Cristal Thomas, MPP
Cristal Thomas was appointed Executive Director of the Executive Medicaid Management Administration (EMMA) effective January 1, 2008. Cristal has focused on health care throughout her career. She served as a policy and regulatory analyst in the White House Office of Management and Budget, where she focused on many aspects of federal health care policy. After leaving OMB, Cristal served as Director of Strategic Planning at the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services (HFS), the state agency responsible for the Illinois Medicaid program and was later appointed Assistant Director of that agency.
In January 2007, Governor Ted Strickland named Cristal as the Ohio Medicaid Director. In this role, she was responsible for administration of the Medicaid and SCHIP programs in Ohio, as well as implementing many of the Governor's healthcare initiatives. As Executive Director of EMMA, Cristal is responsible for providing strategic direction and coordinating Medicaid policy across agencies and delivery systems.
EMMA Staff
Brad Singer, JD, Chief Legal Counsel
Brad Singer was appointed Chief Legal Counsel of the Executive Medicaid Management Administration on March 3, 2008. Mr. Singer has a strong record of community service, including a dual role as Board Chair and Legal Counsel of the Mental Health, Drug and Alcohol Services Board of Logan and Champaign Counties. He worked to create the Western Ohio Rural Federation and served on the Board of Directors of Champaign Residential Services, Inc., a provider of MRDD services. As legal counsel, Mr. Singer chairs the EMMA Legal and Program Integrity subcommittee, conducts legal research and advises the Executive Director and EMMA Council on Medicaid-related matters.
Tamiyka Koger was appointed EMMA Policy Analyst effective March 16, 2009. She previously served as Senior Budget Analyst at the Office of Budget and Management, with a primary focus on Medicaid budget related policies. Prior to that position, Ms. Koger was a legislative liaison on health and human services to Governor Strickland, and an Executive Assistant to former House Democratic Minority Leader Chris Redfern. Ms. Koger holds a B.A. in political science and an M.A. in Public Policy from the Ohio State University. As Policy Analyst, Ms. Koger will work with agencies across state government to align Medicaid policies and build consensus on strategies to improve the efficiency of Medicaid operations.
Sheilah Harrison, Project Manager
Sheilah Harrison joined EMMA on March 2, 2009, as Project Manager. She is certified in Project Management and has 10 years of project management experience in the private sector. Her prior positions span several industries, including both medical and financial industries. Ms. Harrison earned a B.S. in Industrial and Systems Engineering in 1996, and since then, she has been streamlining processes, reducing costs, and making systems improvements. As Project Manager, Ms. Harrison is responsible for working with partner agencies to align business processes and streamline operations.
Margo Pettis, Executive Assistant
Margo Pettis was appointed as Executive Assistant of the Executive Medicaid Management Administration on April 14, 2008. Ms. Pettis has over 30 years' of administrative experience in the private and public sectors supporting Senior Vice Presidents, Vice Presidents and other executive staff in the areas of real estate, legal, financing, administration and medical administration. Prior to joining EMMA, she served as the Administrative Assistant to the Deputy Director of the Division of Community Services in the Ohio Department of Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities for 10 ½ years. Ms. Pettis provides administrative support to the Executive Director, the Policy Analyst, Chief Legal Counsel, Project Manager, and to the EMMA subcommittees.