A Conversation with the Congressional Research Service
Slides and audio are now available. To view them, log in to your Academy member account.
September 25, 2014
Noon - 1:00 p.m. Eastern
SPEAKERS
- Bernadette Fernandez, Specialist in Health Care Financing, Congressional Research Service
- Annie Mach, Analyst in Health Care Financing, Congressional Research Service
- John Topoleski, Analyst in Income Security, Congressional Research Service
- Baird Webel, Specialist in Financial Economics, Congressional Reserch Service
DETAILS
Often referred to as Congress’ think tank, the Congressional Research Service (CRS) is an objective and nonpartisan agency providing public policy research and legal analysis exclusively to members of Congress.
The Academy held a webinar with Bernadette Fernandez, Specialist in Health Care Financing, Annie Mach, Analyst in Health Care Financing, John Topoleski, Analyst in Income Security, and Baird Webel, Specialist in Financial Economics to learn about the CRS and projects they are working on. The webinar included a discussion of:
- The mission and structure of the CRS, and how it differs from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) and the Congressional Budget Office (CBO).
- The role the CRS plays in public policy development
- CRS projects on key public policy issues, including health policy, income/retirement security, and federal insurance (both non-health and non-natural disaster) issues.
This webinar was part of the Academy Capitol Forum Lunchtime Guest Webinar Series. Click here to see all webinars in this series.
ABOUT OUR GUEST SPEAKERS
Bernadette Fernandez; Specialist in Health Care Financing, Congressional Research Service
Bernadette Fernandez is a Specialist in Health Care Financing at the non-partisan Congressional Research Service (CRS). Her work focuses on private health insurance issues, including health insurance premiums, insurance market trends, and federal and state health reforms, such as the Affordable Care Act. Previously, Ms. Fernandez worked on health policy issues at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and for the Energy and Commerce Committee, U.S. House of Representatives. She earned a bachelor’s degree in sociology from the University of California, Los Angeles, and a master’s degree in public administration from Columbia University.
Annie Mach; Analyst in Health Care Financing, Congressional Research Service
Annie Mach is an Analyst in Health Care Financing at the Congressional Research Service (CRS). Ms. Mach’s work primarily focuses on the private insurance market, with emphasis on state and federal reforms (including the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010) and health care data. Prior to joining CRS, she was a survey statistician at the U.S. Census Bureau. Ms. Mach earned a master’s degree in public health from the University of Minnesota.
John Topoleski; Analyst in Income Security, Congressional Research Service
John Topoleski is an Analyst in Income Security and covers pensions and retirement income security policy issues. He has been at the Congressional Research Service since 2007 and holds a Ph.D. in financial economics from the University of New Orleans. Prior to working at CRS, he was a visiting assistant professor in the economics department at the University of Toledo.
Baird Webel; Specialist in Financial Economics, Congressional Research Service
Baird Webel is a Specialist in Financial Economics. Mr. Webel has worked in the Government and Finance Division of CRS for more than ten years. His focus is on financial institution policy, particularly non-health insurance issues. He coordinated the general CRS report on the Dodd-Frank Act and has written specific pieces on Dodd-Frank’s insurance provisions as well as other insurance issues such as the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act and insurance agent licensing legislation. Before joining CRS he worked as a congressional staffer for seven years handling a wide variety of issues. He holds two Master’s degrees in Foreign Service and Economics, from Georgetown University; and a Bachelor’s degree in International Relations from Stanford University.
WEBINARS IN THIS SERIES
Click here to see all webinars
