Panelists

Rachael Mazzella Zukus

Director of Strategy, MassHealth Massachusetts

Rachael Mazzella Zukus is the Director of Strategy at MassHealth, Massachusetts’ ~$20 billion Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance program. MassHealth serves over two million Massachusetts residents, including low-income individuals, children, pregnant women, and persons with disabilities. At MassHealth, Rachael leads a team working on cross functional projects and strategic initiatives for the agency, including new policy development, value-based care, and program implementation.

 Prior to MassHealth, Rachael was a Manager at the consulting firm Bain & Company, where she focused on healthcare and healthcare private equity. She has also spent time at Boston Children’s Hospital, Sandbox Industries, and Beacon Health Options, a managed behavioral health company. She holds a BA from Brown University and an MBA with high honors from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business. She currently lives in the South End with her husband and 2 year old son, Elijah, and is passionate about healthcare access and equity.  

Michael Sherman, M.D., MBA, M.S.

Executive Vice President Chief Medial Officer, Point32 Health

Dr. Michael Sherman is executive vice president chief medical officer of Point32Health, providing clinical medical leadership to enhance quality of care and outcomes for health care consumers. He is responsible for clinical innovation, quality and accreditation, medical policy, and the Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute, which includes the Department of Population Medicine at Harvard Medical School.

Michael was previously chief medical officer and senior vice president for health services at Harvard Pilgrim Health Care, which he joined in 2011 and which merged with Tufts Health Plan in 2021. A pioneer in developing innovative, outcomes-based reimbursement models that engage providers and pharmaceutical and diagnostics companies, he is credited with cementing Harvard Pilgrim’s position as a leader among insurers in crafting agreements that tie drug payments to performance.

Michael is responsible for overseeing the Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute, which encompasses the Department of Population Medicine at Harvard Medical School—the nation’s only appointing medical school department based in a health plan. He is also a faculty member of the department and previously practiced as a cardiac anesthesiologist. He holds board appointments with several nonprofits, including the Institute for Clinical and Economic Review, the Personalized Medicine Coalition, the Harvard Business School Healthcare Initiative, the Network for Excellence in Health Innovation and serves on the Rare Disease Advisory Council for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

His previous roles include corporate medical director for physician strategies at Humana, vice president for network and consumer solutions at UnitedHealth Group’s subsidiary Ingenix (now part of Optum), and chief business development officer for United’s Medicare Part D business.

He holds an M.D. from Yale University, an MBA from Harvard Business School, and master’s and bachelor’s degrees from the University of Pennsylvania.

Michael Tang, MD, MBA

Head of Behavioral Health, Cityblock Health

Michael Tang, MD, MBA, is the Head of Behavioral Health at Cityblock Health, and a board-certified adult psychiatrist, child psychiatrist and pediatrician.  He is committed to implementing integrated medical, behavioral and social value-based care for underserved populations by leading Cityblock’s behavioral health and substance use disorder strategy.  Michael previously served as the Chief Behavioral Health Officer at the Dimock Center and as the Boston Site Director of Health Leads.  He completed his residency in pediatrics at Boston Children’s Hospital and Boston Medical Center, and residency and fellowship in adult and child psychiatry at Massachusetts General Hospital and McLean Hospital.  Michael is a graduate of Harvard College, Harvard Medical School, and the Brandeis Heller School for Social Policy and Management.

Assaad Sayah, MD, FACEP

President and CEO, Cambridge Health Alliance

Assaad Sayah, MD, was named CHA's President and CEO in January 2020 after serving as the interim CEO since June 2019 and chief medical officer since 2013.

Dr. Sayah's leadership has been a critical component of CHA's growth and success over the past decade. Before being named the chief medical officer, he served as the chief of emergency medicine and senior vice president of primary care. In the Emergency Department, Dr. Sayah led tremendous advancements at all three CHA hospitals, resulting in enhanced efficiency, quality, volume and patient satisfaction. He spearheaded primary care growth by more than 50 percent, expanding CHA's access in underserved communities and integrating primary care and behavioral health services and systems to address social determinants of health. He also plays a key role in CHA's commitment to the communities it serves, including his tenure as the co-chair of the Cambridge City Manager's Opioid Working Group established in 2018 to develop recommendations for strengthening the city's response to the opioid epidemic.

Additionally, Dr. Sayah served as chairman of CHA's Chiefs Council and president of the CHA Medical Staff, and he continues to hold the rank of Assistant Professor at Harvard Medical School. His research and publications focus on operational efficiency, improving the clinical environment and patient experience of care.

Prior to joining CHA, Dr. Sayah held leadership roles at several area hospitals, including director of EMS for Brigham and Women's Hospital, associate chief for the Department of Emergency Medicine at St. Elizabeth's Medical Center and chairman of the Department of Emergency Medicine at Caritas Good Samaritan Medical Center. He received his medical doctorate from the University of Massachusetts Medical Center and completed his residency in emergency medicine at William Beaumont Hospital in Michigan.

Moderator

Vic Lanio

Partner, Flare Capital Partners

Vic is a Partner at Flare Capital Partners, a leading healthcare technology venture fund in Boston. Flare Capital Partners manages over $800 million in early-stage investments with a focus on the transformation of the business of healthcare and transition towards value-based care models. Representative investments include Aetion, Aspen RxHealth, Axuall, BeMe, Bright Health, Cohere Health, Eden Health, Elektra Health, HealthVerity, Inbound Health, Iora Health, Knownwell, Oshi, Rightmove and Somatus.

 Prior to joining Flare Capital, Vic worked in product at naviHealth, where he was responsible for enterprise product strategy. Vic was also a healthcare consultant at McKinsey & Company and PwC. He focused primarily on health system strategy within the context of the Affordable Care Act and the transition to value-based care. He helped build the Objective Health solution, a tech-enabled consulting model for small to mid-sized health systems. He also helped launch and served as the President and Executive Board Chair of Boston Young Healthcare Professionals, a 501(c)(3) organization aimed at providing educational, networking and community service opportunities for young healthcare professionals in Boston. Vic obtained his BS from Boston College and MBA from the MIT Sloan School of Management.