Metro Philadelphia Healthcare Power Players 2022

Dr. Menachem M. Meller, MD, PhD, FAAOS, is a board-certified orthopaedic surgeon who has been practicing for over 33 years. He received his medical degree from Rush Medical College. Dr. Meller specializes in orthopaedic medicine and is experienced in trauma and acute injuries, adult reconstruction joint replacement surgery, sports medicine, and arthroscopic surgery, as well as injuries and illness that may have a medical or metabolic basis.

What can Pennsylvania policymakers do to ensure equitable access to quality healthcare?
In most cases, access to healthcare requires having healthcare insurance. Individuals at the top and at the bottom of the socioeconomic scale are adequately insured. The middle strata are often placed in an unenviable position where purchasing a healthcare policy must be balanced against other life necessities. Policymakers can adjust Medicaid guidelines to include levels of inflation and cost of living adjustments to make healthcare more affordable. Furthermore, policymakers can make it difficult for for-profit health systems to enter a market and preferentially close mostly urban safety net hospitals in favor of reaping healthcare profits.

When and why did I decide to pursue a career in healthcare?
Like many other healthcare providers, I went into healthcare for altruistic reasons–I wanted to help people. This is life’s greatest calling. I started my career as an engineer developing synthetic fuels, and we were told that we would run out of oil by 1990. This sounded rather urgent, so I decided to help people stay warm and fed on a much larger scale. When this projection did not turn out to be accurate, I changed directions to be helpful on a more intimate scale.

How do you see the healthcare industry evolving in the next five years?
Healthcare will have to evolve by returning to basics and delivering true patient-centered care. The current transition to electronic medical records and medical record data banks provides the opportunity to define good medicine and quality care. There will need to be more transparency in billing to standardize value and provide a basis for rational healthcare choices. Hospitals and health systems will be scored by how well they integrate medical science into their business models.

Dr. John Michel is board-certified in internal medicine and is the CEO of Excel Medical Center, LLC. The center focuses on providing preventive medicine and treatment of diseases and operates 14 clinics across Philadelphia. Dr. Michel is a graduate of the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine and completed his residency at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey. Dr. Michel also holds a master’s degree in Business Administration from Saint Joseph’s University and is a member of the American Osteopathic Association.

Laval Miller-Wilson is the executive director of the Pennsylvania Health Law Project, a nonprofit dedicated to protecting and advancing healthcare rights. The team at PHLP are experts in Medicaid, and provide free counseling and representation to thousands of individuals across the state, helping them obtain and keep healthcare coverage and services. PHLP take what they learn from individual cases to advocate for large-scale policy changes that help others across the state.

What can Pennsylvania policymakers do to ensure equitable access to quality healthcare?
Ensuring access to Medicaid coverage, the health insurance program for low-income individuals, is more important now than ever. Medicaid covers nearly one in four Pennsylvanians, including hundreds of thousands of children, people with disabilities, and seniors. However, undocumented immigrant women are generally excluded. That means undocumented women are unlikely to have access to care during pregnancy and the postpartum period. That should change. It is much more expensive to save mothers’ and babies’ lives than it is to take basic steps to prevent emergencies. 18 other states are already providing some level of public insurance to pregnant undocumented immigrants.

When and why did you decide to pursue a career in healthcare?
Healthcare, specifically Medicaid, is enormously satisfying work for me and my colleagues because at its core it is about addressing inequality and economic security, racism, and racial equity, and the future of our diverse society. It is a privilege to work in this space and lead a non-profit that helps people in need get the care they deserve.

How do you see the healthcare industry evolving in the next five years?
I hope that in five years, the healthcare system will significantly reduce, if not eliminate, Pennsylvania’s waiting list for people with intellectual disabilities so they can get the care that they need and deserve. The system should also continue decreasing reliance on institutional care for people with disabilities. Finally, we must address the soaring rates of mental health disorders impacting Pennsylvania children and families. The decline in mental health among teenagers was intensified by the COVID-19 pandemic, spanning racial and ethnic groups, urban and rural areas, and the socioeconomic divide.

