Executive Director Jean Yang to Leave Mass Health Connector This Month
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Wednesday, January 07, 2015
Patrick Sargent, GoLocal Worcester Contributor
Jean Yang, the Executive Director of the Massachusetts Health Connector, announced on Tuesday that she will be leaving the agency. Maydad Cohen, who has been Special Assistant to the Governor and who oversees work by the Health Connector, MassHealth, MassIT and vendors hCentive and Optum, will step in as Interim Executive Director. Cohen will continue to serve as Special Assistant to the Governor for Project Delivery.
“Jean was an instrumental part of the team that re-launched a working website on Nov. 15. We wouldn’t have a well-functioning system without her. And we wouldn’t have covered as many people as we’ve covered already without her. I am grateful for her service. I thank the incoming Administration for the trust they are placing in me and look forward to running through the finish line of Open Enrollment with as many people insured as possible," said Cohen.
Yang has been Executive Director since January 2013. She had previously served as CFO of the Health Connector. Yang said, "“I am grateful to have had the opportunity to lead the Health Connector through the transition to the Affordable Care Act. We faced difficult challenges but more people have insurance today and more people can get help paying for that insurance than before the ACA, and that is what matters. The Health Connector is a team of smart, dedicated, and creative people that will continue the work of expanding access to affordable coverage to everyone in Massachusetts. I am proud of them and proud to be part of an organization so central to the Commonwealth’s nation-leading health care reform efforts.”
“Jean was just the right person to lead the Health Connector during the transition to the Affordable Care Act. She has been smart, capable, and creative in leading the state’s continuing efforts to expand health coverage. No one has worked harder or been a better example of steady, thoughtful, and classy leadership than Jean. I am very thankful for her service and her dedication to the goal of expanding health care access across Massachusetts," said Board of Directors member Nancy Turnbull.
As reported by GoLocal Worcester, today the Massachusetts Health Connector, MassHealth, Health Care for All, health insurance carriers and Navigator community groups will host a health insurance enrollment fair at the DCU Center from 12 p.m. to 8 p.m.
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