Staff
The professionals who join Alicia Smith & Associates come as individuals...each bringing a different perspective and experience, each possessing special skills, curiosities, intellects...
We have our researchers who dive into data, retrieving gems of information for the team to use...
Then there are our organizers who enter the most chaotic of situations and create an elegant sense of order...
We have our social issue devotees and our policy wonks; technical whizzes and eligibility gurus...
Alicia Smith & Associates is an array of ages, colors, genders, personalities... bonded by the same motivation- to contribute what's best in each of us to find comprehensive and strategic solutions. So whether your project needs the personal approach or is more data driven hand it to us at Alicia Smith & Associates and watch our team in action.
Diverse, yet like-minded. That's the concept.
That's Alicia Smith & Associates
Alicia C. Smith, J.D.
Ms. Smith brings almost 30 years of policy expertise and nationally recognized facilitation, consensus building, negotiation and relationship management skills to the firm's clients.
Ms. Smith has worked with more than 20 states on the planning, design and implementation of Medicaid State Plans, Section 1115 Waivers, and innovative solutions for expanding health care access to the uninsured. Ms. Smith has also partnered with private sector providers to improve their position in Medicaid and other health and human services programs.
Ms. Smith spent her early career in a variety of positions in state government, including director of Florida's Medicaid program, General Counsel to the state's Department of Human Resources, and Assistant Secretary for Program Planning, also with the state of Florida. She later spent nine years directing human resources policy at the National Governors' Association (NGA) where she worked on a broad range of policy issues including labor and employment, welfare reform, and health care issues. While at the NGA, Ms. Smith also negotiated federal legislation that expanded the flexibility of the Medicaid program and reformed the delivery of healthcare across the country.
Prior to founding Alicia Smith & Associates, LLC, Ms. Smith was the managing partner of another D.C. based consultancy.
Ms. Smith received her J.D. from Florida State University and her M.S. and B.S. in English from the same institution.
Marcia Morgan
Ms. Morgan has a distinguished, 27-year record in the public sector with a career history of being appointed to organizations experiencing dynamic change due to legislation or policy shifts at the state and federal government levels. Ms. Morgan has demonstrated unwavering commitment, professional competence and great versatility in the administration and management of complex government programs in five executive cabinets and two constitutional offices. Ms. Morgan is uniquely qualified to assist clients in meeting policy objectives while providing operational expertise and sound analysis to support policy and program changes in evolving and challenging state and federal government venues.
Prior to joining AS&A, Ms. Morgan served in a number of management and policy positions with increasing decision-making authority and visibility. As Secretary and Chief Executive Officer of the Cabinet for Health Services (CHS) for the Commonwealth of Kentucky, Ms. Morgan was responsible for the operations of a multi-faceted, $5+ billion health care agency of 4,200 employees that encompassed Medicaid, Public Health Departments, Mental Health & Mental Retardation Services including state operated hospitals and residential facilities, Certificate of Need, Aging Services and The Commission for Women's Mental and Physical Health.
During and prior to her tenure as Secretary of CHS, Ms. Morgan:
- Served as the Governor's healthcare advisor to the National Governors Association (NGA).
- Led the Cabinet through a reorganization and business process reengineering initiative.
- Established an Olmstead Compliance Plan for the Commonwealth of Kentucky; the Plan incorporated an integrated network approach for the maintenance and establishment of a full array of services providing viable choice for Kentuckians.
- Implemented a consensus forecast approach to the Medicaid budget utilizing linear regression analysis and econometric models to support budget construct in conjunction with traditional utilization, expenditure and eligible population data.
- Was a key player in the Cabinet's Managed Care Development Team. The Team was charged with implementing regional not-for-profit partnerships under a 1115 demonstration waiver. The team's duties included RFP development, evaluation of proposals, contract negotiations and public relations.
- Helped develop and implement Kentucky's Children Insurance (K-CHIP) Program pursuant to Title XXI of the Social Security Act.
Ms. Morgan also served as director of the Office of the Public Accounts, Division of Performance Audit, director of unemployment insurance in the Workforce Development Cabinet, assistant deputy attorney general, as well as in the Natural Resources Cabinet — all with the Commonwealth of Kentucky.
Ms. Morgan received her Bachelors in General Studies — major in Political Science, minor in History — from the University of Kentucky.
David Parrella
Mr. Parrella brings more than 20 years experience in the healthcare sector highlighted by a focus on program development, implementation, and advisement. Before joining AS&A, since March of 1987, Mr. Parrella was employed in the Connecticut Medicaid program. During that time he served in many leadership positions finally settling in his most recent role as the Director of the Medical Care Administration in February, 1997. In that capacity, he was the longest serving Medicaid Director in the nation.
