Krista Drobac is a Partner at Sirona Strategies where she provides strategic advice on a broad range of legislative and regulatory issues at the state and federal levels. She focuses on Medicare, Medicaid, ACA Marketplaces, value-based care, commercial insurance, digital health, public health, and other areas. She also serves as the Executive Director of the Alliance for Connected Care, Founder of Moving Health Home, and Chair of Aligning for Health, all coalitions breaking down policy barriers to future health care models.

Krista has worked in the U.S. Senate, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, the State of Illinois, and the National Governors Association. Krista holds a BA from the University of Michigan and an MPP from the Harvard University Kennedy School of Government.

How did you become an executive in the health care industry? Have you always been interested in health care?

I won a fellowship to work on health care policy in the U.S. Senate when I finished graduate school. I ended up as a health advisor when Medicare Part D was created and Medicare Advantage was launched. I also worked for President Obama at CMS when the Affordable Care Act was passed and led the Health Division at the National Governors Association as states implemented the new law. These were all heady developments that deepened my belief that health care policy has a real impact on people’s lives. Today, I am still trying to improve health care through policy but with a keen eye toward the private sector. At this point, innovation in the private sector is way ahead of government policy.

In addition to your consulting work, you hold leadership positions in organizations dedicated to advancing telehealth and SDoH. Could you explain the background behind those commitments and how they intersect with your role at Sirona Strategies?

The structure of Sirona Strategies and the firm’s work to assist companies in creating the Alliance for Connected Care, Moving Health Home, and Aligning for Health is typical in Washington, but can certainly be confusing. Industry stakeholders are generally members of their established industry associations in Washington, but often seek more nimble and focused coalitions to achieve specific goals. We perceive interest in the market in particular areas that may not be fully addressed, and gather fellow travelers with aligned priorities. It helps that we are passionate about the issues, and are highly focused on action.

These coalitions are developed and led by the team at Sirona Strategies while we also manage our other clients. The key to managing it all is an amazing team. We are fortunate to have a group of substantive policy experts who are as passionate as we are about moving the needle.

You’ll be joining WBL in September for our 2022 Board Program – we are excited to see you there! What first inspired you to pursue board service?

I have been wanting to participate in the WBL Board Program for a while, and I am glad it worked out this year! I am on two advisory boards right now, and the experience is so exciting. I love everything about it. I think I have a lot to offer as companies look at growth opportunities in government programs, as well as potential threats from government regulation.

Personally or professionally, what might the WBL network be surprised to know about you?

My father always believed I was an entrepreneur, and he desperately wanted me to go to business school. He would send MBA applications to my office, which was awkward in front of my boss! My passion was public policy, and it was hard for me, and for him, to understand how I could make a career out of it. I was fortunate to find that graduate programs in public policy existed, and today I am an entrepreneur of a different kind, but still an entrepreneur… and my father seems satisfied.