Donald balasa, JD, MBA

Donald A. Balasa, JD, MBA, serves as Legal Counsel of the American Association of Medical Assistant (AAMA) based in Chicago. He has spoken at national, regional, and state medical management conferences about: legal changes in scope of practice necessitated by telemedicine; value-based care; and the emergence of new staffing structures for ambulatory care delivery settings. He presented "A Comparative Analysis of Recent Ambulatory Care Staffing Models" for the 2023 Medical Group Management Association (MGMA) Financial and Operations Conference.

Balasa received both his baccalaureate and law degrees from Northwestern University and his MBA in economics from the University of Chicago. 

Session:

Breakout Session 401 -Reimbursement for Patient Navigation: How Medical Assistants Can Provide Reimbursable Patient Navigator Services

MEGAN BAREFIELD

Megan Barefield is a senior nursing leader at Carilion Clinic with expertise in ambulatory operations, specialty access, and system-wide collaboration. She leads initiatives that streamline care delivery, improve access to specialty services, and strengthen alignment between physicians, operational leaders, and centralized teams. Known for her relationship-centered leadership style, Megan is committed to advancing high-quality, patient-focused outcomes while reducing barriers within complex healthcare systems. She earned her Doctor of Nursing Practice with a focus in Nurse Executive Leadership from Radford University.

Session:

Breakout Session 203 - Ambulatory Patient Access and Operations

JONRYAN CAMPBELL

JonRyan M. Campbell is the Senior Director of System Director of System Ambulatory Operations at Carilion Clinic with over eight years of experience in the ambulatory healthcare sector. He provides operational leadership focused on improving access, perforamce, and care delivery across ambulatory services. JonRyan holds a Master of Healthcare Administration from Marshall University and a Bachelor of Science in Public Health with a concentration in Community Health from East Carolina University.

Session:

Breakout Session 203 - Ambulatory Patient Access and Operations

Ryan gallik

Ryan S. Gallik and Michael L. Stahl are Managing Partners of The Mental Hygiene Project® and are dynamic, engaging international speakers. They bring together the perfect blend of the worlds of business and mental health. They understand from unique perspectives the toll that stress, burnout, compassion fatigue and other “mental health injuries” take on individuals and organizations. Their goal is to provide you and your organization a pathway to resilience and total wellness. 
From a long career as a Firefighter/Paramedic, Ryan has seen and experienced firsthand the effects of trauma and stress on people, organizations and entire communities. The author of Silent Mayday, The Clinician's Guide to Working with First Responders, Ryan has over 15 years of experience working with Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM) and Peer Support Teams. 

Ryan and Michael have discussed mental health and wellness on the air with media outlets such as CNN Financial News, News 6 (a CBS affiliate), XL 106.7 and even broadcast live from the backlot of Universal Studios taking live questions about mental health in the workplace. Their online programs have won the 2022 and 2024 EMS World Innovation Awards.  

Session:

Breakout Session 201 - Healthy Leadership in Action: The Traummunicate™ Approach to Building Stronger Teams 

lisa garrett, rn, msha, cpc, cpc-i, cpc-p, crc

Lisa J. Garrett is currently a director in a Virginia health plan, supporting risk adjustment operations, coding, compliance, and provider engagement. 

Lisa is an RN, serving 11 years as an adult critical care nurse. She has been an AAPC certified coder and instructor for 15 years.   

Lisa’s 30 years of healthcare experience includes: 
• Hospital revenue integrity/chargemaster 
• Physician billing, coding, and auditing
• Physician and health plan risk adjustment operations
• Over 10 years of healthcare leadership

Lisa earned a Master of Science in Health Administration from Virginia Commonwealth University and a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Molloy College. She is currently pursuing a PhD in Health Services from Walden University. 

Session:

Breakout Session 202 - Risk Adjustment Overview

BARBARA GILLINDER, EMBA, BSN, RN, LHRM, CPHQ

Barbara Gillinder, EMBA, BSN, RN, LHRM, CPHQ, serves as the Senior Manager for Value Based Care Strategy & Performance at Sharecare. She brings over 20 years of healthcare experience and a unique blend of frontline clinical practice and quality leadership expertise to her role. 

