Contact Joan

Joan Alker

Joan Alker is the Executive Director and Co-Founder of the Center for Children and Families (CCF), and a Research Professor at the Georgetown University McCourt School of Public Policy. She is a leading national expert on Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) and is the lead author of an annual report on children’s health care coverage trends. Alker has authored numerous reports on a wide range of issues including Medicaid Section 1115 waivers, the role of Medicaid in rural areas and premium assistance. She was also the principal investigator of a multi-year study on Florida's Medicaid program.

A frequent speaker and commentator, Alker has been quoted in major media outlets such as the New York Times, NPR, Politico, Washington Post, and Kaiser Health News. She holds a Master of Philosophy in politics from St. Antony’s College, Oxford University and a Bachelor of Arts with honors in political science from Bryn Mawr College.

Please contact Cathy Hope (catherine.hope@georgetown.edu) with media queries or to set up an interview with Joan.

Latest From Joan

Biden Administration Says No to Premiums in Medicaid

Just before the end of the year, the Biden Administration took an important stand protecting people enrolled in Medicaid. Three states (AR, GA, and MT) received news from CMS the week before Christmas on section 1115 Medicaid waiver requests of various kinds – but with one common element – that their plans to charge premiums […]

Comments on Proposed Withdrawal or Repeal of the SUNSET Rule

Georgetown University Center for Children and Families submitted the following comments to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services on the proposed rule, 86 FR 59906 (October 29, 2021), to withdraw or repeal the “Securing Updated and Necessary Statutory Evaluations Timely” (SUNSET) final rule published on January 19, 2021. CCF SUNSET Repeal Comments

Texas Medicaid Section 1115 Waiver Drama: A Trilogy

The world of Section 1115 Medicaid waivers can be mysterious and weedy, arcane and annoying, boring and, at times, dramatic. And in recent years, the use of Section 1115 authority by the Trump Administration stretched all previously known boundaries and wound up in court on multiple occasions  – most famously in the Arkansas work requirements […]