Deborah Steinberg, J.D. is a Health Policy Attorney at the Legal Action Center where she advocates for state and federal policies to expand access to comprehensive and equitable substance use disorder and mental health care. She co-leads the Center's Medicare Addiction Parity Project, which seeks to improve Medicare's coverage of substance use disorder treatment. In this role, Deborah has testified before Congress, drafted legislation, and convened a national learning collaborative to ensure the policies for which she advocates are rooted in people's lived experiences. She graduated from Vassar College with a B.A. in Psychology and earned her J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center.

With over 30 years of experience in health care and behavioral health policy, Mr. Miller has advocated for the creation of federal and state policy – and regulatory solutions – to improve the delivery and financing of health care and behavioral health care in the U.S.

From 2017 to the present. Mr. Miller has served as the Chair of the National Coalition on Mental Health and Aging (NCMHA).  The Coalition is composed of 80 organizations and its mission is to provide opportunities for professional, consumer, and governmental agencies to work together toward improving the availability and quality of mental health preventive and treatment strategies for aging Americans through education, research, and public awareness. 

Recently from 2013 to 2021, he served as Executive Director and CEO of the American Mental Health Counselors Association (AMHCA) – Mr. Miller led over 7000 clinical mental health counselors. AMHCAs mission is to enhance the mental health counseling profession through advocacy, professional development, education, and licensing.  Mr. Miller was responsible for all operations of the organization and implementing strategic initiatives in support of the Board of Directors.  He was the publisher of AMHCA’s Journal of Mental Health Counseling and its Advocate newsletter. He also served as a member on the AMHCA Foundation Board of Directors.  

In his previous position at the National Association of State Mental Health Program Directors (NASMHPD), he led the development and implementation of NASMHPD’s policy agenda and regulatory strategies, which were designed to support State Behavioral Health Agencies and the state public behavioral health systems.  He also served as Director of NASMHPD’s Financing and Medicaid Division.

At the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), Mr. Miller led NAMI’s State Policy team and Public Policy Institute, dedicated to improving the financing and delivery of mental health services at the state level for people with mental illness, and addressing mental health issues across the lifespan.  He also was Staff Director to NAMI’s Veterans Council and the organization’s Scientific Affairs Council.

He has published over 50 articles and reports on behavioral health and health care delivery and financing, health care reform, Medicare and Medicaid policy, behavioral health integration, the health care workforce, cost management, medical practice assessment, quality improvement, health insurance exchanges, and health information technology. 

Alex Graf serves as the Democratic Staff Director of the Finance Subcommittee on Health Care, chaired by Senator Debbie Stabenow of Michigan. He is the Senator's chief health care advisor, including on the Senator's behavioral health care initiatives. In this role, he has worked on a number of Stabenow's behavioral health care bills signed into law including the Excellence in Mental Health and Addiction Treatment Act, CHIP Mental Health Parity Act, School-Based Health Centers Reauthorization Act, and Help for Moms and Babies Act. Alex received his Master of Public Policy degree from Georgetown University and his Bachelor of Science in molecular biology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

A member of NCOA's Board of Directors, Dr. Cheryl Woodson taught and practiced Geriatric Medicine for almost 40 years while also raising a family and navigating her mother’s 10-year journey with Alzheimer’s disease. She completed a BA in Biology (minor in English) at Wesleyan University in CT, medical school at the University of Pittsburgh, a residency in Internal Medicine at Temple University Hospital in Philadelphia, PA, and a fellowship in Geriatric Medicine at UCLA.

She began her career in geriatrics education and program development as a faculty member at The University of Chicago and Northwestern University medical schools. After serving as the director of geriatrics services for a community health system, she founded and for 12 years directed a medical practice called Woodson Center for Adult Healthcare: when you’ve outgrown the kid stuff. The Center was the only privately-owned, community-based, comprehensive geriatrics program in the country that also provided primary care to adults of all ages. It also offered Sterling Silver, a community health education series for people who’ve been blessed to be on the planet more than 40 years. 

Woodson has served on national committees for the Veteran’s Administration and the American Geriatrics Society; she continues as an advisor to several community and faith-based organizations in the Chicago area. She has presented at national meetings on geriatrics, elder abuse and neglect, health literacy and patient-clinician communications, advocating for people with cognitive disabilities, and decision-making at the end of life. Other topics include support for family and professional caregivers, increasing geriatrics expertise in all professions that interact with older adults, and How to Make Careers in Medicine Compatible with Life.

In addition to board certification in Internal Medicine and Geriatrics, Woodson earned credentials in Health Care Quality Management and worked as a medical director for several managed care companies. Her goal was to serve as a bridge between the clinical and business sides of the health care industry.

In retirement, Woodson continues to write and speak to guide adults to ROAR PAST RETIREMENT, LIVE OUT LOUD and AGE EXCELLENTLY, Embrace the Magic of Menopause, and care for older loved ones without destroying themselves. She is the author of the popular eldercare resource, To Survive Caregiving: A Daughter’s Experience, A Doctor’s Advice.