Policy and Strategy Specialist

This is a fully remote position, open to applicants in Massachusetts.

📋 Description

• Assist in strategic planning by providing guidance on state and federal health insurance markets and regulations, which includes:

• State Medicaid plans and managed care options

• Medicare, Medicare Advantage, and D-SNP plans

• State waivers, pilot programs, and innovative care models

• Value-based payment and risk-based contracting models

• Quality metrics for value-based purchasing

• Evaluate policy changes and analyze their implications for Activate Care’s growth strategy, care models, proposals, products, and client opportunities.

• Conduct product-market fit analyses (e.g., landscape & trend analyses, policy briefs, regulatory summaries, funding authority) for new markets, contracted projects, and strategic planning efforts.

• Assist with Community Needs Assessments and Community Health Assessment and Equity projects by interpreting Medicaid policy, state flexibility, coverage rules, local programs, and existing community assets.

• Determine the feasibility for health plans, providers, state agencies, and community partners to implement within current policy, benefits, funding, and regulatory frameworks.

• Maintain an organized opportunity pipeline for time-sensitive public-sector openings, including RFPs/RFIs, state funding opportunities, waiver activities, Rural Health Transformation Program (RHTP) prospects, and emerging Medicaid or Medicare initiatives.

• Develop and sustain rapid-response systems to monitor state websites, procurement portals, policy updates, public notices, and agency communications for opportunities aligned with Activate Care’s strategy.

• Conduct policy-informed market research on Medicaid, Medicare, D-SNP, rural health, behavioral health, maternal health, reentry, social care, value-based care, and at-risk provider trends.

• Prepare concise opportunity briefs that summarize policy context, funding sources, eligibility criteria, customer or agency needs, population impact, strategic fit, feasibility, and recommended next steps.

• Support go/no-go recommendations by evaluating policy feasibility, operational implications, public-sector funding alignment, and compatibility with Activate Care’s capabilities and strategy.

• Coordinate RHTP opportunities and related state or federal funding initiatives.

• Act as project manager for selected rural health and public funding workstreams, overseeing timelines, deliverables, internal contributors, decision points, and leadership updates.

• Assist in developing concept summaries, proposal inputs, partner briefs, and executive recommendations related to rural health transformation and other public funding opportunities.

• Collaborate with relevant functional teams (e.g., Sales/Growth, Marketing, Product, Solutions, Finance, Operations, Technology, Strategy) to evaluate whether opportunities should progress to proposal development, care model development, partnership exploration, or be archived.

• Facilitate the New Concept Incubator process for proposed products/solutions, encompassing intake, research, documentation, and decision-support processes in partnership with functional teams and stakeholders.

• Support the evaluation of new technology products, care models, workforce models, and service innovations through policy research, regulatory review, public funding analysis, strategic fit analysis, and operational feasibility assessments.

• Develop or contribute to Opportunity Analysis Briefs, which include assumptions, policy and regulatory landscapes, potential customers, market context, implementation feasibility, potential costs, time to market, and recommendations.

• Maintain associated tools and repositories, including Google Forms, Monday.com boards, Notion pages, templates, decision trees, and Slack channels.

• Support semi-annual Strategic Initiatives meetings and initiative sponsors by preparing materials, documenting follow-ups, tracking on Monday.com, and providing status updates.

• Contribute to strategy regarding which markets and populations to target, including those involved in incarcerated reentry, complex medical and disabled populations, pregnant women, infants, children, and other priority groups.

• Partner with Marketing by supplying policy context, regulatory feasibility, funding analysis, and Medicaid/Medicare market intelligence to enhance positioning, messaging, and sales enablement.

• Assist in proposal strategy and content by preparing policy summaries, market context, opportunity rationales, regulatory feasibility language, and strategic recommendations.

• Collaborate with Product and Technology teams to share policy and market insights that may influence product roadmap discussions, solution design, or platform differentiation.

• Perform other duties as assigned.

⛳️ Requirements

• Education: A Master’s degree in healthcare policy, public health, healthcare administration, public administration, business, or a related field is preferred.

• Experience: A minimum of 5–7 years in healthcare policy, Medicaid/Medicare strategy, public-sector healthcare consulting, health plan strategy, market research, healthcare innovation, or similar roles.

• Professional experience with publicly funded insurance programs, including Medicaid, Medicare, Medicare Advantage, D-SNPs, Medicaid managed care, state waivers, CMMI priorities, value-based care, and quality measures.

• Experience in conducting policy analysis, Medicaid landscape research, waiver scans, public funding analysis, competitive scans, opportunity assessments, or business case support.

• Proven ability to coordinate cross-functional projects, strategic initiatives, opportunity pipelines, or rapid-response processes.

• Strong analytical, problem-solving, and critical thinking abilities, with a talent for synthesizing complex policy and market information into clear, executive-level insights.

• Exceptional written and verbal communication skills.

• Excellent project management capabilities, including tracking timelines, owners, dependencies, risks, decisions, and deliverables across multiple workstreams. Familiarity with Monday.com, Notion, Google Workspace, Slack, Asana, Smartsheet, or similar platforms is preferred.

• Highly organized, reliable, detail-oriented, mission-driven, and adept at working independently in a remote, dynamic environment.

🏝️ Benefits

• Competitive salary and performance-based bonuses.

• Comprehensive health, dental, and vision insurance plans.

• Generous paid time off and holiday leave.

• Opportunities for professional development and career advancement.

• Flexible work arrangements and a supportive remote work environment.