Presenters A-L

Dr. David Berg has served as Co-founder and Chairman of the Board of Redirect Health since the inception in 2013. Prior to co-founding Redirect Health, Dr. Berg established and maintained successful healthcare clinics both in Canada and the United States. With Redirect Health he has leveraged his decades of healthcare leadership experience to make healthcare simple and affordable for businesses throughout the country. Dr. Berg is the author of The Business Owner’s Guide to Fighting Healthcare, a how-to guide that helps business owners leverage healthcare as a competitive advantage. In 2018, the Phoenix Business Journal honored Dr. Berg with the “Healthcare Heroes Innovator Award” for creating a transformative healthcare member experience that eliminates barriers for people to get affordable healthcare. He holds degrees in Physics and Biology from the University of Toronto as well as a Doctor of Chiropractic degree from The Canadian Memorial Chiropractic College.

William H. Bestermann Jr., MD is a board-certified internist who practiced preventive cardiology for 20

years. He has been heavily involved with health care reform and quality improvement during that same

period. He wrote the first article on a systematic approach to the metabolic syndrome. He led an

advanced cardiometabolic medical home that managed high risk diabetic and hypertensive patients for

a Fortune 100 company in Tennessee. He was a Senior Clinical Advisor for the Quality Blue Primary Care

program at Blue Cross Blue Shield of Louisiana. That initiative saved $27 pmpm net at the 1 year mark

while reducing hospitalizations, length of stay, and specialty referrals. He is currently a senior clinical

advisor for Congruity Health, and he consults with healthcare organizations to help them produce

optimal medical therapy for cardiovascular and related conditions.

Dave Blanchard is the Founder and CEO of The Og Mandino Leadership Institute

and Habit Finder. Dave has assessed over 8,000 individuals who have taken the

Habit Finder™ Assessment and has coached with well over 4,500 of these

individuals. Dave has delivered over five hundred speeches everywhere from Boston

to Budapest—literally. He is the best-selling author of three books, Today I Begin a

New Life—Intentional Creation, The Observer’s Chair—Discovering the Real YOU!,

and Equanimity—Conquering Mt. Entrepreneur. Dave is the creator of the Habit

Finder™ Assessment and related coaching practicum.

In a prior life, Dave wrote and directed over 200 national television commercials, TV

specials and cause-oriented video series. Come in from the Storm, a three part

series on child abuse prevention, is in 40,000 school systems in the US, Canada,

New Zealand, and Australia along with every DOD school system and US Military

Family Services Unit worldwide.

Dave is also the managing member for Becalm, LLC, which is bringing

YourHeartTest and the MCG technology to the Aspirational Health Conference.

Dave lost both his father and grandfather prematurely due to heart disease. Finding

ways to get everyone to take YourHeartTest, which uses the new MCG technology,

is a very personal mission. He envisions saving millions of lives that would have

otherwise experienced a premature and unnecessary death.

Dave prizes one thing above all else and that is Ramona, his sweetheart of 46 years.

They share a “storybook” love and have raised seven children and currently have

twenty-seven grandchildren. 

David Contorno is Founder of E Powered Benefits. As a native of New York, David began his career in the insurance industry at the age of 14 and has since become a leading expert in the realm of employee benefits over the last 21 years.

Among his many accolades, David received a Broker Spotlight in 2004 and was recognized as an outstanding Broker of Service in 2005 through 2014 by Blue Cross Blue Shield. He has continually received the Echelon Award by United Healthcare since 2003, reserved for the top 1% of agents nationally, and was a 2015 “40 Under 40” Award Winner presented by Charlotte Business Journal. Most recently, David was Benefits Selling Magazine’s 2015 Broker of the Year and, in March 2016, Forbes deemed him “One of America’s Most Innovative Benefits Leaders.”

David is a member of the Board of Directors for both the Charlotte Association of Health Underwriters and Healthreach Community Clinic. He served on the NC Insurance Commissioners Life and Health Agent Advisory Committee, as well as participated in the Technical Advisory Group that helped with the Market Reforms required under the Affordable Care Act in North Carolina. He is a long-time member of the Lake Norman and South Iredell Chambers of Commerce as well as the National, North Carolina, New York and Long Island Associations of Health Underwriters. David contributes to numerous publications, including Forbes, Benefits Selling Magazine, Business Leader Magazine and Insurance Thought Leadership.

David is committed to giving back to his community and actively participates in the membership drive for the United Way, assisting the local chapter of Habitat for Humanity, and supporting The Dove House Child Advocacy Center. When he is not working, he enjoys boating and traveling.

E. Heidi Cottle, SVP, Cost Containment Strategies consults with NFP advisors and clients to develop client specific cost containment strategies. Heidi is a subject matter expert in delivering solution-based programs through – emerging and innovative programs which strive to improve quality, cost, and outcomes while mitigating client benefit risk.  