Chris Molaro is the co-founder and CEO of NeuroFlow, a healthcare technology company promoting behavioral health access and engagement in all care settings. Chris is a former US Army Captain from the US Military Academy at West Point and earned his master’s degree at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. Chris was also the founder of the literacy nonprofit Things We Read, winner of EY’s Entrepreneur of the Year Award, and named 100 Most Intriguing Entrepreneurs by Goldman Sachs.

What can Pennsylvania policymakers do to ensure equitable access to quality healthcare?
Our belief at NeuroFlow is that mental health is health, and we feel policy at the local and national levels should reflect this concept. By properly investing in community health resources and treatment facilities and spreading awareness about new initiatives like the 988 Suicide Prevention Lifeline, policymakers can help fight the improved but very still present stigma surrounding mental health.

When and why did you decide to pursue a career in healthcare?
After returning home from military service, I experienced firsthand the gaps in the behavioral health system and how veterans and civilians alike face too many barriers when it comes to receiving appropriate care. My co-founder and I bonded over a shared passion for utilizing technology to solve high-impact problems. We saw an opportunity to change the world with new, innovative solutions that could finally bridge the gap between mental and physical health.

How do you see the healthcare industry evolving in the next five years?
The next five years will be exciting, and we will continue seeing the merging of mental and physical health. Data clearly shows that the impact of managing physical and mental health together is astounding, both from a clinical and a financial perspective. We anticipate more value-based care contracts that align payers and providers to deliver holistic, integrated care, ultimately supporting better outcomes on both sides of the equation and making sure that healthcare systems are reducing unnecessary utilization and improving costs.

Since joining St. Christopher’s Hospital for Children in 2020, Don Mueller has overseen a dramatic financial turnaround at the North Philadelphia hospital, helping cut the facility’s existing deficit by 90%, and planning for the expansion and enhancement of hospital programs and spaces. He previously served as CEO at the Children’s Hospital at Erlanger in Tennessee and as vice president of strategy and business development at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta-Emory. His greatest supporters are his wife Dallas and his three children, Luke, Diana Rose, and Anna Harper.

What can Pennsylvania policymakers do to ensure equitable access to quality healthcare?
Equitable access is limited by multiple factors, including low reimbursements for care, longstanding racial inequities, and geography. The biggest barrier right now is simple: funding. Government-sponsored health insurance such as Medicaid often pays less than the cost of providing care. This limits the number of providers that are able to work under what become extreme financial pressures. If policymakers increased payment rates for government-sponsored insurance closer to the levels of commercial insurance, we would be able to significantly expand access. It isn’t fair to families with lower incomes that providers are paid far less to take care of their children.

When and why did you decide to pursue a career in healthcare? 
My parents taught me to be a ‘servant leader.’ After earning my MBA, I took a job at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, where I fell in love with pediatric healthcare. I learned that by implementing good business practices, I could contribute to improving the lives of children. The memories of the ones I’ve had the privilege of helping stay with me. It’s been a blessing to have a career I love while serving children and families.

How do you see the healthcare industry evolving in the next five years?
The next five years are going to be very challenging for the healthcare industry. Rising labor costs, staffing shortages, and supply-chain challenges will negatively impact many medical providers and hospitals. Employee health insurance rates will increase, and employers will not be able to pass along those costs in a competitive labor market, resulting in increased inflation. My hope is that the COVID-19 pandemic will have a silver lining: the positive effect of expanding the number of students who choose to pursue a healthcare career, becoming our next generation of healthcare heroes!

Dr. Katherine Nathanson is a Philadelphia native who attended Haverford College and the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania and trained in internal medicine and clinical genetics. Both her research and her clinical practice focus on translating genetics to improvements in care for patients with a high risk of cancer by studying the underlying genes and providing care for affected individuals. She has published over 350 papers and has an extensive record of national service.

