Panel 1: Introduction to Congress and the Legislative Process

Rodney is an accomplished health care advisor with more than two decades on the Hill where he specialized in rural health, the health care safety net and disability policy. With more than 25 years of experience, Rodney possesses and offers clients the kind of knowledge that is uniquely available to those who have drafted and advanced legislation. He strategically guides clients through dense Medicare and Medicaid issues that have significant business impact. While working in Congress, Rodney served as former US Representative Charlie Norwood’s (R-GA) health policy director where he managed the Patients’ Bill of Rights (S.1890), among other notable health policy matters. Rodney then went on to serve Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA) in the Senate. He first joined the Senate Finance Committee Staff as a health policy advisor to Chairman Grassley, and ultimately joined the Senator’s personal office as health policy director. During his time in the Senate, Rodney served as the lead Republican staffer for Medicaid legislation from 2005 to 2010, and continued to serve Senator Grassley on all health-related issues through 2015. During his time in the Senate, Rodney helped staff Republicans in the Senate on such prominent and important legislation as the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005, Tax Relief and Health Care Act of 2006, CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2007 and 2009 and Affordable Care Act of 2010. For the last 20 years, Rodney has been an adjunct faculty member at the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health’s Department of Health Policy and Management, and the Graduate School of Political Management’s Department of Legislative Affairs. Hundreds of students have taken Rodney’s courses and have gone on to pursue careers in Washington, DC.

A partner at Mehlman Consulting, Dean Rosen is one of Washington’s foremost experts on America’s complex health care system—and a master of both the politics and policies that shape it. With three decades of experience developing and advancing health policy initiatives on Capitol Hill and in the private sector, Rosen has been named a “Top Lobbyist” by The Hill, a “Power Player” that healthcare groups turn to by Modern Healthcare, and one of the “DC Healthcare Power Players Who Shape the Rules for a $3.5 trillion industry” by Business Insider. Rosen advises a wide range of health care stakeholders, from established players to startups trying to gain a foothold in Washington, DC. He has represented health systems and hospitals, medical colleges and physician professional organizations, health insurers, clinical laboratories, biopharmaceutical companies, nonprofit foundations, and multinational employers. He helps clients shape national policy and navigate the transformational changes taking place in the nation’s health care system. Through multiple roles with the David A. Winston Health Policy Fellowship, the Society of Health Policy Young Professionals, and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Fellowship, Rosen has devoted decades to supporting and mentoring the next generation of health policy leaders. In 2023, Rosen joined the Distinguished Executive Council of Cressey & Company, providing strategic advice to the leading mid-market health care private equity firm. Prior to joining Mehlman Consulting, Rosen held a series of high-level positions in both the private sector and government, including on key committees in both the Senate and House. As the Chief Healthcare Advisor to former Sen. Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-TN), a leading voice on national medical and health issues, Rosen helped draft and navigate to final passage landmark legislation creating a Medicare prescription drug benefit and President George W. Bush’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) to combat HIV/AIDS. Rosen also helped pass laws in the wake of the September 11 and bioterrorism attacks in 2001 to ensure that local, state, and national public health systems had new authorities and resources to respond to future threats. Earlier, Rosen served as Staff Director for the Senate Subcommittee on Public Health, Majority Counsel for the House Ways and Means Health Subcommittee, and Health Policy Coordinator for the Senate Committee on Labor and Human Resources (now the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee). While at Ways and Means, he played a leading role in crafting the Medicare provisions of the Balanced Budget Act of 1997. At Labor, he was the lead Senate staffer drafting the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA). Rosen’s policy, legal, and management experience expands beyond Capitol Hill. He served as Senior Vice President of Policy and General Counsel for the Health Insurance Association of America (HIAA), and practiced law at Dow, Lohnes and Albertson in Washington, DC.

Ryan Long is the Director of Congressional Relations and a Senior Research Fellow at Paragon Health Institute. In this role he is the leading voice communicating Paragon’s research and proposals to Congress by connecting with and educating policymakers and their staffs and leading the Congressional Health Policy Education Program. As a researcher, Long produces original papers and policy briefs promoting consumer choice, market competition, and innovation in healthcare markets. These publications focus on regulatory and policy reforms to ensure a sustainable and innovative health care system. Formerly Senior Policy Advisor and Counsel to Rep. McCarthy during his rise from House Minority Leader to Speaker of the House, Long brings Paragon over 25 years of experience on the Hill and in health policy. Long began his career working under Representatives Charlie Norwood of Georgia and Joe Barton of Texas. He joined the House Committee on Energy and Commerce in 2004 and served as the Chief Health Counsel from 2006 to the beginning of 2013. In 2018, Long became Deputy Staff Director then Staff Director under E&C Chair Greg Walden, and by 2021 he had become a top advisor to the eventual Speaker of the House. Long is a graduate of UNC Chapel Hill and the Columbus School of Law at The Catholic University of America. Long lives with his wife and two daughters in Oxford, Maryland.