During his employment service with the Medicaid program, Mr. Parrella was responsible for a number of different programmatic areas including Medical policy, Medicaid Management Information System (MMIS), and Third Party Liability (TPL). He led the design and development of revenue maximization initiatives of the states hospital disproportionate share program (DSH) and targeted case management (TCM). Mr. Parrella subsequently developed the Connecticut AIDS Drug Assistance and the AIDS Insurance Assistance Programs. In 1995, Mr. Parrella led the development and implementation of the Connecticut Access Medicaid Managed Care Program, now known as HUSKY Part A. Mr. Parrella was a key participant in the design of Connecticut's HUSKY Plan for uninsured children under Title XXI of the Social Security Act. He also managed the roll-out for the Governor's Charter Oak Health Plan for the uninsured.
Mr. Parrella is a 1972 graduate of Yale University and completed graduate study in anthropology at the University of Oregon and the University of Connecticut. During his doctoral program Mr. Parrella spent four field seasons in Peru working with a health development project sponsored by the United Nations and the Wenner Grenn Foundation for Scientific Research. He is committed to expanding access for the uninsured and improving the health status of low income and minority populations, including Native Americans. Prior to coming to the Medicaid program, Mr. Parrella served as the Health Director for the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation.
Mr. Parrella is the two-time Chairman of the National Association of State Medicaid Directors (NASMD). In that capacity he has served on numerous national health policy forums and recently led the successful effort to impose a moratorium on several Medicaid regulatory changes proposed by the administration.
Mr. Parrella is married to Brenda Parrella, and has two children, Rosanna and Daniel, and two step-children, Samuel and Rose.
Deidra B. Abbott, M.P.H.
Ms. Abbott has nearly twenty years of experience in public health policy development and program implementation at the federal and state levels and in the private sector.
Prior to joining AS&A, Ms. Abbott worked for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) as a Technical Director in the Division of Benefits and Coverage (Center for Medicaid and State Operations). In this capacity, Ms. Abbott provided oversight for federal policy development, implementation and coordination of community-based long term care programs, services and supports for aged and disabled persons. Ms. Abbott also provided technical assistance and support to state Medicaid directors and staff in the development and implementation of community-based long term care programs and services. She also led the initiative to revise the process used to review and approve state requests for home and community- based services waivers and to redesign and automate the application process. .
Ms. Abbott received her Masters degree in Public Health from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.
Jason Coleman
Mr. Coleman comes to Alicia Smith and Associates bringing 12 years of experience gained through involvement in various facets of technology companies, including quality assurance, applications development, network and software architecture, product management, customer service, and operations management. Mr. Coleman has a proven track record of proficiency in analyzing new environments and envisioning structures and systems to create or improve efficiency while achieving goals quickly and effectively.
As a former entrepreneur, Mr. Coleman’s high level vision, well rounded experience, and understanding of many aspects of business and technology have allowed him to achieve professional success. Most recently, Mr. Coleman served as a service manager and member of a six person service team for a start-up VOIP provider. His management responsibilities included leadership in customer service, technical support, ‘Green to Gold’ contract support and guidance, number porting, and as a development liaison.
Prior to his career in service management, Mr. Coleman worked closely with the CEO of a mobile documentation company where he helped to guide the organization into becoming a profitable production company.
Under the direction of Mr. Coleman, the company was able to provide speech-to-text services for email and business documentation via cell phone, featuring human transcriptionists. Mr. Coleman also designed a network and software architecture, guided development through product completion, and led the company transformation from a software development shop to a profitable, subscription-based production company.
With these combined experiences and several others, Mr. Coleman will make many significant contributions and serve in a key role at ASA developing and implementing health information systems and electronic health records as well as assist in the client navigation of Medicaid’s tech challenges. Additionally, Mr. Coleman will assist states to conduct MITA assessments as well as develop MMIS products and advance planning in MMIS development.
Mr. Coleman attended New College in Sarasota, FL and majored in Philosophy.
Tom Duvall
Mr. Duvall brings fresh perspective and energy in offering technical assistance and solutions to challenges and opportunities being faced by our clients. He is using his experience in policy and government in bringing a keen analytic approach in developing financial and provider taxes strategies to address revenue challenges facing the states.
Prior to joining AS&A, Mr. Duvall was active in local, state, and national campaigns and has previously interned for Congressman John Dingell and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee. He also has experience in public policy analysis through those positions and in tracking the passage and implementation of health care reform as a graduate assistant at AS&A.
