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Kelly Whitener

is an Associate Professor of the Practice at the Georgetown University McCourt School of Public Policy’s Center for Children and Families.

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Kelly Whitener is an Associate Professor of the Practice at the Georgetown University McCourt School of Public Policy’s Center for Children and Families (CCF) where she focuses on Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) policy at the state and federal levels. Recently, Kelly’s work has included research and policy analyses to improve care for children and families in immigrant communities. Prior to joining CCF, Kelly served as the Director of State Coverage Programs at the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, overseeing the CHIP and Basic Health Program. Kelly also worked for the Senate Committee on Finance, managing the Medicaid, CHIP, and prevention and wellness portfolio from October 2008 to April 2014. During her time with the committee, Kelly worked on the CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2009, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010, and several year-end bills extending expiring safety net programs. Kelly studied psychology and Spanish at the University of Michigan and earned a Masters of Public Health from UCLA and a Juris Doctorate from Georgetown University.

Latest

  • HHS Announces Changes to Recommended Vaccine Schedule for Children

    Vaccines and immunizations are safe, effective ways to prevent serious illness by teaching the body’s immune system to recognize and defend against harmful germs. For children and adolescents, vaccines are typically given according to the child and adolescent immunization schedule. The schedule shows which vaccines are recommended by age and offers guidance on intervals for…

  • Proposed Public Charge Rule Could Increase the Number of Uninsured Children by More than 25 Percent

    Georgetown CCF just submitted our comments on the Trump Administration’s proposed rule to lift current rules used to determine whether an immigrant is likely to become a “public charge”. The proposed rule would replace carefully crafted existing regulations with almost unlimited discretion for Department of Homeland Security (DHS) officers to “use their judgment” to determine…

  • Public Charge Changes Will Have Far-Reaching Consequences for Children, Pregnant Women and Families and Sow Fear in Immigrant Communities

    The Trump Administration’s Department of Homeland Security (DHS) released a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) this week on the Public Charge Ground of Inadmissibility (2025 NPRM). “Public charge” is a term used in U.S. immigration law to refer to a person who is likely to become dependent on the government in the future. An immigrant…

  • New Immigrant Eligibility Restrictions Coming to Federally-Funded Health Coverage

    This time next year, an estimated 1.4 million lawfully present immigrants are expected to lose health coverage due to the Budget Reconciliation Law. The law restricts eligibility for federally funded health coverage to only a very narrow group of immigrants – lawful permanent residents (LPR, or green card holders), Cuban and Haitian entrants, and people…

  • What does the CDC’s Vaccine Panel have to do with Medicaid?

    Vaccine safety and changes happening at the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) have been an ongoing topic of conversation throughout the past few months. As we have previously discussed here on Say Ahhh!, HHS has announced upcoming studies and potential changes to how vaccines are approved and recommended for different populations. Most notably,…