MEET THE TEAM
PTAC’s team of seasoned consultants have years of experience providing effective technical assistance to state PASRR programs. Their areas of expertise include mental and behavioral health, intellectual and developmental disabilities, person-centered PASRR evaluations, financing of PASRR Specialized Services, nursing facility care planning, PASRR-related data analysis, and the intersection of PASRR and Olmstead compliance.
Frank L. Tetrick, III
Lead PTAC Consultant:
PTAC Consultant: Southern and Western Region
Frank L. Tetrick serves as a HCBS TA Senior Analyst on the TA for HCBS & PASRR Programs Contract administered by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. He has provided PASRR technical assistance (TA) to states since 2011. As our lead TA consultant, he collaborates with and supports a team that provides PASRR technical assistance to all fifty states and the District of Columbia. Frank provides primary PASRR consultation to the states in the Western CMS Region and he serves as lead consultant on matters related to Specialized Services.
Frank has prepared or facilitated multiple PASRR related webinars and developed “PASRR Frequently Asked Questions” posted to the PTAC website. His 30+ years of community and state executive experience in developing and evaluating the quality of community-based mental health, intellectual disability, and substance abuse programs gives Frank unique insight to the challenges state authorities and their contract providers can encounter in developing and managing PASRR programs.
During his tenure as Assistant Commissioner for the Virginia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services, Frank promoted and advanced a statewide intellectual disability initiative with emphasis on person-centered planning and treatment, including services in State facilities and State licensed HCBS providers. His overall experience at the community and state level gives Frank a balanced perspective on how best to improve systems of care that support individuals in the most community-integrated settings possible.
Laura L. Nuss
PTAC Consultant: Eastern Region
Laura Nuss serves as a HCBS TA Senior Analyst on the TA for HCBS & PASRR Programs Contract administered by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Ms. Nuss has over 35 years of experience in home and community-based services (HCBS) including direct service delivery, program development and implementation, quality systems design and implementation, policy development and stakeholder engagement. Prior to joining New Editions, Ms. Nuss held senior leadership positions in North Carolina, Connecticut and the District of Columbia state government where she led many initiatives including Preadmission Screening and Resident Review (PASRR) and delivery of Specialized Services for persons with intellectual and developmental disabilities, Money Follows the Person, person-centered planning and thinking, self-direction, quality and performance management, information management, No Wrong Door and cross systems employment first strategies while leading Medicaid policy efforts. Ms. Nuss can draw on this experience to support states in developing and managing PASRR programs.
Ms. Nuss has also provided direct technical assistance to states for the past four years in Medicaid policy and program development, quality and performance management systems, employment policy, braided funding strategies and stakeholder engagement. Her experience in multiple states and providing technical assistance to others provides a broad perspective in system improvement to support advances in integrated community services.
Teja Stokes serves as a HCBS TA Senior Analyst on the TA for HCBS & PASRR Programs Contract administered by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. She provides primary PASRR consultation to the states in the Central CMS Region. In this role, she provides a broad range of technical assistance (TA) to states on issues related to Medicaid structure and quality, organizational success strategies, and effective service modalities. Ms. Stokes’ nearly 30 years of experience in home and community-based services (HCBS) program development, implementation, quality, and policy provides the understanding and expertise to support state authorities and contract providers in developing and managing PASRR programs.
Ms. Stokes served as a Director in the Government Health and Human Services division at IBM Watson Health where she led many federal and state projects aimed at providing direct technical assistance in HCBS, Preadmission Screening and Resident Review (PASRR), beneficiary engagement and quality of care. She has held various positions within Virginia state government, where she supported Medicaid policy development, community-based behavioral health services, and provision of developmental disabilities services. Ms. Stokes offers more than 25 years of experience in change management, including quality improvement, process mapping, strategic planning, process improvement, and group facilitation helping community-based service systems advance quality outcomes for people receiving integrated services and supports.
Teja S. Stokes
PTAC Consultant: Central Region
Edward Kako
PTAC Consultant:
Specializing in Training and
Data Analysis
Dr. Ed Kako has experience managing policy analysis, quality assurance, report writing, technical assistance, and strategic planning, both as project director and as a task lead on various projects. Dr. Kako’s recent and current work has focused on approaches to rebalancing long-term care. Dr. Kako is a senior member of the team contributing to training and data collection and analysis tasks. Dr. Kako led the development of the PASRR Technical Assistance Center (PTAC) website.