Crockett Dale was the third generation of his family to run a successful textile mill. He saw healthcare costs skyrocket while employee health grew worse. In the earliest days of the onsite clinic industry, Crockett brought a clinic into his family factory. Its holistic model of care changed the tide of out-of-control costs and declining health. His business survived where similar manufacturers failed or moved overseas. Crockett found his calling, joined the onsite clinic company, and became its CEO. Healthstat opened clinics nationwide across a full range of business and government entities.

Today, Healthstat’s population health solutions are adaptable to all industries. Our clinic programs can be scaled to meet each employer’s needs. We’re proud to be “the best benefit” an employer provides, and it’s our greatest honor to care for employees and families across the nation.

Dr. Tony Dale, M.D., is committed to changing healthcare for the better. As founder and Chairman of The Karis Group and Sedera, Tony has directly impacted the lives of millions of patients seeking the best possible care at fair and affordable prices.

His interest in tackling the business side of healthcare began following his rude introduction to the American medical system when he injured his knee playing basketball and needed knee surgery. After being quoted an initial price and then receiving a significantly larger bill, Tony determined to find a way to help people find better access to quality and affordable care.

Tony founded The Karis Group in 1996 to help patients negotiate their exorbitant medical bills. In 2014, recognizing the unmet needs in the traditional health insurance industry, Tony founded Sedera as an alternative Medical Cost Sharing solution.

Prior to moving to the United States in 1987, Tony practiced family medicine in London’s East End. Dr.’s Tony and Felicity Dale both trained at St. Bartholomew’s Hospital, London.  They live in Austin, TX where they are kept busy working with Sedera, writing, speaking and enjoying children and grandchildren.

His most recent book, The Cure For Healthcare: An Old-World Doctors Prescription For The New-World Health System is due to be published in the summer of 2021. Available now on pre-order via Amazon.com

Dr. Firouz Daneshgari, M.D., is a surgeon-scientist, Professor and 3rd Chairman of Department of Urology at Case Western Reserve University, and Founder of Urology Institute at University Hospitals of Cleveland. Dr. Daneshgari has extensively published over 200 scientific articles, and book chapters. His research has been continuously funded by National Institute of Health. Dr. Daneshgari founded an innovative health care company (www.bowtiemedical.com) following the implementation of Affordable Care Act, to integrate three prongs of ‘care’, ‘advice’ and ‘payment’ in order to improve the health of an individual and to reduce the cost of ‘sick care’ by reducing waste, eliminating unnecessary care and restoring the control of health care selection and payment to the individual customer.

Dr. Doug Eby, M.D., is Vice President of Medical Services for Southcentral Foundation’s Malcolm Baldrige Award-winning Nuka System of Care. Doug is a physician executive who has done extensive work with the Institute for Healthcare Improvement and other organizations around the Triple Aim, Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs), Patient Centered Medical Homes, whole system transformation, workforce, cultural competency, health disparities, and other topics. His speaking and consulting includes work across the U.S., Canada, and portions of Europe and the South Pacific. Doug has spent more than 20 years working in support of Alaska Native leadership as they created a very innovative integrated system of care that has significantly improved health outcomes. Doug received his medical degree from the University of Cincinnati in Cincinnati, Ohio, and his master’s in public health degree from the University of Hawaii. 

Chad Gray is the co-founder and CEO of Integrated Musculoskeletal Care, Inc (IMC), which provides outcomes-accountable musculoskeletal care programs that improve overall healthcare quality, reduce costs and improve patient and employee safety. Gray has over two decades of experience as a clinical practitioner and is a widely recognized entrepreneur, health-benefit design consultant and concierge practitioner focused on innovations in musculoskeletal triage, health care and self-care.

Jenny Gray is the Clinical Training Manager for Orriant, responsible for continuous quality improvement, performance management, and behavioral skills training within the Orriant Coaching Department.

Jenny has over a decade of behavioral change experience. She is known for developing department trainings emphasizing motivational interviewing as the primary style of communication along with facilitating an in depth clinical knowledge of how to not only connect with others but truly help them make healthy changes. Jenny’s influence consisting of impeccable professionalism, a witty, dry sense of humor, vast personal life experiences, and a true clinical intelligence has greatly improved the quality of Orriant’s Health Coaches.

She also recently began co-hosting a quarterly webinar where she introduces hundreds of attendees to different meditative and stress management practices and closes each webinar with a fully guided practice for all listeners to participate in. This is in direct response from popular demand after her initial introduction and presentation of the subject.

Jenny understands there is frequently a disconnection between intention and action. She believes behavior change is best facilitated by taking a strength-based approach by honing in on a person's singular strengths and abilities and helping them engage those strengths in order to reach their personal health goals.