In his time at the firm, Mr. Duvall has been focused on provider tax and other reimbursement issues and has done extensive modeling and analysis of various scenarios for our client's use. He has also worked on multiple 1115b waiver projects and has helped to respond to issues raised by CMS on our client's behalf. Mr. Duvall also continues to focus on the implementation of health care reform in tracking new regulations and analyzing their impact on health care providers.
Mr. Duvall received his B.A. in Political Science with Honors from the University of Michigan.
Katie Falls
Katie Falls has over twenty five years of experience in the health care arena. Prior to joining Alicia Smith & Associates LLC in January 2011, Ms. Falls served as the Cabinet Secretary for the New Mexico Human Services Department under Governor Bill Richardson. In this capacity, she was responsible for a $4.5 billion state agency that administered Medicaid, Behavioral Health Services, Child Support Enforcement and numerous public assistance programs such as Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). Ms. Falls also served as the Co-Chair of New Mexico's Behavioral Health Purchasing Collaborative, a collaboration among fifteen agencies to jointly purchase and administer publicly funded behavioral health services.
Ms. Falls holds a Masters Degree in Social Work from Smith College School of Social Work. She began her career as a clinical social worker in 1981, working in a range of clinical settings from outpatient to inpatient services. Ms. Falls also worked on the Navajo Reservation for several years providing mental health services through Indian Health Service to children, youth and adults.
Ms. Falls served as Chair of the New Mexico Health Care Reform State Leadership Team overseeing the planning and implementation of Health Care Reform in New Mexico. Since joining ASA, Ms. Falls has continued working on the implementation of health care reform, helping clients plan for the establishment of Health Insurance Exchanges and the reforms mandated by the Affordable Care Act.
Since joining ASA, Ms. Falls has been engaged in a number of projects related to planning and implementation of national health care reform. In addition, she has worked with managed care organizations to help them meet their contractual requirements and build systems designed to deliver quality health care.
Jennifer Feliciano
Mrs. Feliciano is an accomplished leader and a learning and development specialist, with a background in quality assurance, customer service operations, project management, and training.
Prior to joining ASA, Mrs. Feliciano worked as a Quality Assurance and Training Manager for Affiliated Computer Services (ACS) in Tallahassee, Florida. There, she managed training efforts for three contracted clients and was responsible for the delivery and ongoing support for more than 150 employees, including customer service representatives, remote field agents, managers and supervisors. She also facilitated focus groups for management and employees to establish and implement quality assurance policies, procedures and objectives.
As a Learning Development Consultant at ACS, Mrs. Feliciano trained employees for Florida's first Medicaid Reform Choice Counseling project, which included successful completion of certification, examination and oral evaluation. She also provided business analysis to clients and collaborated with senior leadership in order to provide the highest degree of training to meet their specific needs.
Mrs. Feliciano received a B.S. in Marketing as well as a B.S. in Entrepreneurship from Florida State University. She is also a Certified Professional Values Analysis.
Leena Hiilivirta, J.D.
Ms. Hiilivirta has almost fifteen years of experience in health policy and related consulting. She has worked with several states in the development, implementation and evaluation of Medicaid programs for acute care, behavioral health and long-term care services. These projects have involved helping states resolve program design issues, researching and drafting issue papers, writing solicitations and contracts, drafting waiver requests, conducting readiness reviews, and performing monitoring and evaluation activities.
Specific projects led by Ms. Hiilivirta have included: helping a state amend its 1915(c) waiver and develop a self-directed care waiver; working with a state to amend its Section 1115 demonstration program; assisting a state to finalize and negotiate a Section 1115 HIFA waiver; working with a state to increase federal funding for the juvenile justice system; assisting a state in developing a new taxonomy of mental health services; and conducting an external quality review of a state's Medicaid MCOs.
Prior to joining AS&A, Ms. Hiilivirta was a Corporate Manager at a health care consulting firm that specializes in Medicaid programs.
Ms. Hiilivirta received her J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center and her B.A in Psychology from Haverford College.
Bryan Jack
Bryan Jack brings a distinctive public policy background and an understanding of health care issues to clients at Alicia Smith & Associates. Throughout his time on Capitol Hill serving on the staffs of two Members of Congress, Mr. Jack has been engaged in a broad range of health care reform and implementation initiatives, including the landmark passage of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act in March 2010.
Prior to joining AS&A in July 2011, Mr. Jack was a Client Executive at one of Washington, D.C.'s bipartisan government relations firms. During his tenure, Mr. Jack assisted in the representation of various health care interests including health care reform, biomedical innovation, and Medicare payment reform. Clients included public and private entities in the hospital, outpatient dialysis, state medical board, and nursing sectors.
In the 111th Congress, Mr. Jack served as the Legislative Correspondent for a Member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee. In that position, Mr. Jack managed the correspondence program, articulated the Congressman's legislative agenda to his constituents, and advised the Congressman on correspondence activity and legislative concerns. Mr. Jack also has experience working for a high-ranking member of the House of Representatives Leadership in the 111th Congress.
