights just a few examples of that critical work that happens every day.

At HMA, we are honored to serve as trusted advisors to our clients and partners as we work side by side to tackle the most complex health and human services challenges. We look forward to creating even more positive change in 2024, together.

HMA News

New experts join HMA in October 2023

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HMA is pleased to welcome new experts to our family of companies in October 2023.

Anika Alvanzo- Principal
HMA

Dr. Anika Alvanzo is a distinguished healthcare executive with over 20 years of experience in specialty addiction treatment, behavioral health integration and quality improvement.

Kristine Malana Barrientos – Senior Consultant
HMA

Kristine Malana Barrientos brings expertise in the Program of All-inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE) senior leadership and operational experience from her work in California’s PACE market.

Craig Cartossa – Consulting Actuary II
Wakely

Craig Cartossa, ASA, MAAA, has expertise in Advanced Analytics, Healthcare Economics, Medicare Part D, Value Based Contracting, and Disease Management and Care Management Predictive Modeling and ID/Stratification. .

Shannon Mayer – Principal
HMA

Shannon Mayer is an impactful healthcare executive with over 30 years of experience. She is recognized for attaining results in Medicaid and Medicare Advantage’s highly regulated environments.

Cotrina McGue – Senior Consultant
HMA

Cotrina McGue is a highly skilled information technology (IT) professional with over 35 years of experience and over 25 years specializing in healthcare systems.

Patricia Miles – Senior Consultant
HMA

Patricia Miles is a performance-driven managed care leader with over 25 years of experience in the Medicaid and Medicare markets.

Jason Pettry – Senior Consultant
HMA

Jason Pettry is a dedicated healthcare executive with over 10 years of experience with the Programs of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE).

Corrie Piontak – Principal
HMA

Corrie Piontak is a skilled healthcare professional with over 15 years of focused experience in management consulting, payer and provider strategy, and partnership strategy.

Aaron Ramthun – Associate Principal
HMA

Aaron Ramthun is a financial professional with more than 20 years of experience working across the healthcare finance field, including Medicare bids, Medicaid rate book reviews, and budgeting. Aaron has a demonstrated track record of improving operational efficiency and implementing innovative forecasting practices.

Matt Smith – Consulting Actuary I
Wakely

Matt Smith, ASA, has experience with population health analytics, total cost of care analysis, value-based care contracts, financial modeling, pricing and reserving, and risk adjustment.

Read more about our new HMA colleagues

Headshot of Anika Alvanzo

Anika Alvanzo

Principal

Headshot of Jason Pettry

Jason Pettry

Senior Consultant

Headshot of Aaron Ramthun

Aaron Ramthun

Associate Principal

HMA News

HMA Information Services names Andrea Maresca as Managing Director

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has named Andrea Maresca as Managing Director of HMA Information Services, one of the nation’s leading subscription-based repositories of data and public documents on publicly sponsored healthcare programs.

Maresca replaces HMAIS founding publisher Carl Mercurio, who will stay on as Senior Advisor until the end of the year when he retires after nearly a decade with HMA and 37 years in business information publishing.

Maresca has more than two decades of healthcare experience, having served in private and public organizations including the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) and the National Association of Medicaid Directors (NAMD).  She joined HMA in 2021.

HMA News

New experts join HMA in September 2023

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HMA is pleased to welcome new experts to our family of companies in September 2023.

Dan Castillo – Managing Principal
HMA

Dan Castillo is a seasoned healthcare executive with over 20 years of experience in health administration. He specializes in health systems strategy, hospital leadership, medical group management, population health and academic medicine.

Laura Brown – Director
Leavitt Partners

Laura Brown is a food and drug attorney who leverages her 10-plus years of legal analytic experience to provide federal policy counsel and analysis to clients and support multi-sector alliances. Read more about Laura.

Teresa Garate – Principal
HMA

Teresa Garate is an experienced and innovative leader with over 30 years of experience leading systems change, innovation and growth in the complex environments of public health, healthcare, public education, higher education and government.

Falon Owen – Principal
HMA

Falon Owen is a healthcare strategist with over 15 years of experience in product development and operations.

Kathleen Cahill – Associate Principal
HMA

Kathleen Cahill is a solutions-driven C-Suite executive with more than 40 years of experience in healthcare operations, working for entities and organizations across the healthcare industry.

Susan Arcidiacono – Principal
HMA

Susan Arcidiacono is an accomplished health plan executive with more than 25 years of experience in Medi-Cal managed care and Medicare D-SNP.

Dena Hasan – Associate Principal
HMA

Dena Hasan is a forward-thinking executive with over 20 years of experience in public and private sector healthcare and social services.