Jenny has a Bachelor’s of Science degree from Brigham Young University specializing in Exercise Physiology and Wellness. She is also a CDC Certified Diabetes Prevention Coach and an active mother of three. When not reading the latest self-help book, she can be found hiking with her Bernese Mountain dog, seeking out all-ability playgrounds, or supporting local scholastic causes. 

Brent Hale is the co-founder of the Blomquist Hale Solutions which for over 30 years has specialized in innovative models of behavioral healthcare.  Along with the University of Utah, Blomquist Hale Solutions created a novel behavioral health delivery system that dramatically increased preventative services and added unusually high levels of care coordination.  When coupled with a select panel of high-performing specialists, it significantly increased the number of individuals in the population accessing treatment while at the same time reduced overall costs.  Blomquist Hale Solutions also provides one of the few EAP’s that intentionally drives high utilization in face-to-face, solution-focused counseling, typically helping over three hundred percent more employee families than the national average.  Blomquist Hale Solutions currently contracts with more than 400 public and private organizations nationwide. 

Tina Halliday graduated from the University of Utah, Graduate School of Social Work with her MSW. She has practiced for 30 years in the Behavioral Health field. She has provided direct clinical care to a variety of age groups and treated a variety of mental illnesses. Tina has also worked with Employee Assistance Programing throughout much of her career. This includes clinical services, management consultation, critical incident debriefing, and wellness seminar trainings to many employer groups. She currently works fulltime for the University of Utah Huntsman Mental Health Institute as a Behavioral Health Manager with a variety of responsibilities from managing a behavioral health carve out program, admissions coordination for specialized programs, providing EAP services, and business development. Additionally Tina presents on wellness topics to various audiences. She also has a small private practice in the Salt Lake City area. 

Jonathan Harris began his career in the employee benefits industry as a senior, large-group underwriter for the local chapter of BlueCross BlueShield in his home state of Utah. Jonathan’s experience with the financial misalignment between brokers’ incentives, insurance companies, and the end user led him to transition his career from underwriting to employee benefits consulting. Jonathan seeks to empower employer organizations to make better decisions about their employee benefits package, with a particular emphasis in broker compensation transparency and employee engagement. Jonathan received his Bachelor of Science in Economics from Brigham Young University with two minors in mathematics and business administration. 

Dr. Janice Johnston, M.D., has served as Co-founder and Chief Medical Officer of Redirect Health since January 2013. She oversees all medical operations as well as patient experience, spearheading efforts to enhance quality of care while improving administrative efficiencies. Dr. Johnston is integral to both the telehealth and in-person clinical operations, continually advancing strategies to improve member service and ensure positive patient outcomes. She has been recognized numerous times by AZ Business Magazine in the categories of “Most Influential Women Business Leaders," "Outstanding Medical Director" and "Telehealth Leader." She was also recognized as a "Keeping the Blues Alive" award recipient for her work advocating for musicians’ health. Additionally, Dr. Johnston is part of the MusicCares Provider Network through the Grammy Foundation. She holds an M.D. from the University of Toronto and is currently a Health Insider for ABC15.

Brian Klepper, PhD is Principal of Worksite Health Advisors and a nationally prominent health care analyst and commentator. He speaks, writes, and advises extensively on high-performance health care, primary care clinics, and the management of clinical and financial risk.

A purchaser advocate, he has focused on the market and policy dynamics of the health care quality and cost crises, and readily available solutions to purchasers willing to approach the problem laterally. His current focus is on high-performing health care organizations that consistently deliver better health outcomes at lower cost than usual approaches in high-value niches.

Dr. Klepper has been involved in several transformative health care efforts favoring patient and health care purchaser interests. His 2009 testimony to an HHS panel resulted in the revocation of an industry group’s monopoly on Health Information Technology certification. In 2010-2013, he spearheaded a national effort, culminating in a lawsuit against CMS and HHS, to expose the AMA’s RBRVS Update Committee’s role in distorting US’ care and cost patterns.

Brian is a regular contributor to the health care trade press. He is a reviewer for the journals Health Affairs and The Journal of Ambulatory Care Management, and an advisor to several health care organizations. He is Founder and Moderator of The Healthcare Benefits Hackers listserv, a vibrant discussion forum with more than 900 participants focused on health care value and high performance. George Washington University’s Masters in Health Administration Program ranked Brian's writing, archived at Care & Cost, the top 2016 blog by a health care professional. Feedspot named it a 2017 top 100 health care blog.

In his spare time, Brian is an offshore sailor.

Dr. M.A. “Tonette” Krousel-Wood is President of the American College of Preventive Medicine (ACPM),  a Professor of Medicine in the Tulane School of Medicine, a Professor of Epidemiology in the Tulane School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine, and serves in several leadership roles at Tulane including the Associate Provost for the Health Sciences, Senior Associate Dean of Faculty, and Associate Dean for Public Health and Medical Education.