Barbara began her career as a registered nurse in high-acuity Emergency Department, trauma, and Ambulatory Surgery Center (ASC) settings, building a strong clinical foundation before transitioning into leadership roles. She later served as Director of Nursing for an ASC, where she successfully led the organization through AAAHC accreditation and implemented initiatives to strengthen patient safety, operational performance, and financial outcomes. She has also held key quality leadership positions, including Director of Quality at a large health system, where she focused on regulatory compliance, patient safety, performance improvement, data analytics, and clinical documentation integrity (CDI). In this role, she implemented system-wide initiatives using Lean and performance improvement methodologies to drive both clinical and operational excellence.

At Sharecare, Barbara leads the clinical team that partners directly with clients to maximize MIPS results and succeed in value-based care (VBC) programs. She is passionate about translating data into actionable insights that drive measureable improvements for providers and the patients they serve.

Session:

• Breakout Session 301 - What's New for 2027: MIPS Updates & the Ambulatory Specialty Model - A Practice Administrator's Action Guide

ron howrigon

Ron Howrigon is President and CEO of Fulcrum Strategies, a consulting firm that represents physician practices across the U.S. in their dealings with managed care companies.  Over the last 22 years, Fulcrum Strategies has worked with over 5,000 physicians in 30 states covering all specialties. Prior to founding Fulcrum, Ron spent 18 years in the managed care industry as a negotiator and network manager. He once held senior management-level positions with Kaiser Permanente, Cigna, and Blue Cross and Blue Shield. 

Ron earned his bachelor’s degree in business from Western Michigan University and a master’s in economics from North Carolina State University. 

Session:

• Breakout Session 102 - The Destruction of the American Physician – Will the Last Doctor Please Turn on the Lights 
• Breakout Session 302 - Flatlining: How Health Care Could Kill the U.S. Economy – and How We Can Stop it
• Breakout 402 - Managing a Medical Practice During Difficult Financial Times - Tips for Improving the Bottom Line

gary hyman

Gary Hyman currently serves as the Senior Vice President of Value-Based Care for Sharecare Inc., where he focuses on developing Value-Based solutions for medical providers.  Prior to joining Sharecare, Gary established the Hawkins Foundation in 2005 with renowned orthopedic surgeon Richard Hawkins, where he worked diligently to address the imbalance between the significant impact of orthopedic disorders and the limited investments in research and education to improve patient outcomes.  
 
His efforts, alongside orthopedic surgeons, have led to hundreds of research publications and fellowship-trained surgeons; national efforts to define orthopedic quality in the context of emerging federally mandated value-based reimbursement policies; and the creation of a CMS-approved Qualified Clinical Data Registry focused on specialty reporting. 

Session:

Breakout Session 301 - What's New for 2027: MIPS Updates & the Ambulatory Specialty Model — A Practice Administrator's Action Guide

JONATHAN JOSEPH

Jonathan M. Joseph, a partner and Health Care group chair at Christian & Barton, L.L.P. in Richmond, Virginia, advises clients on artificial intelligence, privacy and contract matters. He is a former adjunct professor of health law for the Master of Health Administration program at Virginia Commonwealth University, and an established author. He recently assisted on a 50-state survey of data confidentiality and breach notification laws for the American Health Law Association. He holds degrees from Boston University School of Law and Middlebury College. 

Session:

Breakout Session 101 - Legal Considerations in the Use of AI in Medical Practices

mykael kurth

Mykael Kurth is a compliance leader with 10 years of experience driving integrity within the healthcare sector. Throughout her career, Mykael has navigated the complexities of compliance for providers, health plans, health systems, and most recently, the healthcare technology space. 

A dedicated champion of ethical culture, Mykael is a firm believer in helping others achieve their professional milestones. She has hosted study groups for those seeking CCEP and CHC certifications and remains committed to supporting compliance professional nationwide. A Richmond, Virginia native, Mykael is a proud alumna of Mary Baldwin University and the VWIL Corps of Cadets. She enjoys life in Richmond with her husband and two children.

