Newswise — LOS ANGELES (May 14, 2024) -- Cedars-Sinai has named Stephanie Cohen as its new vice president of Government and Industry Relations. Cohen will play a vital role advocating for healthcare delivery, research, education and community benefit priorities with local, state and national policymakers.
She succeeds Vice President Deborah Kallick, who is retiring after 24 years of service to Cedars-Sinai.
“Stephanie is the perfect leader to advance Cedars-Sinai’s advocacy of healthcare locally and beyond,” said Thomas M. Priselac, president and CEO of Cedars-Sinai. “She has an extensive background in policy development within government and as an advocate for nonprofit academic medicine. And she has close working relationships with elected leaders and their staffs and understands how to forge healthcare coalitions.”
Cohen joins Cedars-Sinai from the University of Southern California, where she served as associate vice president of health policy at Keck Medicine of USC. Prior to working at USC, Cohen was health services deputy for L.A. County Supervisor Sheila Kuehl, overseeing partnerships with the county’s Department of Health Services and its Emergency Medical Services Agency. She also previously served as district director for Kuehl and as deputy district director for California Assemblymember Richard Bloom, where she played an instrumental role in creating educational opportunities related to the Affordable Care Act, veterans’ affairs and homelessness.
Throughout her career, Cohen has navigated congressional spending discussions, state legislative policy negotiations, and the development of county policies and services. She also has built strong relationships with leading healthcare industry organizations, including the American Hospital Association, the Association of American Medical Colleges, the California Hospital Association and the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine.
A graduate of UCLA with a bachelor’s degree in political science, Cohen is pursuing her law degree at Southwestern Law School in Los Angeles.
“I am excited to join the outstanding team at Cedars-Sinai, an institution with a reputation for quality and excellence,” Cohen said. “I’m eager to be part of that legacy as we continue to advance healthcare, research and public policy strategies that will have a positive impact on our patients and the healthcare delivery system.”
Cohen joined Cedars-Sinai on May 13 and will lead and expand an operation Kallick has spent more than two decades building.
“We send gratitude, best wishes and congratulations to Deborah as she retires after an exceptional health advocacy career,” Priselac said. “She has made a remarkable and long-lasting impact at Cedars-Sinai, throughout the healthcare system, the community and California. And we warmly welcome Stephanie as she carries on Deborah’s legacy in this vitally important leadership position.”
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