The newly formed ‘Healthcare Advisory Committee’ is comprised of impressive and qualified leaders from across the health care system. The advisory board aims to improve, strengthen and modernize U.S. health care, but some health care professionals note that patient and caregiver advocates lack a seat at the table.
The Healthcare Advisory Committee will advise U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Dr. Mehmet Oz on ways to improve how care is financed and delivered across Medicare, Medicaid, the Children’s Health Insurance Program, and the Health Insurance Marketplace.
“We received an overwhelming response from highly qualified candidates across the country,” said Dr. Oz in the announcement about the committee. “These members bring deep expertise across care delivery, financing, innovation, and patient engagement. Their insights will help us advance higher-quality care, reduce administrative burden, and strengthen the sustainability of our programs, while supporting efforts to transform our health care system and restore a stronger focus on patients.”
HHS and CMS received more than 400 nominations nationwide for committee positions over the past year and selected 18 individuals to serve on the advisory board:
- Robert Bessler, M.D., CEO of Honest Medical Group, a physician led value- based care enablement organization
- Kimberly Brandt, JD, CMS’ deputy administrator and chief operating officer. ex officio)
- Sebastian Caliri, a member of 8VC's health care team, which invests in and builds health IT and health services businesses
- Stephanie Carlton, CMS deputy administrator and chief of staff (ex officio)
- David Carmouche, M.D., executive vice president, chief medical & commercial officer, Lumeris, a physician-first health care transformation company
- Elizabeth M. Fago, a nursing home owner
- Clive K. Fields, M.D., co-founder and chief medical officer of VillageMD, a national primary care provider
- William J. Gassen, JD, president and CEO, Sanford Health, an integrated health system serving communities across the upper Midwest
- Jenni Gudapati, Ph.D., president and founder of HealthyInsights.ai, a health care finance intelligence platform
- Valerie D. Huhn, director of Missouri Department of Mental Health
- Dennis Laraway, executive vice president and chief financial officer of the Cleveland Clinic
- Dan Liljenquist, JD, chief strategy officer at Intermountain Health
- Andrew Lynch, chief strategy officer at Acadia Healthcare
- Ursel J. McElroy, director of the Ohio Department of Aging
- Kyu Rhee, M.D., president and CEO of the National Association of Community Health Centers
- Tony Robbins, philanthropist and cofounder of Lifeforce, a company that focuses on chronic illness prevention
- Russ Thomas, CEO of Availity, a leading health information network
- Linda Thomas-Hemak, M.D., president and CEO of The Wright Center for Graduate Medical Education and The Wright Center for Community Health
The agencies said that the committee will provide non-binding recommendations to inform federal health care policy and program administration. Over its two-year terms, members will focus on:
- Developing actionable policy solutions to prevent and better manage chronic disease
- Advancing accountability for safety and outcomes while reducing unnecessary administrative burden
- Expanding the use of real-time data to support a higher quality of care, speed up claims processing, and improve quality measurement
- Enhancing care for vulnerable populations, including those served by Medicaid
- Strengthening Medicare Advantage sustainability, including modernizing risk adjustment and quality measurement
Patient voice missing from the committee
The committee membership is strong on subject matter expertise within value-based care, chronic illness prevention, mental health, primary care, addition, obesity, nutrition, health information, aging populations, community-based care, philanthropy and investment, however it lacks the voice of patients and caregivers, wrote Grace Cordovano, Ph.D, BCPA, a CancerX fellow and board certified patient advocate, on LinkedIn.
“For a committee explicitly tasked with modernizing care delivery, financing, & patient engagement, the absence of a clearly identified patient, care partner, or caregiver voice is a concerning omission that will show up downstream in policy design, implementation, and trust,” she wrote. “Let's fix this!”
Others noted the omission in responses to the CMS announcement on LinkedIn:
“No DOs? No Nurses? Patients/Patient Advocates? This important rebuild effort requires all hands on deck,” noted John R. Gimpel, D.O., M.Ed., president and CEO of the National Board of Osteopathic Medical Examiners.
Michelle Waller, MBA, BSN, RN, secretary and treasurer of the nonprofit Abundance Wellness Foundation, and Cesar Garcia, an associate health policy analyst at the California Rural Health Board, also commented that it was disappointing that there is not one nurse on the committee or anyone to represent the Tribal community.