Archives: People

Kevin McIntyre is a Senior Government Relations Manager at TFAH, where he leads the organization’s government relations and advocacy strategies focused on environmental health, climate and health and age-friendly public health systems.

Before joining TFAH, Kevin worked at the Alliance for Health Reform as a Program Assistant for Health Policy & Congressional Outreach, providing support for the group’s events on Capitol Hill. Prior to that, he held internships with Sen. Bob Casey, Jr. (D-PA) and Rep. Jason Altmire (D-PA). Kevin graduated Phi Beta Kappa from the University of Maryland in 2013 with a BA in Government & Politics.

Dara Alpert Lieberman is TFAH’s Director of Government Relations, overseeing the development and implementation of federal government relations strategies and working to advance and ensure implementation of TFAH policy priorities. Prior to that, Dara served as TFAH’s Senior Government Relations Manager, leading the organization’s advocacy around infectious disease prevention, disease surveillance, and strengthening the nation’s public health emergency preparedness and response capabilities. Ms. Lieberman previously served as a legislative representative for the American Counseling Association, where she advocated for mental health access issues. Ms. Lieberman has also served as a staff member for the Senate Committee on Armed Services.

She secured an MPP from the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy at the University of Michigan. She graduated magna cum laude with a BA in Public Policy Studies from Duke University. She also serves on the board of directors for the Coalition for Health Funding, a nonprofit alliance working to preserve and strengthen public health investments.

Molly Warren is a Senior Health Policy Researcher and Analyst at TFAH. Prior to joining TFAH, Molly served in policy and research roles at Enroll America, an organization focused on maximizing healthcare coverage under the Affordable Care Act. Previously she worked in other areas of healthcare reform and injury prevention at the Harvard Injury Control Research Center, Community Catalyst, the State of Vermont, and the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence. Warren holds a Master’s degree in health policy from the Harvard School of Public Health and a Bachelor’s degree in history and art from Colby College.

Matt McKillop is an Associate Director of Policy Research at TFAH. He leads the development of TFAH’s policy research agenda and serves as a lead author on reports and other publications covering public health emergency preparedness, climate and health, and public health funding and infrastructure.

Before joining TFAH, he managed research on state health and fiscal policy at The Pew Charitable Trusts, including analyses of correctional health care spending, quality monitoring in prisons and jails, and policies to support continuity of care after release. He also led advocacy and community organizing campaigns for So Others Might Eat, a nonprofit organization that serves poor and homeless residents of the District of Columbia. He holds a bachelor’s degree in political science from Kalamazoo College and a master’s in public policy from George Washington University.

Andrea Takash serves as the Director of Strategic Communications and Policy Research. In this role, Ms. Takash and her team lead a forward leaning communications and policy research program.

Ms. Takash is a recognized leader in federal government communications, spanning a two-decade career. Prior to joining Trust for America’s Health, Ms. Takash was the Director of the Office of Communications and Acting Associate Administrator of Intergovernmental and External Affairs at the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA). Before HRSA, Ms. Takash was at the forefront in the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) Center for Tobacco Products Office of Health Communication and Education for close to 10 years. While at the FDA, Ms. Takash managed high-profile tobacco regulatory announcements including the Deeming Final Rule and the Comprehensive Plan for Tobacco and Nicotine Regulation, as well as the public relations and earned media launches for FDA’s award-winning tobacco public health education campaigns.

Ms. Takash also served as a Public Affairs Specialist for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for more than 12 years. During her tenure with the Corps of Engineers, Ms. Takash led the communication efforts for highly sensitive environmental clean-up projects, and managed media relations and public outreach during several natural disaster events.

Ms. Takash holds a Master of Business Administration from Columbia College and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communication Studies from Youngstown State University.

Dr. J. Nadine Gracia is the President and CEO of Trust for America’s Health (TFAH), a nonprofit, nonpartisan public health policy, research and advocacy organization that promotes optimal health for every person and community. Dr. Gracia is a national health equity leader with extensive leadership experience in federal government, the nonprofit sector, academia, and professional associations. As President and CEO, she leads TFAH’s work to advance sound public health policy, advance health equity, address the social determinants of health, and make health promotion and disease prevention a national priority.

Before being appointed President and CEO, Dr. Gracia served as TFAH’s Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer. In that role, she developed and implemented strategic policy priorities and managed TFAH’s business operations. She also strengthened and broadened partnership relations focused on health equity.

Prior to joining TFAH, Dr. Gracia served in the Obama Administration as the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Minority Health and Director of the Office of Minority Health at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). In that capacity, she directed departmental policies and programs to end health disparities and advance health equity, and provided executive leadership on administration priorities including the Affordable Care Act and My Brother’s Keeper.  Previously, she served as Chief Medical Officer in the HHS Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health, where her portfolio included adolescent health, emergency preparedness, environmental health and climate change, global health, and the White House Council on Women and Girls. Prior to that role, she was appointed as a White House Fellow at HHS and worked in the Office of the First Lady on the development of the Let’s Move! initiative to solve childhood obesity.

 A first-generation Haitian-American, Dr. Gracia received a Bachelor’s degree in French from Stanford University, a medical degree from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, and a Master of Science in Clinical Epidemiology from the University of Pennsylvania. She completed pediatrics residency at Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh and later was a clinical instructor and research fellow at The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, where she conducted research on community risk factors for violence. 

Dr. Gracia served as a member of the President’s Council on Sports, Fitness and Nutrition between 2023 and 2025. She holds many leadership positions with the public health sector including on the Aspen Global Leadership Network, the Dean’s Council at the University of Maryland School of Public Health, and the National Academy of Medicine Culture of Health Program Advisory Committee. In addition, Dr. Gracia is a Commissioner on the National Commission on Climate and Workforce Health, an Ex Officio Member of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine Roundtable on Obesity Solutions, a member of the Milken Institute Center for Public Health Advisory Board, and a member of the Center for Climate, Health, and the Global Environment (C-CHANGE) Advisory Board at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Dr. Gracia also serves on the Board of Directors of Vaccinate Your Family and the Global NGO Executive Committee. She is also a member of Women of Impact, and the Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Incorporated.