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Who We Are

NAMD Staff

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Tracey Adjei

Executive Assistant

Tracey Adjei has a diverse background in administrative support and public health advocacy. She most recently served as an Administrative Assistant for Construction & Development at BF Saul Company, a privately owned Real Estate Company. Prior to this role, she demonstrated her administrative prowess and operational support capabilities at the De Beaumont Foundation. Tracey’s commitment to public health extends from her time as an intern at Holy Cross Health Centers in Gaithersburg, MD, where she educated elderly patients about the importance of pneumococcal pneumonia treatment. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Exercise Science from the University of Maryland Eastern Shore and graduated from Liberty University with a master’s degree in public health with a focus in Health Promotion in December 2017.

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Lindsey Browning

Director of Medicaid Programming

Lindsey Browning joined the National Association of Medicaid Directors in May 2014. In her role as program director, she leads various grant-funded projects to support Medicaid Directors and their senior staff in navigating the Medicaid program’s most pressing policy issues. These projects focus on issues ranging from delivery system and payment reform to behavioral health integration and Medicaid managed care.

Before coming to NAMD, Lindsey worked at the Children’s Hospital Association where she conducted research and analysis on state policy trends in Medicaid and CHIP. She also supported the association’s work to analyze and respond to regulations implementing the Affordable Care Act.

Lindsey received her Master of Public Policy from George Mason University and graduated from McDaniel College with a Bachelor of Arts in political science and international studies.

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Dawn Cutler-Tran

Manager, Programs and Projects

Dawn-Cutler Tran joined NAMD in January 2019. In her role as Manager, Programs and Projects, she manages some of the Association’s infrastructure development projects, including procuring a new CRM platform and launching a new website in Spring 2022. Dawn also supports NAMD’s growing leadership development portfolio for state Medicaid leaders.

Before NAMD, Dawn worked for the Horatio Alger Association, administering scholarships and supporting partnerships and scholar services. She also currently volunteers on the Board of the Dream Project, a Virginia scholarship providing charity.

Dawn received a Dual Master’s degree from the University of Kent in Brussels in International Conflict and Security, and Virginia Tech in Public and International Affairs. She received a B.A. from Virginia Tech in Political science.

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Dianne Hasselman

Deputy Executive Director

Dianne Hasselman joined NAMD as the Deputy Executive Director in February 2017. In this position, she supports the Executive Director’s strategic leadership and member and public relations. She is responsible for the organization’s programmatic performance in the areas of leadership, communications, and events.

Before joining NAMD, Dianne led multi-stakeholder initiatives for regional health collaboratives at the Network for Regional Healthcare Improvement. Prior to that she led technical assistance programs for state Medicaid agencies at the Center for Health Care Strategies.

Dianne has a Master in the Science of Public Health from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and a B.A. from the University of California at San Diego.

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Neda Jasemi

Senior Policy Analyst

Neda joined NAMD in August 2021. In her role, she supports NAMD’s portfolio of state-to-state learning programs, including conducting research and analysis on emerging issues and trends, supporting the development of workshops and webinars, and developing issue briefs, blogs, and other written resources. She also collaborates with the NAMD team on content development for the Fall and Spring Conferences and supports other core association activities.

Before joining NAMD, Neda worked in Medicaid managed care consulting, supporting procurement, strategy, and implementation projects. She received her Master of Science in Public Health in health policy from Johns Hopkins University and a Bachelor of Science in Political Science and Biology from the University of Wisconsin, Madison.

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Hannah Kim

Policy Associate

Hannah Kim joined NAMD in October 2024 as a Policy Associate. She supports NAMD’s federal policy efforts through research, Medicaid policy analysis, and facilitation of engagement between Medicaid leaders and federal partners. She also contributes to written resources and coordinates meetings for Medicaid leaders.

Prior to NAMD, Hannah worked as a health policy research intern at the Marwood Group and interned at a Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC), where she focused on patient satisfaction and healthcare improvement initiatives. She also served as a research assistant at UNC’s Center for Health Promotion and Disease Prevention, working on behavioral health interventions for youth.

Hannah holds a Bachelor of Science in Public Health with a concentration in Health Policy and Management from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

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Hannah Maniates

Senior Policy Analyst

Hannah Maniates joined NAMD in August 2021 as a Policy Analyst. In this role, she supports NAMD’s federal policy efforts.

Prior to joining NAMD, Hannah worked on substance use policy for the City of Boston, served as a research assistant with the Bloomberg American Health Initiative, and interned with a Maryland state senator.

Hannah received a Master of Public Health with a concentration in Health Systems and Policy from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and a B.A. in neuroscience and biology from Wesleyan University.

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Kate McEvoy

Executive Director

Kate McEvoy is the Executive Director of the National Association of Medicaid Directors. NAMD is the dynamic and engaged professional community for state leaders who provide health insurance to improve the well-being and economic security of the more than 81 million individuals and families served by Medicaid and CHIP in each of the 50 states, the District of Columbia and the U.S. territories.

Kate has thirty years of experience working with and for people served by Medicaid. An elder law attorney by training, Kate’s early career centered on advocacy, regional planning, grant-making and direct services for older adults and people with disabilities through the Connecticut Association of Area Agencies on Aging. Prior to joining NAMD, she was the long-time Director of Health Services for Connecticut’s Department of Social Services, where she led Medicaid, CHIP, long-term services and supports, and implementation of Affordable Care Act initiatives including Connecticut’s Medicaid expansion. Kate oversaw major transformation in the program, migrating from capitated managed care arrangements to a successful self-insured, managed fee-for-service approach. This streamlined and simplified the program for both members and providers, freed up resources for an array of care delivery, value-based payment and social determinant interventions, improved health outcomes and care experience for members, and enabled the program to reduce both per member, per month costs and overall spend.