Jeff Wittcoff – Consulting Actuary II
Wakely

Jeff Wittcoff has expertise is in provider contracting and assessment, healthcare program evaluation, digital care initiatives, trend forecasting, and actuarial applications of healthcare modeling.

Patricia Miles – Senior Consultant
HMA

Patricia Miles is a performance-driven managed care leader with over 25 years of experience in the Medicaid and Medicare markets.

Patrick Meadors – Senior Consultant
HMA

Patrick Meadors is a licensed marriage and family therapist with over 15 years of clinical behavioral health and integrated care experience.

Dan Rhodes – Principal
HMA

Dan Rhodes is a results-driven healthcare operations and compliance executive with over 25 years of successful leadership experience with blue-chip companies.

Read more about our new HMA colleagues

Headshot of Dan Castillo

Dan Castillo

Principal

Headshot of Teresa Garate

Teresa Garate

Managing Director

Headshot of Dena Hasan

Dena Hasan

Associate Principal

Headshot of Patrick Meadors

Patrick Meadors

Senior Consultant

HMA News

Expands Footprint in North Carolina, New Orleans

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(HMA), a leading independent, national healthcare consulting firm today announced that it is establishing offices in North Carolina and New Orleans.

In North Carolina, HMA will have a presence in Raleigh and Charlotte with plans to continue building out the North Carolina team in the coming months.

The Focus Group, based in New Orleans, joined HMA in 2022, and HMA continues to expand its footprint there adding new colleagues from the area to its roster of experts. They will share office space at The Focus Group’s current Poydras Street location.

“Our firm’s continued growth is designed to support the current and future needs of our clients across the country,” said Doug Elwell, HMA’s chief executive officer. “We are excited to plant roots in North Carolina and expand our talented team in New Orleans as we help clients successfully navigate the toughest challenges facing healthcare and human services.”

HMA

Founded in 1985, HMA is an independent, national research and consulting firm specializing in publicly funded healthcare and human services policy, programs, financing, and evaluation. Clients include government, public and private providers, health systems, health plans, community-based organizations, institutional investors, foundations, and associations. With offices in more than 30 locations across the country and over 700 multidisciplinary consultants coast to coast, HMA’s expertise, services, and team are always within client reach. Learn more about HMA at healthmanagement.com, or on and .

HMA News

New experts join HMA in August 2023

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HMA is pleased to welcome new experts to our family of companies in August 2023.

Dianne Bisacky – Principal
HMA

Dianne Bisacky is a seasoned professional with C-Level executive experience and a strategic mindset dedicated to driving growth and implementing innovative solutions.

Sheila Wilson – Principal
HMA

Sheila Wilson is a registered nurse with over 35 years of experience in both the clinical and managed care environments.

Read more about our new HMA colleagues

Headshot of Sheila Wilson

Sheila Wilson

Principal

HMA News

New experts join HMA in July 2023

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HMA is pleased to welcome new experts to our family of companies in July 2023.

Zach Davis – Senior Consulting Actuary
Wakely

Zach has a wide range of actuarial experience helping both payers and providers manage risk. . 

Vicki Loner – Principal
HMA

Vicki Loner has nearly 30 years of dedicated experience as an executive leader, registered nurse, and certified healthcare administrator with expertise in clinical nursing, case management, quality improvement, managed care and accountable care organization (ACO) healthcare operations.

Ryan Paul – Associate Principal
HMA

Ryan Paul is an accomplished leader experienced in federally qualified health center (FQHC)/rural health clinic (RHC) contracting, value-based contract management, negotiations, regulatory compliance, vendor relationships, request for proposal (RFP) development, strategic planning, project management, process improvements, financial modeling, and budgeting. 

Ann-Marie Price – Senior Consultant
HMA

Ann-Marie Price is a seasoned healthcare expert with more than 20 years of experience spanning policy development and implementation, government and community affairs, and strategic and operational administration in hospitals, clinics, federally qualified health centers, managed healthcare plans, and telemedicine.

Kaya Tith – Senior Consultant
HMA

Kaya Tith is a senior consultant with over a decade of experience working in the fields of maternal and child health, community-based health services, and prevention and early intervention.

Read more about our new HMA colleagues

Headshot of Ryan Paul

Ryan Paul

Associate Principal

Headshot of Kaya Tith

Kaya Tith

Senior Consultant

HMA News

New experts join HMA in June 2023

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HMA is pleased to welcome new experts to our family of companies in June 2023.

