NAIC Names 2018 Consumer Liaison Representatives

WASHINGTON (Jan. 31, 2018) —The National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) recently named 37 consumer liaison representatives for 2018. The 22 funded and 15 unfunded consumer representatives began their terms Jan. 1. Twenty of the funded consumer representatives participated in the program in 2017.

Established in 1992, the Consumer Liaison Program promotes consumer interaction with the NAIC’s members, the insurance industry and interested parties through the individuals’ dedication and commitment to serving the public interest.

“Our consumer liaison representatives are experts in their fields and we rely on them to provide our regulators with direction and support,” said Julie Mix McPeak, NAIC President and Tennessee Commissioner of Commerce and Insurance. “Their contributions help protect consumers, which is always one of our top priorities.”

The 2018 Funded Consumer Liaison Representatives
New funded representatives are noted with an asterisk.

Bailey Acevedo: Health Attorney, Community Service Society of New York

Amy Bach: Executive Director, United Policyholders

Birny Birnbaum: Executive Director, Center for Economic Justice

Brendan M. Bridgeland: Director, Center for Insurance Research

Bonnie Burns: Training and Policy Specialist, California Health Advocates

Thomas M. Callahan: Executive Director, Massachusetts Affordable Housing Alliance

David Chandrasekaran: Training Consultant and Certified Application Counselor (CAC)*

Brenda J. Cude: Professor, Department of Housing and Consumer Economics, University of Georgia

Debra K. Judy: Policy Director, Colorado Consumer Health Initiative

Katherine (Katie) Keith: Consultant Advisor and Steering Committee Member, Out2Enroll

Karrol Kitt: Emeritis Associate Professor, The University of Texas at Austin School of Human Ecology Department of Human Development & Family Sciences

Peter R. Kochenburger: Associate Clinical Professor of Law, Executive Director, Insurance Law Center, University of Connecticut School of Law

Sonja L. Larkin-Thorne: Consumer Advocate

Sarah Lueck: Senior Policy Analyst, Center on Budget and Policy Priorities

Claire McAndrew: Director of Campaign Strategy, Families USA*

Lincoln Nehring: President and Chief Executive Officer, Voices for Utah Children

Jesse Ellis O’Brien: Healthcare Advocate, U.S. Public Interest Research Group

James Roberts: Senior Executive Liaison, Inter-Governmental Affairs, Alaskan Native Tribal Health Consortium*

Harper Jean Tobin: Director of Policy/Policy Counsel, National Center for Transgender Equality*

JoAnn Volk: Research Professor and Project Director, Georgetown University, Center on Health Insurance Reforms

Jackson Williams: Director of Government Affairs, Dialysis Patient Citizens

Silvia Yee: Senior Staff Attorney and Analyst, Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund

The 2018 Unfunded Consumer Representatives
New representatives noted with an asterisk.

Ashley Blackburn: Senior Policy Analyst, Community Catalyst

Laura Colbert: Executive Director, Georgians for a Healthy Future*

Lucy Culp: State and Community Advocacy Advisor, American Heart Association

Deborah Darcy: Director of Government Relations, American Kidney Fund

Eric Ellsworth: Director, Health Data Strategy, Consumers Checkbook/Center for the Study of Services*

Marguerite Herman: Lobbyist, Wyoming High School Mock Trial/Healthy Wyoming

Anna Howard: Principal, Policy Development, Access to and Quality of Care, American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network

Elizabeth (Betsy) Imholz: Special Projects Director, Consumers Union

Amy Killelea: Director, Health Systems Integration, National Alliance of State and Territorial AIDS Directors

Michelle Lilienfeld: Senior Attorney, National Health Law Program

Brendan Riley: Health Policy Analyst, North Carolina Justice Center

Carl Schmid: Deputy Executive Director, The AIDS Institute*

Matthew Smith: Director of Government Affairs, Coalition Against Insurance Fraud*

Andrew Sperling: Director of Legislative Advocacy, National Alliance on Mental Illness

Lorri Shealy Unumb: Vice President, State Government Affairs, Autism Speaks