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GAO Makes MACPAC Appointments, Designates Vice Chair

WASHINGTON, DC (May 10, 2018) – Gene L. Dodaro, Comptroller General of the United States and head of the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO), today announced the appointment of two new members to the Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission (MACPAC).  He also named the Commission’s Vice Chair.

“Congress relies on MACPAC for key advice on Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP),” Dodaro said. ”GAO received applications from many highly qualified candidates interested in serving on the Commission, and I am very pleased to announce these latest selections for MACPAC.”

The Children’s Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2009 established MACPAC to review Medicaid and CHIP access and payment policies and to advise Congress on issues affecting Medicaid and CHIP. The Act directs the Comptroller General to appoint MACPAC’s members.

The newly appointed members are Melanie Bella and Katherine Weno.  Current member Stacey Lampkin has been named the Commission’s Vice Chair. Brief biographies of the new commission members and the Commission Vice Chair follow:

New Commission Members:

  • Melanie Bella, MBA, is Chief of New Business and Policy at Cityblock Health, which facilitates health care delivery for low-income urban populations, particularly Medicaid beneficiaries and those dually-eligible for Medicaid and Medicare. Previously, she served as the founding Director of the Medicare-Medicaid Coordination Office at the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, where she designed and launched payment and delivery system demonstrations to improve quality and reduce costs. Ms. Bella also was the Director of the Indiana Medicaid Program, where she oversaw CHIP and the state’s long term care insurance program. Ms. Bella received her Master of Business Administration from Harvard University.
  • Katherine Weno, DDS, JD, is an independent public health consultant. Previously, she held positions at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, including Senior Advisor for the National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion and Director of the Division of Oral Health. Dr. Weno also served as the Director of the Bureau of Oral Health in the Kansas Department of Health and Environment. Previously, she was the CHIP Advocacy Project Director at Legal Aid of Western Missouri and was an associate attorney at Brown, Winick, Graves, Gross, Baskerville and Shoenebaum in Des Moines, Iowa. Dr. Weno started her career as a dentist in Iowa and Wisconsin. She earned degrees in dentistry and law from the University of Iowa.

Commission Vice Chair:

  • Current MACPAC commissioner Stacey Lampkin, FSA, MAAA, MPA, is an Actuary and Principal with Mercer Government Human Services Consulting in Phoenix, Arizona, where she has led actuarial work for several state Medicaid programs.  She previously served as Actuary and Assistant Deputy Secretary for Medicaid Finance and Analytics at Florida’s Agency for Health Care Administration, and as an Actuary at Milliman. Ms. Lampkin is a fellow in the Society of Actuaries and a member of the American Academy of Actuaries. She received her Master of Public Administration from Florida State University.

Commissioners whose terms will expire in April 2019 are Brian Burwell, Senior Executive of Government Health and Human Services at IBM Watson Health; Toby Douglas, MPP, MPH, Senior Vice President for Medicaid Solutions at Centene Corporation; Christopher Gorton, MD, MHSA, formerly President of Public Plans at Tufts Health Plan; Stacey Lampkin, FSA, MAAA, MPA, Actuary and Principal with Mercer Government Human Services Consulting; Penny Thompson, MPA, Principal of Penny Thompson Consulting, LLC; and Alan Weil, JD, MPP, Editor-in-Chief of Health Affairs.

Commissioners whose terms will expire in April 2020 are Martha Carter, DHSc, MBA, APRM, CNM, CEO of FamilyCare Health Centers; Frederick Cerise, MD, MPH, President and CEO of Parkland Health and Hospital System; Kisha Davis, MD, MPH, a family physician at CHI Health Care; Darin Gordon, President and CEO of Gordon & Associates; and William Scanlon, PhD, a consultant for the West Health Institute.

Commissioners who have been reappointed for second terms that will expire in April 2021 are Leanna George, beneficiary representative who is the parent of two children covered under Medicaid and CHIP; Charles Milligan, JD, MPH, CEO of United Healthcare Community Plan of New Mexico; Sheldon Retchin, MD, MSPH, Professor of Internal Medicine at The Ohio State University; and Peter Szilagyi, MD, MPH, Executive Vice Chair and Vice Chair for Research of the Department of Pediatrics at the University of California at Los Angeles.

For more information about MACPAC, contact Anne Schwartz, MACPAC’s executive director, at (202) 350-2000. Other calls should be directed to Chuck Young in GAO’s Office of Public Affairs at (202) 512-4800. The official announcement will be published in the Federal Register.

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The Government Accountability Office, known as the investigative arm of Congress, is an independent, nonpartisan agency that exists to support Congress in meeting its constitutional responsibilities. GAO also works to improve the performance of the federal government and ensure its accountability to the American people. The agency examines the use of public funds; evaluates federal programs and policies; and provides analyses, recommendations, and other assistance to help Congress make informed oversight, policy, and funding decisions. GAO provides Congress with timely information that is objective, fact-based, nonideological, fair, and balanced. GAO’s commitment to good government is reflected in its core values of accountability, integrity, and reliability.

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