She has a long-standing commitment to and engagement with the field of Preventive Medicine. She served for 12 years as the Program Director for Tulane’s General Preventive Medicine and Public Health Residency Program including co-director of the combined Preventive Medicine/Internal Medicine Residency Program, as a member of the ACPM board of regents, as a member on the American Board of Preventive Medicine for 9 years concluding her final 3 years of service as Chair/President of the ABPM, and as a representative from the field on numerous national platforms including the American Board of Medical Specialties.

As a NIH-funded physician-scientist, she engages in clinical research and clinical trials focused on adherence to prescribed therapies, management of hypertension, health services and outcomes in patients with chronic cardiometabolic diseases. She has presented her research findings at regional, national, and international meetings and has collectively published over 150 peer-reviewed articles, reports and book chapters.

She is committed to training the next generation of scientists and academic leaders and leads pre- and post-doctoral career development programs including serving as the Principal Investigator and Research Director for the NIH K12 Building Interdisciplinary Research Careers in Women’s Health (BIRCWH) faculty career development award and Principal Investigator for the Tulane Stimulating Access to Research in Residency (StARR) (R38). She also leads the MD/MPH program at Tulane—it is one of the oldest and largest programs of its kind in the US with over 1000 graduates since inception and serves as a model for combined medical and public health training of future physicians nationwide.

With a strong commitment to community and underserved populations, she partners with Federally Qualified Health Centers and Xavier University (historically black catholic college) in Louisiana and serves as the contact Principal Investigator for the NIH funded Louisiana Community Engagement Alliance against COVID 19 Disparities also known as LA CEAL. In addition, she is the principal investigator on NIH-funded clinical trial to evaluate innovation methods to improve medication adherence among older adults with uncontrolled hypertension.

A fellow of the American College of Preventive Medicine and Fellow of the American Heart Association,

she has held numerous leadership positions nationally including past President of the American Board of Preventive Medicine, past President of Delta Omega national public health honorary society, past member and Chair of the National Institutes of Health Study Section, Health Services Organization and Delivery, and past member of the National Institutes of Health Center for Scientific Review (NIH-CSR) Advisory Council.

April Kyle of Athabascan descent and a Cook Inlet Region, Inc. shareholder, is the interim CEO for Southcentral Foundation’s two-time Malcolm Baldrige Award-winning Nuka System of Care. SCF’s Nuka System of Care is a customer-owned system that provides health care and related services to approximately 65,000 Alaska Native and American Indian people. Nuka has earned national and international recognition for the quality of care it provides. Most recently, Kyle served on as Vice President of Behavioral Services which includes crisis, outpatient, integrated, collocated, day and residential program and services. Kyle began her career at SCF in Human Resources in 2003 as a manager and advanced to the Human Resources Director in 2006. Kyle received her master’s degree from the University of Washington Foster School of Business. In 2013 she was nominated by her peers and received the Top 40 Under 40 award from the Alaska Journal of Commerce, and 2014 completed the Alaska Pacific University Alaska Native Executive Leadership Program. Kyle is a mother and a customer-owner. Kyle speaks nationally and internationally on various topics including whole system transformation, behavioral health, leadership, and innovation in the industry. 

Bill Lacy has over 35 years of experience in executive and financial leadership positions. Currently, Bill serves as the CEO for the Association for Corporate Health Risk Management (ACHRM), a membership-based organization comprised of progressive employers ranging in size up to 50,000 employees and best-in-class vendors (Sponsor Partners) and consultants seeking education, a venue to collaborate, innovative methodologies, disruptive technologies and other resources to more effectively contain their organization’s healthcare costs.

ACHRM has offered 300 virtual and in-person events since its launch in June, 2012 engaging more than 1,000 employers and other professionals. The Association has published several white papers, case studies and launched various pilots to introduce new methodologies to assist employers with their healthcare cost

containment strategies. Recently, ACHRM was engaged by both a large mid-western City and mid-Atlantic

County to analyze and design a healthcare cost containment plans, with upwards of $150 million dollars in

savings.

Prior to ACHRM, Bill was CFO and COO for Business Health Services, a national Corporate Wellness and

Behavioral Risk Management provider based in Baltimore, Maryland; and CFO for Planet Fitness PA based in

Lafayette Hill, PA. Bill has also held executive positions with the Association for Corporate Wellness (ACW),

BB&T (Equity) Bank, Exelon (PECO) Energy, Rainbow Industrial Products, NatWest, and Entre Advisors LLC.

Bill is Adjunct Professor, Pfeffer University teaching MBA Finance and currently serves on the University of the Sciences’ Board of Visitors, and previously served on other not-for-profit and for-profit boards. Bill is an Eagle Scout. He earned his MBA (finance and marketing) from Drexel University and BS (math and economics) from Ursinus College.