NCMHA Webinar Series: Understanding Social Isolation and its Impact on Older Adults and Those Living with Disabilities

Emily Allen is Senior Vice President, AARP Foundation Programs. 

Throughout her career, Ms. Allen’s primary passion has been on serving the needs of those most at risk in our communities. She has served in a number of capacities in the nonprofit, education and workforce development arenas, and has worked across the generations to ensure vulnerable and at-risk individuals have access to the resources and services they need to thrive. 

Ms. Allen began her career as a special education teacher and school administrator on Andros Island, Bahamas, and later accepted positions with AARP Foundation’s Senior Community Service Employment Program (SCSEP) as Project Director and Assistant National Director. She then served as Director, Workforce Programs, for AARP before being named Vice President, Income Security, for AARP Foundation in 2011. 

In 2016, Ms. Allen was named Senior Vice President, Programs, and now leads a team of Foundation innovators and social entrepreneurs to develop effective solutions that address the social determinants of health and help vulnerable, low-income older adults secure the essentials. In this role, she oversees AARP Foundation’s longstanding national programs like SCSEP, Tax-Aide and Experience Corps, as well as new innovations designed to increase economic opportunity and social connections that help prevent and reduce senior poverty. 

Ms. Allen holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Westminster College and a master’s degree in human and organizational learning from The George Washington University.

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.