Ellen Lukens is the Group Director for the Policy and Programs Group at the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation (CMMI), within the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). In this role, Ms. Lukens leads the team that provides cross-cutting policy and strategic support for CMMI models. This includes functions such as portfolio review, financial planning and analysis, and legal support as well as coverage of broader policy issues, including the intersection of MACRA/QPP and alternative payment models (APMs), model overlap, and interoperability.
Before assuming this Group Director role, Ms. Lukens led CMMI’s efforts on ambulatory episode-based payment systems, including physician specialty models, such as the Oncology Care Model. Prior to her tenure at CMS, Ms. Lukens led the Provider Practice at Avalere Health, where she worked with hospitals, physician groups, and post-acute care providers on many issues, including participation in CMMI models. Prior to Avalere, Ms. Lukens held policy roles in hospital associations. Ms. Lukens began her health policy career as Presidential Management Fellow at CMS. Ms. Lukens has an M.P.H. from the University of Michigan and a B.A. from Northwestern University.