Moving the Needle on Medicare Savings

Xavier Vaughn is a Program Manager of Medicare at the AARP. He also provided technical assistance for Benefits Enrollment Centers and Senior SNAP Grantees in the Midwest and Southeast. Prior to AARP and NCOA, Vaughn was the MIPPA Coordinator for the SHIP in Missouri. He currently serves on the board for the Paula J. Carter Center on Minority Health and Aging at Lincoln University. Vaughn received his Bachelor of Science in Health Science from Truman State University and his Master of Public Health from the University of Alabama – Birmingham.

Meghan P. Carter is a Senior Staff Attorney working to advance the health rights of older adults. Meghan joined Legal Council for Health Justice in 2018 after practicing at Legal Aid Chicago and the Illinois Attorney General’s Disability Rights Bureau. At Legal Council, Meghan uses policy advocacy and litigation to strengthen protections and ensure robust services for people insured by Medicaid. Meghan also co-teaches the Health Justice Policy Practicum course at Loyola University Chicago School of Law. Meghan was recently part of the litigation team that represented an immigrants’ rights organization in obtaining the nationwide vacatur of the 2019 public charge rule, which caused people to avoid public benefits because of immigration concerns. Meghan was the first in her family to graduate college, earning a B.A. from Brandeis University, and then a law degree from Northwestern Pritzker School of Law. Meghan received an Equal Justice Works Fellowship in 2010, and was awarded for her public interest service in 2015 by Northwestern Law and in 2023 by the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois.

Elizabeth Durkin, PhD is the Manager of Health Care Education and Counseling for the Avisery program at AgeOptions, the Area Agency on Aging for Suburban Cook County, IL.  She comes to the Avisery program with health services research experience in the areas of health care payment, Medicaid managed care, health equity, and human service organizations and systems.  Elizabeth’s career includes past positions at the University of Chicago, Northwestern University, and Catholic Charities of Chicago during which she has engaged with non-profit organizations and government agencies at the local, state, and national level.

Donya Currie is a journalist, writer, editor, and content strategist who brings a passion for social justice and equity to her work at NCOA. She has decades of experience covering health and public health as well as expertise in helping other tell their powerful personal stories. She is a National Center to Reframe Aging facilitator and would love to talk to you about changing the way we think about aging.