Anthony Federico – Senior Consultant
HMA

Anthony Federico is a seasoned government and non-profit leader with 12 years of expertise in housing, homelessness, and healthcare. He excels in developing and implementing innovative programs, executing Medicaid waivers, and cultivating cross-sector partnerships.

Melanie Johnson – Senior Consultant
HMA

Melanie Johnson is a seasoned public healthcare professional with over 15 years of experience working in federal and state government roles. Melanie’s expertise includes Medicaid state plan and waiver development, continuous quality improvement, and ongoing monitoring of policies and operations of federal and state programs.

Marcel Loh – Principal
HMA

Marcel Loh is an accomplished healthcare executive and leader with extensive experience collaborating with government leaders, insurers, and stakeholders to deliver value and achieve results.  His expertise extends to many diverse hospital structures including military, for profit, not for profit, religious, rural, urban, large systems and safety net hospitals.

Erin Russell – Principal
HMA

Erin Russell is a dedicated harm reduction expert with an unwavering commitment to public health and equity.  

Andrew Schalk – Senior Consultant
HMA

Andrew Schalk is an accomplished professional with extensive experience in Medicaid programs and hospital reimbursement policy.

Andrew Schwarze – Consulting Actuary
Wakely

Andrew Schwarze is an actuary with expertise in Medicaid rate analysis and risk adjustment. .

Zach Sherman – Principal
HMA

Zach Sherman is an Affordable Care Act (ACA) expert and Health Insurance Marketplace leader with extensive experience with start-ups and turnarounds. He is a strategic organizational leader who excels in building and enhancing team performance and has an impeccable ability to foster consensus among government leaders, insurers, and stakeholders to deliver value and achieve results.

Read more about our new HMA colleagues

Headshot of Anthony Federico

Anthony Federico

Senior Consultant

Headshot of Marcel Loh

Marcel Loh

Principal

Headshot of Erin Russell

Erin Russell

Principal

Headshot of Andrew Schalk

Andrew Schalk

Senior Consultant

Headshot of Zach Sherman

Zach Sherman

Managing Director

HMA News

HMA pre-conference workshop focuses on behavioral health innovation and new solutions at the intersection of health and human services

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The demand for behavioral health services has never been greater than it is in 2023. Broad focus on mental wellness and pandemic-driven trauma have increased demand for lower acuity care, while significant spikes in overdoses and suicides have increased demand for higher acuity care, including inpatient treatment. Dramatic increases in government funding and policies to expand access have run up against an overburdened and fragmented behavioral health delivery system and a shortage of clinicians, creating an urgent need for innovative workforce and technology solutions that better integrate behavioral, physical, and public health systems. 

HMA’s 6th annual conference, “Innovations in Publicly Sponsored Healthcare: How Medicaid, Medicare, and Marketplaces Are Driving Value, Equity, and Growth” is putting a special focus on behavioral health through a half-day pre-conference workshop as well as topics throughout the regular conference sessions that highlight how these services and programs are becoming more integrated. 

Pre-Conference Workshop 

Join us on Sunday, October 29th at the Fairmont Chicago, Millennium Park for a deep dive into how behavioral health sits at the intersection of health care and the social services that are critical to achieving positive health outcomes: 

  • An opening panel on behavioral health system redesign and how states are leveraging new policies, waivers, and funding streams to improve access to services. This panel will feature from SAMHSA and leaders from Massachusetts, Iowa, and New York. 
  • A panel on complex populations and how states are connecting these patients to address health related social needs that can impede progress. This panel will feature examples from Ohio, Wisconsin, New York, and California. 
  • The preconference will feature two World Café style discussions where participants break into groups to explore new solutions around the behavioral health workforce and how states are redesigning systems to improve network adequacy.  

More Insights and Expertise 

In addition, our main conference will feature a session on crisis system development and sustainability, looking at how states are creating and funding crisis systems to reduce disparities in access to behavioral health services, featuring case studies on newly implemented 988 hotlines, mobile crisis units, and other innovations in crisis stabilization. 

We are looking forward to hearing from panelists about the important work they are doing to bring forward new solutions, new collaborations, and new uses of federal funds to better serve the behavioral health needs in our communities across America. We’ll create a follow up blog on the learnings and insights shared in both sessions.  

To learn more about HMA’s efforts to support behavioral health, contact Gina Lasky or Gina Eckhart, managing directors of HMA’s behavioral health team, and be sure to register by July 31 to get the early bird rate. For additional insights, join the conversation with #HMACon2023. 

HMA News

New experts join HMA in May 2023

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HMA is pleased to welcome new experts to our family of companies in May 2023.

Elvia Delgado – Principal
HMA

Elvia Delgado has over 20 years of government programs experience and has served in various leadership roles throughout the healthcare industry.