Kate also served as past President and Vice President of NAMD’s Board of Directors. Kate holds a J.D. from the University of Connecticut School of Law and a B.A. in English and Economics from Oberlin College, is a graduate of the Medicaid Leadership Institute, and is the author of journal articles on elder law and end-of-life care as well as the treatise Connecticut Elder Law.

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Nicole Poblete

Operations & Database Associate

Nicole joined NAMD as the Operations and Database Associate in August 2024. She supports key aspects of the organization’s day-to-day operations, including financial processing, communications support, and event planning. Nicole also oversees the coordination and optimization of NAMD’s CRM database.

Prior to joining NAMD, Nicole worked in the financial services industry for over five years. She brings extensive experience from her previous positions, including her work as a Branch Office Administrator at Edward Jones and as a Digital Marketing Coordinator with Finley Alexander Wealth Management. Nicole holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Maryland, College Park.

 

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Jack Rollins

Director of Federal Policy

Jack Rollins joined NAMD in April 2014. He is responsible for the association’s policy work, including analysis of legislation and regulations impacting the Medicaid program, convening Medicaid Directors and their staffs to identify and build consensus around policy objectives, and articulating members’ consensus positions via comment letters and other communications to federal policymakers and Medicaid stakeholders. In his time at NAMD, Jack has focused specifically on the areas of Medicaid prescription drug coverage, managed care, and long-term services and supports.

Prior to joining NAMD, Jack interned at a safety net hospital association, a small lobbying firm specializing in healthcare issues, and performed policy work for a nonprofit organization of women state legislators.

Jack received an Masters of Public Health focused on health policy from the George Washington University and a B.A. in philosophy and government from the College of William and Mary.

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Karen Seaver Hill

Director of Member Engagement

Karen Seaver Hill is the first Director of Member Engagement for the National Association of Medicaid Directors. In this role, she drives strategies to fuel member participation across the association’s suite of programing.  Of particular focus is supporting the lifecycle of a Medicaid Director from onboarding to leadership development and growth and providing transition support to NAMD’s Alumni Network.

Hill joined NAMD in 2021 as Director of Leadership Development and in her current role continues to promote tools for Medicaid leaders to strengthen their competency and impact as leaders. For the past 20 years, Karen worked at the Children’s Hospital Association managing a portfolio spanning population health management and community health initiatives, designed to improve health outcomes and child wellbeing. She spent another 8 years at the Children’s Defense Fund engaged in issue-based advocacy, development, and educational programming.

Karen earned a B.A. from Boston College and credits a post-baccalaureate experience in the Jesuit Volunteer Corps with truly activating her political science degree

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Carly Moore Sfregola

Senior Manager of Communications

Carly Moore Sfregola joined NAMD in July 2024. In her role, Carly is responsible for the day-to-day internal and external communications operations of NAMD, including media management, NAMD’s newsletters, the association’s website, and social media. She also provides support to Medicaid communicators and public information officers across 56 Medicaid programs in all 50 states, the territories and the District of Columbia.

Prior to joining NAMD, Carly was press secretary for the American Association for Justice, held several communications roles with the American Hospital Association, and worked for former Representative David Obey (D-WI).

Carly received a Master’s degree in Government with a specialization in Political Communication from the Johns Hopkins University. She graduated from Marquette University in Milwaukee, Wisconsin with a B.A. in Political Science and Public Relations.

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Anthony Tellish

Director of Operations

Anthony Tellish joined NAMD as Director of Operations in February 2024. Responsible for the day-to-day operations of the organization, he manages budgeting, finance, special events, personnel, vendors, and compliance.

Bringing over a decade of experience in non-profit management, Anthony most recently oversaw operations and special events at the National Public Education Support Fund in Washington, DC. Before that, he served as a middle school social studies teacher in Maryland. His background also includes valuable contributions to the Bipartisan Policy Center in Washington, DC, and The Doe Fund, a prominent homeless services organization in New York City.

With a Master’s Degree in Sociology of Education and Education Policy from New York University, a B.A. in Political Science from American University, and teaching certification from DePaul University, Anthony brings a diverse skill set to his role at NAMD.

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Stephany Zabala

Policy Associate

Stephany joined NAMD in September 2023. In her role, she supports NAMD’s state-to-state learning programming efforts, through conducting research and analysis on emerging policy issues, developing written resources/communications that inform the membership regarding effective Medicaid program management strategies. Further, she also supports in delivering in-person/virtual programming that facilitate connection and learning among Medicaid leaders.

Prior to joining NAMD, Stephany was a UCLA Public Health Scholar through the Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Public Health Scholars Program (CUPS), worked as a Public Health Research Fellow for the Alliance of Citizen Engagement creating policy briefs examining emerging public health issues/trends. She also served as a Community Organizing intern, for La Defensa (a non-profit organization in LA county) assisting in the development of policy recommendations that supported the investment in community-based services.

Stephany received a B.A in Sociology with a concentration in Latin American, Latinx, and Caribbean studies from the College of the Holy Cross.

Stay Informed

Drop us your email and we’ll keep you up-to-date on Medicaid issues.