Guide Consulting Services (GCS), Inc., Wash., D.C.President & CEO 2002-PresentDirects a consulting practice that helps corporate, government and non-profit clients navigate Washington policy processes to achieve measurable goals. GCS assists clients with both government relations as well as communications problems and projects. To date, the firm has worked in the following areas:Health Care Reform: Secured the passage of four (4) amendments in both the Senate Finance Committee and the House Energy & Commerce Committee addressing topics like medical homes and the structure of insurance exchange health benefits.Medicaid Reform: Initiated a mental health, disability and child welfare coalition in 2007/2008 that stopped CMS rehabilitative services and targeted case management rules, which proposed combined Medicaid funding cuts of $6 billion; participated in the creation of the Home and Community-Based Services state waiver option in 1988.Veterans Mental Health Care: The firm worked with the Eli Lilly Co. to insert strong language in the FY 2002 veterans spending bill prohibiting the Department of Veterans Affairs from instituting policies and procedures that restricted access to vital medicines for veterans with severe mental illnesses.

Directed the start-up activities of the Campaign, which grew out of the White House Conference on Mental Health. NMHAC’s overall objective is to use modern mass communications to combat the fear and shame associated with mental illnesses, while increasing the number of Americans who access mental health services. Highlights include: Television Public Service Advertising: Managed a focus group research process resulting in the “Change Your Mind” public service ads that appeared on MTV Music Television and broadcast networks. This process entailed serving as the principal coordinator and conduit of information between the White House, MTV, our polling firm and the Columbia University Department of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry. Communications Vehicles: Took charge of creating both the Campaign web site (NoStigma.org) as well as a nationwide toll-free telephone system. I also edited a fourteen (14) page brochure. Creating these materials and vehicles involved finding the contractor, writing the telephone script, formulating the components of the web site, approving the web site design and writing most of the content. Facilitating Media Company Involvement: Actively recruited major media companies to donate air time and related in-kind contributions to the Campaign; personally recruited ABC Entertainment Television, iVillage.com and Max Racks; I helped to broker AOL/Time Warner’s participation.