James Schroeder – Managing Principal
HMA

James Schroeder is an experienced clinical, strategic, and operational leader with over 20 years of experience in healthcare and a passion for improving communities and the lives of individuals, particularly the most vulnerable.

Leah Montgomery – Senior Consultant
HMA

Leah Montgomery is an expert in Medicaid and other federal needs-based programs such as Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF), Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), and Supplemental Security Income (SSI). 

Kelly O’Brien – Associate Principal
HMA

Kelly O’Brien is a highly accomplished healthcare executive with over 25 years of experience in executive leadership and C-Suite roles specializing in clinical and practice operations, revenue integrity, and transformation.

Zee Cui – Senior Consulting Actuary
Wakely

Zee specializes in reserving, forecasting, regulatory reporting, rate advocacy, risk adjustments, trend analysis, modeling and pricing actuarial work in both commercial and Medicaid sectors. . 

Read more about our new HMA colleagues

Headshot of Elvia Delgado

Elvia Delgado

Principal

HMA News

More than 20 Medicaid, Medicare, marketplace plan executives are confirmed speakers at 2023 HMA conference

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C-suite executives from AmeriHealth Caritas, Centene, Community Health Choice of California, Health Care Service Corp., Humana, UnitedHealthcare, and UMPC Health Plan are scheduled to speak on trends in publicly sponsored healthcare at HMA’s Sixth Annual Conference, October 30-31 in Chicago.

They join keynote speaker Alan Weil, editor-in-chief of Health Affairs, and other experts in addressing innovation, value, equity, and growth opportunities and challenges facing Medicaid, Medicare, and Marketplaces across multiple and varied plenary, breakout, and panel sessions. See below for a list of confirmed speakers to date.

The conference also will feature a preconference workshop on October 29, during which HMA behavioral health leaders will address national trends and challenges for system redesign and serving complex populations. Participants will work on solving provider and population challenges during group activities.

We’re excited to welcome hundreds of attendees from health plans, providers, state and federal government, investment firms, and community-based organizations to enjoy top-notch content, interface with leading experts, make new connections, and garner fresh ideas and best practices. Last year’s event drew more than 500 healthcare professionals.

Early bird registration ends July 31.

Confirmed Speakers to Date

Keynote Speaker

Alan Weil, Editor-in-Chief, Health Affairs

Managed Care Speakers to Date (in alphabetical order)

Karen Dale, Chief Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Officer, AmeriHealth Caritas

Mitchell Evans, Market Vice President, Policy & Strategy, Medicaid & Dual Eligibles, Humana

John Lovelace, President, Government Programs, Individual Advantage, UPMC Health Plan

Eric Mattelson, Chief Actuary, Zing Health

Anne Rote, Medicaid President, Health Care Service Corp.

Tim Spilker, CEO, UnitedHealthcare Community & State

David Thomas, CEO, Markets & Medicaid, Centene

Jaimie White, SVP, Medicaid Operations, Humana

Lisa Wright, President and CEO, Community Health Choice

State Medicaid Directors to Date (in alphabetical order)

Jacey Cooper, State Medicaid Director, Chief Deputy Director for Health Care Programs, California Department of Health Care Services

Kelly Cunningham, Medicaid Administrator, Division of Medical Programs, Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services

Drew Snyder, Executive Director, Mississippi Division of Medicaid

Stacie Weeks, Administrator/Medicaid Director, Nevada Department of Health and Human Services Division of Health Care Financing and Policy

Healthcare, Provider, Policy Leaders to Date (in alphabetical order)

Richard Ayoub, CEO, Project Angel Food

Lynn Carr, Chief, Agency Operations, Medical Care Services, County of San Diego Health and Human Services Agency

Liz Goodman, Chief Legal and Public Affairs Officer, Commonwealth Care Alliance

Jesse Hunter, Operating Partner, Welsh, Carson, Anderson & Stowe

Monica Johnson, Director of the 988 & Behavioral Health Crisis Coordinating Office, SAMHSA

Peter Lee, Health Care Policy Catalyst; former Executive Director, Covered California

Kate Massey, Executive Director, MACPAC (Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission)

Julie Morita, MD, Executive Vice President, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation

Bryan Buckley, Director for Health Equity Initiatives, National Committee for Quality Assurance

James R. Stringham, VP/CEO. Banner Government Health Plans, Banner Health

HMA offers attractive group rates and government discounts as well as sponsorship opportunities that help strengthen brand awareness and provide invaluable exposure and access to healthcare sector leaders. Visit the conference website for a complete list of sponsorship opportunities.

DzԳٲCarl Mercurio for details.

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