What can Pennsylvania policymakers do to ensure equitable access to quality healthcare?
Cancer is the second leading cause of death in Pennsylvania. Thus, it is critical that we maintain free cancer screenings, provide strong support for individuals with cancer to have access to both cutting-edge therapies and clinical trials, and provide care through the survivorship period. Supporting policies that help to reduce risk, such as through tobacco cessation, HPV vaccination, and addressing radon exposure is essential to reduce the cancer burden in our community. Further, a cancer diagnosis often comes with an immense financial burden, so access to affordable care is a must for all Pennsylvanians.

When and why did you decide to pursue a career in healthcare?
Healthcare gives me the opportunity to apply science in ways that directly impact and improve people’s lives. Early in life, I knew that I wanted to ask questions about how human biology worked. I started working in labs, but quickly realized that I was missing the day-to-day human connection that I needed. I became a physician-scientist, so I could have the privilege of providing direct patient care while doing research.

How do you see the healthcare industry evolving in the next five years?
The advances we have seen in all areas of healthcare over the past five years have been so amazing that they make it hard to predict what is coming next. Cancer therapies, mRNA vaccines, and our understanding of the genetic and immunological bases of diseases have changed our healthcare landscape. In my area of expertise, I see a huge expansion of the use of genetic testing for many more diseases in a much broader set of individuals. Our top priority needs to be that these advances are available to each and every patient no matter the healthcare setting.

David Pacitti is head of the Americas for Siemens Healthineers. Based at the US headquarters in Malvern, Dave leads the marketing, sales, service, and support functions in North America and Latin America, including medical imaging, laboratory diagnostics, therapy solutions, and services. A Philadelphia area native, Dave graduated from Villanova University, where his football prowess earned him induction into the Villanova Varsity Club Hall of Fame in 2006.

What can Pennsylvania policymakers do to ensure equitable access to quality healthcare?
Disparities in healthcare and inequitable access to care are major issues nationwide and right here in Pennsylvania. Policymakers should ensure that all healthcare institutions have access to the appropriate technology that will facilitate care in both inpatient and outpatient settings.

When and why did you decide to pursue a career in healthcare?
In recent years, family health issues have reinforced the need for medical procedures—including less-invasive cardiovascular procedures—that can help ensure a better quality of life, particularly for aging and elderly citizens.

How do you see the healthcare industry evolving in the next five years?
Advanced technologies such as 3D imaging and robotics will be used in more medical procedures. Also, surgical and minimally invasive procedures that involve medical imaging will move out of the hospital setting and into smaller outpatient or ambulatory settings. In a large state like Pennsylvania, that means accessing care closer to home.

Dr. Francesco Palazzo is a gastrointestinal and bariatric surgery specialist with over 25 years of experience in the medical field. He graduated from the School of Medicine of the Università di Catania, Italy, in 1997, and subsequently trained at Thomas Jefferson University and the University of California, San Francisco. Dr. Palazzo is currently the chief of surgery at Methodist Hospital and the vice chair of surgery at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital. Dr. Palazzo speaks English and Italian.

What can Pennsylvania policymakers do to ensure equitable access to quality healthcare?
Coming from a country that has universal healthcare, I believe that one step in the right direction would be to support the expansion of Medicaid to allow easier access for minors and individuals in vulnerable financial conditions.

When and why did you decide to pursue a career in healthcare?
I knew medicine was the next step for me after graduating high school. I initially thought that a career as a physician-scientist would suit me well, but I realized early on that my vocation was to deliver direct patient care. I get to take care of patients every day and see the immediate impact I can have on their lives for the better, so being a surgeon is a privilege I am grateful for every day.

How do you see the healthcare industry evolving in the next five years?
Telemedicine is undoubtedly going to have an increasing impact on the way we deliver care. The last two years have proven that our patients want healthcare providers to be more accessible without leaving work or their homes. More and more procedures will be completed on an outpatient basis thanks to minimally invasive techniques. Robotic surgery is only going to grow, but it needs to become less expensive for hospitals to deliver.