Webinar: The Rise of Medicare/Medicaid Dual-Eligibles: Strategies and Responses

Wednesday, June 11, 2025
1:00p.m. Eastern/10:00 a.m. Pacific - 90-minutes

Overview

An aging population and other demographic shifts have led to a dramatic growth in “dual-eligible” Medicare/Medicaid beneficiaries. The number of dual-eligibles in the U.S. grew by 20% from 2016 to 2022 alone, from 10 million to 12 million. This group is not only poorer than average, but much more likely to suffer from chronic illnesses and have substantial healthcare needs beyond that.

Along with the growth in the dual-eligible population, there has been a significant shift toward their enrollment in Medicare Advantage plans, particularly special needs plans. There were more than 5.3 million dual-eligibles enrolled in such plans in 2023, and that number continues to grow.

The growth of the dual-eligible population and the fact that a large proportion of them are being cared for by managed care plans suggest the payer and provider communities will continue to undergo extensive changes and preparations to properly manage this population. Accountable care programs are more often being weaved into special needs plans for dual-eligibles, and the ACO Reach model for high needs populations has also shown some significant results since its launch in 2022.

However, uncertainty also hovers around dual-eligibles as Congress appears poised to cut as much as $880 billion from the Medicaid program over the next decade and possibly impose work requirements or change the cost-sharing equations with states.

This 90-minute event features Allison Rizer, Executive Vice President of Payer Solutions, ATI Advisory; Amber Christ, Managing Director of Health Advocacy for Justice in Aging; and Cassidy Acosta, Deputy Director, Medicaid Policy and Programs, Aurrera Health Group.

Join us on Wednesday, June 11 at 1 p.m. Eastern/10 a.m. Pacific for a webinar exploring the path forward for this vulnerable population.

New for 2025
The HealthExecWire Webinar Season Pass

You'll get both live and on-demand access to HealthExecWire's next six webinars, including "The Rise of Medicare/Medicaid Dual-Eligibles: Strategies and Responses ," for only $477!

Learn More

Learning Objectives

• How the dual-eligible population has grown over the years and the trends driving that growth
• What ACOs address dual-eligibles and what their successes and challenges have been
• How the payer market for dual-eligibles has evolved in recent years
• The future for dual eligibles in terms of population and health outcomes
• How changes to the Medicaid program may impact the dual-eligible population
  

Potential Audience

• Health Plan Executives
• Hospital Executives
• Non-Profit Executives
• Healthcare Academics and Researchers
• Physicians and Physician Executives
• Public Policy Leaders
• Patients and Consumers
  

Faculty

Allison Rizer, Executive Vice President of Payer Solutions, ATI Advisory

Allison Rizer oversees state program and policy, managed care strategy and operations, and prescription drug reimbursement at ATI. She is a nationally recognized expert in dual eligible policy and brings over 20 years of experience to ATI Advisory, including 15 years focused on managed care and government programs.

Prior to ATI, Rizer most recently served as vice president of health policy and strategy with UnitedHealthcare, where she led the organization’s national policy efforts specific to individuals dually eligible for Medicare and Medicaid. In this role, she worked closely with state and national health plan leadership, policymakers, and other experts to bridge health policy and business worlds to inform sustainable program design and growth strategies. 

Rizer previously served as a Medicaid Policy Director for UnitedHealthcare, working with individual states and Medicaid health plans to provide strategic guidance on emerging policy and program trends. She also spent seven years with The Lewin Group, leading federal contracts with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services and other agencies across programs targeting older adults and people with disabilities. Her work at Lewin led to the development and refinement of Medicare Advantage network adequacy standards, numerous special needs plan program and process improvements including to the Model of Care, CMS clarification of the Medicare therapy benefit, education for state health insurance assistance programs (SHIPs), and other program improvements with the Medicare Beneficiary Ombudsman Office. While at Lewin, Rizer also had the opportunity to co-lead the development of a successful healthy weight pilot for older adult lesbian and bisexual women. 

Rizer earned a master’s degree of health science in health policy from Johns Hopkins University, and a master’s of business administration in healthcare from the University of St. Thomas. She also earned a bachelor of arts degree in psychology and a bachelor of arts in biology from George Mason University.

Amber Christ, Managing Director of Health Advocacy for Justice in Aging

Amber Christ leads Justice in Aging’s team of health attorneys and policy advocates in developing and implementing the team’s projects and initiatives to improve equitable access to health care and long-term services and supports for low-income and marginalized older adults across the country. Amber is a national Medicare and Medicaid expert with a focus on programs and policies impacting people who are dually eligible for both programs.

Her passion for policy advocacy is a result of her experience at Legal Aid of Western Missouri where she worked for six years helping low-income adults with issues accessing Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security. She joined Justice in Aging in 2013 to identify and advocate for systemic solutions to the problems she saw her clients facing every day. Amber serves on the boards of the Family Caregiver Alliance and Legal Aid of Western Missouri.

She is a 2006 graduate of Washington University School of Law in St. Louis and earned bachelor’s degrees in psychology and Spanish from Earlham College. She is admitted to practice law in California, Illinois and Missouri.

Cassidy Acosta, Deputy Director, Medicaid Policy and Programs, Aurrera Health Group

Cassidy’s work is currently focused on California’s expansion of Dual Eligible Special Needs Plans (D-SNPs), where they provide effective strategies for program implementation.

Since joining the firm in August 2019, Cassidy has worked closely with the California Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) on the California Advancing and Innovating Medi-Cal (CalAIM) initiative, leading efforts to integrate care for dually eligible beneficiaries. In addition to their work on D-SNP implementation, Cassidy also played a key role in California’s Coordinated Care Initiative and the Cal MediConnect demonstration project and transition by leading local outreach and stakeholder engagement efforts.

Prior to joining Aurrera Health Group, Cassidy worked for Disability Rights California (DRC). During their tenure at DRC, they engaged in mental health policy and legislative analysis, developed accessible materials for beneficiaries and providers, and created and facilitated trainings in psychiatric facilities, state hospitals, and the community on various rights-based topics such as Medi-Cal, Medicare, Social Security, conservatorship, and disability discrimination. In 2018, Cassidy was awarded DRC’s Advocacy Achievement Award for their advocacy, legal research, and educational outreach to beneficiaries with mental health disabilities.

Cassidy earned a master’s degree in social work from the California State University, San Bernardino, and a bachelor’s degree in psychology and social behavior with a minor in women’s studies from the University of California, Irvine. 

Registration Details

• Live Webinar: $249
• Webinar Recording: $249
• Live Webinar and video Recording: $349 for attendees

For Corporate Site licensing information please email adamg@mcol.com. We look forward to your attendance!

MCOL Premium members receive a 50% discount on all Healthcare Web Summit events. Members can get the discount code by logging onto the Premium Member Website and then going to the Premium Member HealthWebsummit page. Non-members can learn about MCOL Premium memberships and sign-up to get the 50% discount on this and future events.

Cure for the Common Webinar

In addition to the main presentation, this webinar will include a moderated audience Q&A. Within one business day of your registration, you'll receive login information. You will receive reminder emails 1 day and 1 hour before the live event.

One day after the live webinar, you'll receive a follow-up email which will include a link to the presentation slides. You’re also welcome to provide feedback via this email as well as submit additional questions to be forwarded to the speakers. For support before, during or after the event, please contact HealthcareWebSummit office at 209.577.4888.