Kaylee O’Connor is a manager with Manatt Health, an interdisciplinary policy and business advisory practice of Manatt. Kaylee provides policy analysis and development, strategic advice, program implementation support, and project management to a wide array of clients, including federal and state agencies, foundations, health plans, and other healthcare stakeholders. In particular, Kaylee has extensive experience working with states—such as Maryland, New Hampshire and Virginia—on various aspects of their Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) programs, including payment and delivery system transformation, program redesign and re-procurement, and Medicaid waiver development and negotiations. Kaylee also helps clients understand the implications of legislative and regulatory policies and provides creative solutions around Medicaid expansion, coverage policies, children’s health and social determinants of health, among others.
Prior to joining Manatt, Kaylee was a research consultant and senior research analyst at the Lewin Group, where she worked with state Medicaid agencies and Medicaid managed care organizations to ensure compliance with the Medicaid and CHIP Managed Care Final Rule and to provide high-quality services to Medicaid members. Using a variety of research methodologies and keen statistical insights, Kaylee also developed quality improvement strategies and evaluated federal payment and service delivery models.
While in graduate school, Kaylee worked as a health policy student analyst for the Maryland Department of Health, supporting the renewal of the state’s Section 1115 waiver and spearheading an initiative to ensure continuity of health coverage for justice-involved populations.