Gary Bacher currently serves as Chief Strategy Officer at the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation (CMMI) and Acting Director of the Medicare-Medicaid Coordination Office (MMCO) at the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). In this capacity, he leads the strategic development of innovative models that advance value-based care, improve patient outcomes and quality, and enhance the affordability of health services nationwide.
 

Prior to his current role at CMS, Gary served as Chief Strategy Officer for CINQCARE and Chief of Strategy, Policy, and Legal Affairs at Capital Caring Health, where he directed initiatives to improve advanced illness and hospice care during a pivotal time for the aging population.
 

Gary’s leadership at CMMI and MMCO builds on deep experience driving health care improvement at the intersection of public policy, law, regulatory affairs, and business development. He is widely recognized as a national expert in health care systems transformation, with deep knowledge across Medicare and Medicaid programs, health plans, state-based exchanges, and provider organizations.
 

Earlier in his career, Gary co-founded Healthsperien, a Washington, D.C.–based health policy consultancy; served as Senior Vice President for America’s Health Insurance Plans (AHIP); and held key legal and policy positions at UnitedHealth Group. He also served on active military duty as Assistant to the Army General Counsel and was detailed to the White House Counsel’s Office.
 

Gary holds a Juris Doctor from Stanford Law School, a Master of Public Affairs from Princeton University’s School of Public & International Affairs, and a Bachelor of Science in Foreign Service from Georgetown University.