Session:

Breakout Session 502 - BINGO: A Rewarding New Way to Map Your Goals

Cinzia lAWRENCE

Over 30 years of experience and expertise in healthcare industry leadership roles. Successful consultant, CEO, COO. Financial and operational expertise including revenue cycle management, productivity models and hybrid models, P&L, projections, proformas, budgets, workflow, analysis, restructure and turn around; highest level of integrity. 

Board Director at Healthcare Leaders of Virginia, CEO of Pulmonary Associates of Richmond, CEO of CGL Healthcare Associates, Associate at The LaPenna Group, CEO of NRad Medical Associates PC, Executive Director of Urology Associates, Regional Director at Queens-Long Island Medical Group. 

Session:

Breakout Session 303 - Revenue Cycle Management in Medical Practices

bill lopez

As Co-founder and Vice President of Business Development and Innovation at Strategic Solutions, Bill Lopez leads initiatives that help healthcare organizations evaluate, design, and optimize business processes and systems to drive growth and maintain compliance. 

He works closely with technical teams to develop and deliver innovative solutions that align with client goals and industry standards. With over 25 years of experience Bill brings proven expertise in driving business transformation, advancing information security strategies, and delivering measurable ROI through technology performance improvements.

Session:

Breakout Session 501 - AI in Action: Real- World Use Cases for Medical Practices Transforming Efficiency, Accuracy, and Patient Experience with Applied AI

COLIN MCCARTHY

Colin McCarthy is a healthcare attorney at Kaufman & Canoles in Richmond, with more than fifteen years advising physician practices and other healthcare providers. His practice focuses on regulatory compliance and payer reimbursement disputes, including underpayment and overpayment matters, Stark, Anti-Kickback Statute, HIPAA, COPN, and healthcare transactions. He previously practiced healthcare law at McGuireWoods and Hancock Daniel. Colin earned his JD from William & Mary and BA from Christopher Newport University.

Session:

Breakout Session 503 - Getting Paid What You're Owed: Leveraging Virginia's Ethics and Fairness in Carrier Business Practices Act 

MICHAEL STAHL

Michael L. Stahl and Ryan S. Gallik are Managing Partners of The Mental Hygiene Project® and are dynamic, engaging international speakers. They bring together the perfect blend of the worlds of business and mental health. They understand from unique perspectives the toll that stress, burnout, compassion fatigue and other “mental health injuries” take on individuals and organizations. Their goal is to provide you and your organization a pathway to resilience and total wellness. 

Michael has worked to create cultures of high performance within organizations for the last 25 years. He is a Master Trainer for the Harrison Assessment Behavioral Traits Profile and has done nearly 2,000 individual psychological analyses and debriefs for leaders around the world. He understands how stress affects performance at every level in organizations and works to provide leaders with the tools they need to engage in “healthy leadership”. He has written extensively on the subjects of leadership and inspired performance and is the author of the Focus Your Power series of manuals to enhance personal development and business success. He also contributed to the best-selling book, 101 Great Ways to Improve Your Life. 

Session:

Breakout Session 201 - Healthy Leadership in Action: The Traummunicate™ Approach to Building Stronger Teams

Garth WERMTER

Garth Wermter is part of Cyber Advisors, a firm focused on managed security services for business-critical systems. Mr. Wermter focuses on exploiting new technologies and systems in ways that advance business through strategic implementation of technology. He has a particular interest in cybersecurity, networking, and datacenter solutions that improve business operations.

Mr. Wermter was previously a faculty member at the University of Virginia and served as the senior IT consultant to the 9/11 Commission. He is a patented inventor, an apple farmer, has hiked Machu Picchu and Mount Fuji, and knows an interesting story or two about LBJ's pants.

Session:

Breakout Session 403 - Small Practice, Strong Defenses: How to Prioritize Cybersecurity Spending