March 30 - April 1, 2026

Nashville Tennessee

Speakers

Gary Bacher

Chief Strategy Officer | CMS Innovation Center

Gary Bacher

Gary Bacher currently serves as Chief Strategy Officer at the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation (CMMI) and Executive Director of the Medicare Care Choices Model (MCCO) at the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). In this capacity, he leads the strategic development of innovative models that advance value-based care, improve patient outcomes, and strengthen the delivery of high-quality, equitable health services nationwide.

Prior to his current role at CMS, Gary served as Chief Strategy Officer for CINQCARE and Chief of Strategy, Policy, and Legal Affairs at Capital Caring Health, where he directed initiatives to improve advanced illness and hospice care during a pivotal time for the aging population.

Gary’s leadership at CMMI builds on more than a decade of experience driving health care improvement at the intersection of public policy, law, regulatory affairs, and business development. He is widely recognized as a national expert in health care systems transformation, with deep knowledge across Medicare and Medicaid programs, health plans, state-based exchanges, and provider organizations.

Earlier in his career, Gary co-founded Healthsperien, a Washington, D.C.–based health policy consultancy; served as Senior Vice President for America’s Health Insurance Plans (AHIP); and held key legal and policy positions at UnitedHealth Group. He also served on active military duty from 1996 to 2000 as Assistant to the Army General Counsel, supporting both the Department of the Army and the White House Counsel’s Office.

Gary holds a Juris Doctor from Stanford Law School, a Master of Public Affairs from Princeton University’s Woodrow Wilson School, and a Bachelor of Science in Foreign Service from Georgetown University.