
Task Force Co-Leads:
Co-Lead: Georges Benjamin, MD, Executive Director, American Public Health Association (APHA)
Co-Lead: Paul Abramowitz, Pharm.D., ScD (Hon), FASHP, Chief Executive Officer, American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP)
Co-Lead: Susan Dentzer, Senior Policy Fellow, Robert J. Margolis Center for Health Policy, Duke University
Staff Officer: Katherine Herring Capps, Executive Director and Co-Founder, GTMRx Institute
Task Force Participants:
Participant: Kate Berry, Senior Vice President, Clinical Affairs & Strategic Partnerships, America’s Health Insurance Plans (AHIP)
Participant: Ernest Grant, Ph.D., RN, FAAN, President, American Nurses Association (ANA)
Participant: Ann Greiner, President and Chief Executive Officer, Primary Care Collaborative (PCC)
Participant: Paul Grundy, MD, MPH< FACOEM, FACPM, Chief Transformation Officer, Innovaccer; President, GTMRx Institute
Participant: Doug Henley, MD, FAAFP, Executive Vice President & Chief Executive Officer Emeritus, American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP)
Participant: Connie Hwang, MD, MPH, Chief Medical Officer & Director of Clinical Innovation, Alliance of CommunityHealth Plans (ACHP)
Participant: Punam Keller, Ph.D., MBA, Senior Associate Dean, Innovation & Growth, Charles Henry Jones Third Century Professor of Management, Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth
Participant: Mike Maddux, Pharm.D., Executive Director, American College of Clinical Pharmacists (ACCP)
Participant: Darilyn Moyer, MD, FACP, FRCP, FIDSA, Executive Vice President & Chief Executive Officer, American College of Physicians (ACP)
Participant: Debra Ness, MS, President, National Partnership for Women & Families
Participant: Anand Parekh, MD, MPH, Chief Medical Advisor, Bipartisan Policy Center (BPC)
Participant: Kathleen Pawlicki, BPharm, MS, RPh, FASHP, Immediate Past President, American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP)
Participant: Marcus Plescia, MD, MPH, Chief Medical Officer, Association of State & Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO)
Participant: Chris Queram, MA, Interim Chief Executive Officer, National Quality Forum
Participant: Chet Robson, DO, MHCDS, FAAFP, Chief Medical Officer & Medical Director, Office of Clinical Integrity, Walgreens
Participant: Julia Skapik, MD, MPH, Medical Director, National Association of Community Health Centers (NACHC)
Participant: Richard Stone, MD, Acting Under Secretary for Health, Veterans Health Administration (VHA)
Participant: Mike Thompson, President & Chief Executive Officer, National Alliance of Healthcare Purchaser Coalitions (NAHPC)
Participant: Toyin Tofade, MS, Pharm.D., BCPS, CPCC, FFIP, Dean & Tenured Professor, Howard University
Participant: Antonia “Toni” Villarruel, Ph.D., RN, FAAN, Professor & Dean of Nursing, University of Pennsylvania; past-President, Founding Member National Coalition of Ethnic Minority Nursing Associations; past-President of the National Association of Hispanic Nurses.
Participant: Susan Winckler, RPh, Esq., Chief Executive Officer, Reagan-Udall Foundation for the Food and Drug Administration
Task Force Support:
Poonam Bal, MHSA, Director, Quality Innovation, National Quality Forum (NQF)
Julie Balter, Clinical Innovations Program Manager, Alliance of Community Health Plans (ACHP)
Regina Davis, Ph.D., MPH, MCHES, Health Policy and Practice, Associate Executive Director, American Public Health Association (APHA)
Anna Dopp, Pharm.D., Senior Director, Clinical Guidelines & Quality Improvement, American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP)
Sinsi Hernández-Cancio, JD, Vice President, Health Justice, National Partnership for Women & Families
Angela McGowan, JD, MPH, Project Director, Department of Health and Human Services; APHA Designee
Kathy Pham, Pharm.D., BCPPS, Director, Policy and Professional Affairs, American College of Clinical Pharmacy (ACCP)
Susan Polan, Ph.D., Public Affairs and Advocacy, Associate Executive Director, American Public Health Association (APHA)
Izzy Serji, MPH, Operations Manager, GTMRx Institute
Kasey Thompson, Pharm.D., MS, MBA, Chief Operating Officer & Senior Vice President, American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP)
Task Force Meeting Frequency:
- Tuesday, April 20, 2021 from 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm ET
- Tuesday, May 4, 2021 from 3:00 pm – 4:30 pm ET
- Tuesday, May 25, 2021 from 3:00 pm – 4:00 pm ET
- Tuesday, June 8, 2021 from 3:00 pm – 4:30 pm ET
Background and Resources to Build Vaccine Confidence in the Medical Neighborhood
To kickstart their work, a report was created that summarizes the current literature regarding building vaccine confidence and overcoming vaccine hesitancy both pre and post the COVID-19 pandemic.

GTMRx and Bipartisan Policy Center (BPC) National Event – Building Vaccine Confidence During COVID-19: The Role of the Medical Neighborhood
When? April 6, 10:30 am – 12:00 pm EST
Purpose? To achieve widespread vaccination, engagement of the medical neighborhood is fundamental when implementing community programs designed to effectively build vaccine confidence. The reasons people are skeptical about taking the coronavirus vaccine are complex. Building vaccine confidence requires proactive and thoughtful public awareness, education, and engagement of a variety of local stakeholders including community members. During this event, GTMRx will announce the National Task Force: Building Vaccine Confidence in the Medical Neighborhood.
Featured participants at the Bipartisan Policy Center Event include…
Opening remarks by:
- Bill Frist, MD · Former Senate Majority Leader; Senior Fellow, BPC
- Donald M. Berwick, MD, MPP · Former Administrator; CMS; Founder, Institute for Healthcare Improvement
- Katherine H. Capps · Executive Director and Co-Founder, GTMRx Institute
- Anand Parekh, MD · Chief Medical Advisor, BPC
- Karen Remley, MD · Director, CDC’s National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities; Deputy Incident Manager, CDC’s COVID-19 Response
Panel discussion with:
- Sree Chaguturu, MD · Chief Medical Officer, CVS Caremark
- Susan Dentzer (Moderator) · Senior Policy Fellow, Robert J. Margolis Center for Health Policy, Duke University
- Lisa Fitzpatrick, MD, MPH, MPA · Founder and CEO, Grapevine Health
- Bruce Gellin, MD, MPH · President, Global Immunization, Sabin Vaccine Institute
- Howard M. Haft, MD, MMM, CPE, FACPE · Executive Director, Maryland Primary Care Program
If you missed the live event, you can view the recording below.
This work is sponsored by Johnson & Johnson.
