Washington, DC · Remote & Hybrid
Health Policy Strategist & Licensed Clinical Social Worker. Two decades steering alignment between organizational goals and operations across federal health policy — from HHS to the VA.
About
I am a health-policy strategy advisor and special assistant (equivalent to director of policy and strategy) with 20+ years steering alignment between organizational goals and operations across multiple policy programs for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.
As Special Assistant to HHS's Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation, I translated vision into actionable strategy across diverse science and health initiatives. I am also a published co-author of anti-overdose and behavioral-health strategies.
I excel at driving high-impact collaboration among 140+ member teams, senior executives, representatives from the White House, and other top-tier government bodies — identifying and rapidly resolving problems, dismantling bottlenecks and conflict before they impede progress.
Top skills
What I offer
Translate organizational vision into actionable, multi-stakeholder strategy across federal health and behavioral-health programs. Twenty years inside HHS and the VA, including as Special Assistant to the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation.
Stand up, scale, and run policy programs — onboarding leadership, building executive-level briefings, managing budgets, and resolving interagency bottlenecks before they slow delivery.
Co-author of national overdose and behavioral-health strategy. Available for advisory work spanning substance use, behavioral-health systems design, and federal grant strategy.
Licensed clinical social worker (Colorado, Virginia, Washington DC). Background includes multi-disciplinary care planning and mentorship of new clinicians inside the VA system.
Selected work
Guided development of the four-prong national strategy, uniting senior leadership, policy analysts, and subject-matter experts to overcome interagency conflict and deliver an actionable plan.
Steered FDA policies through the rigorous HHS approval process — the first solo policy advisor to successfully manage that portfolio.
Led seamless onboarding for two HHS assistant secretaries and four deputy assistant secretaries, including a full overview of the office’s history, policy issues, and $43M budget.
Advanced adoption of new Medicare benefits across the Midwest as a specialist with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, translating complex policy into accessible enrollment guidance.
Get in touch
Available for advisory and consulting engagements across health policy, behavioral health, and program operations. Based in Washington, DC and open to hybrid or remote work.