Prior to his work on Capitol Hill, Mr. Jack served as a Communications Specialist and Speechwriter for a commemorative Presidential Commission in 2009. Mr. Jack also has national political campaign experience.
Mr. Jack graduated with Honors from the University of Maryland, College Park, receiving a Bachelor of Arts degree in History in 2008.
Stefanie Kurlanzik
Prior to joining Alicia Smith & Associates, Ms. Kurlanzik practiced law with Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP and Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft LLP where she specialized in corporate restructuring. Ms. Kurlanzik's exposure to financial restructurings and large lending transactions led to the development of excellent research, communication, strategy and advocacy skills. During her studies, Ms. Kurlanzik was active in state and national politics with a focus in health care issues. As an intern for the Health, Education, Labor, Pension Committee under Senator Kennedy, Ms. Kurlanzik attended and reported on various hearings related to Medicaid, Medicare and the Family Medical Leave Act. In addition, as an undergraduate, she drafted legislation for the State of Wisconsin to promote stem cell research.
Ms. Kurlanzik's legal training and experiences combined with her interest in health care issues makes her a great addition to the AS&A team. Ms. Kurlanzik will help our clients navigate health care reform as well as traditional Medicaid issues. Since joining the firm, Ms. Kurlanzik has focused on policy analysis related to Medicaid reform and health insurance exchanges and has drafted Medicaid state plan amendments and public outreach documents describing Medicaid program changes.
Ms. Kurlanzik received a J.D. from Boston University School of Law where she was on the staff of the American Journal of Law & Medicine and a B.A. in History and Sociology of Science from the University of Pennsylvania where she graduated magna cum laude. Ms. Kurlanzik is licensed to practice law in the State of New York.
William Lasowski
Mr. Lasowski comes to our firm having recently retired with over 37 years of Federal government experience. The last 32 of those years were spent at the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), and formerly the Health Care Financing Administration (HCFA), working in the Medicaid and Children's Health Insurance (CHIP) Programs on healthcare policy and operational issues. Mr. Lasowski served in a number of key management and policy making positions with increasing decision making authority and responsibility during his years at CMS. For the last six years Mr. Lasowski served as the Deputy Director, for the Center for Medicaid and CHIP Services (CMCS). In that position Mr. Lasowski provided day to day management of CMCS including; overseeing some 400 staff, performing budget development and execution, strategic planning, and program implementation.
Mr. Lasowski is a recognized national expert on all aspects of Medicaid and CHIP program and financial policy and operations. He was instrumental in developing national policies and procedures which support effective Medicaid and CHIP program implementation and administration. He advised senior CMS and HHS decision-makers on public policy and operational options and public policy and operational strategies. He has wide-raging experience in dealing and negotiating with Congressional staff, Office of Management and Budget, other Federal agencies, States, Advocacy Groups, contractors, and the general public on healthcare policy and operational matters.
Prior to coming to HCFA/CMS Mr. Lasowski worked with the Food Stamp Program at the Department of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Service. During that time he spent 2 years in Puerto Rico working with the Food Stamp Program there to develop and implement Food Stamp eligibility and accounting system throughout the island. Mr. Lasowski initially entered the Federal government in 1974 in the Department of Defense career intern program where we worked at Fort Eustis, Virginia in the Comptroller's Office performing various accounting, budgeting, and management analysis functions for the Department of the Army.
Mr. Lasowski did his undergraduate work at Colgate University and his graduate work at the University of Maryland. He is married to Melvia Lasowski and has two daughters, Michelle and Tasha.
Jessica Osborne
Ms. Osborne has been a champion of children's issues for the past 17 years, with experience that covers contracting, program development, child welfare service delivery, oversight and management in a variety of settings.
Prior to joining ASA, Ms. Osborne worked as Director of Operations for the Safe Children Coalition in Sarasota, Florida. Her duties there covered a broad array of child welfare services: working with all federal, state and local laws, rules and procedures affecting project participants; providing administrative management and oversight to all activities related to Interstate Compact on Placement of Children (ICPC), courtesy supervision referrals, and adoption subsidies; serving as liaison to the Florida Department of Children and Families, the state's Developmental Disabilities agencies and foster parent organizations; assessing family needs and risks; and training child welfare staff.
Ms. Osborne's outstanding leadership abilities were acknowledged by the State of Florida when top officials tapped her for participation in the state’s Child Welfare Leadership Program.
Ms. Osborne has a B.A. in Social Work and Psychology from the University of South Florida and is certified in Child Protection from the State of Florida.