HEP Announces Promotion and Expansion of Team

NEW YORK, July 8, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Health Enterprise Partners ("HEP"), a healthcare private equity firm, is pleased to announce the promotion of Jessie Laurash to Vice President, the hiring of David Rauber and the onboarding of three new Executive Partners.

Jessie Laurash Promoted to Vice President

"Jessie possesses industry savvy, operating experience, and a management team orientation, attributes which make her an exceptional investor," said Ezra Mehlman, Managing Partner at HEP. "We and our limited partners are fortunate to have her on the team."

Jessie joined HEP in 2017, while completing her MBA at Columbia Business School. Prior to joining the team, Jessie was the Director of Operations of MediQuire, a venture-backed healthcare data analytics company supporting Medicaid providers and payers in the transition to value-based care. Before MediQuire, Jessie was with Evolent Health where she helped healthcare delivery systems across the country establish population health management infrastructure and capabilities. Jessie also spent several years as a consultant at Booz Allen Hamilton focusing on healthcare policy and reform engagements.

Jessie serves as a director of Aware Recovery Care and a board observer of NOCD. She previously served as a board observer of Twistle (sold to Health Catalyst).

Jessie holds a BS from Georgetown University and received Dean's Honors from Columbia Business School.

David Rauber Joins as Associate

David joined HEP as an Associate in May 2021. Prior to joining the team, David was an Associate at Northlane Capital Partners, a middle-market private equity firm with ~$1B in invested capital. At Northlane, David focused on sourcing, diligence, execution, and portfolio management for the firm's investments in the healthcare and business services sectors. Before Northlane Capital Partners, David was an Associate at CIT, focused on execution and portfolio management for the firm's debt investments in middle-market healthcare services companies.

David holds a BA from Johns Hopkins University.

Natasha Deckmann, Bill Lucia, and Samir Malik Onboarded as Executive Partners

HEP's Executive Partners, distinguished operators in their respective subsectors of healthcare, collaborate with the investment team in identifying sectors of focus, seeking value creating opportunities within the portfolio, and conducting rigorous diligence on prospective investments.

"In our effort to remain close to the pulse of the market, HEP works to associate itself with the brightest minds in the industry. We are grateful for the support, insight, and commitment of our Executive Partners," said Pete Tedesco, Managing Partner at HEP.

Natasha Deckmann, MD, serves as the Chief Operating Officer and Chief Clinical Officer for SecureSeniorConnectionsTM (SSC), a digital platform focused on preventing and reducing loneliness and social isolation in seniors. Natasha was formerly the CEO of CarePoint Health System, a three hospital and medical group system in New Jersey. Prior to joining CarePoint Natasha held several leadership positions at Optum. Her tenure included serving as head of Population Health Solutions at Optum Health, a $2B+ revenue comprehensive population health management business. She also served as Chief Operating Officer of Consumer Solutions Group at Optum, driving key operational and strategic initiatives, managing the overall business portfolio, product development and infrastructure, corporate functions, and overseeing M&A activities, including P&L responsibility for acquisitions. 

Natasha serves on the board of Women's Health USA (WHUSA) and on the Kellogg Alumni Council, volunteering her time to support the school and its alumni initiatives.

Bill Lucia is the former Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer of HMS, a leading healthcare analytics and technology company. He served as CEO from 2009 to 2021 and was named Chairman of the Board of Directors in July 2015. HMS was acquired by Gainwell Technologies, a portfolio company of Veritas Capital, in April 2021. Under Bill's leadership, HMS grew to $673 million in revenue, serving 500 healthcare payers and 50 government agencies in 40-plus states and 31 of the 38 private health insurers in Australia.

Bill served on the Board of Directors of AllyAlign Health, a company that helps senior living and care providers design and run Medicare Advantage plans. Bill also serves on the board of the Digital Health Cooperative Research Centre, the largest research cooperative of its kind in the world, and the Steering Committee for the IMPAC Fund, a group of business leaders dedicated to finding bipartisan solutions on immigration reform. He previously served as co-chairman of the Texas Business Immigration Coalition, was the former chairman of the Council for Medicare Integrity and served on the Healthcare Leadership Council, a coalition of CEOs dedicated to making affordable, high-quality care accessible to all Americans.

Samir Malik most recently served as the CEO of Genoa Telepsychiatry, and an EVP at Optum. Samir and his partners founded 1DocWay in 2011 with a mission of increasing access to behavioral healthcare for the underserved. Over the course of 10 years, Samir and his team led 1DocWay through incubation, venture financing, an exit /PE recap in 2015 and then another exit to Optum in 2018 as the largest provider of telepsychiatry services in the nation, currently serving over 350k+ Medicaid appointments per year.

Prior to 1DocWay, Samir served as the President of Signature Healthcare and Director at CenterPointe Hospital, midwest-based behavioral health inpatient and outpatient providers, before selling the combined businesses to private equity firms, where he still serves on the Board of Directors. Samir started his career as a consultant for McKinsey focused on payors and providers. In addition, Samir advises numerous healthcare and technology startups, including Headway, RideHealth, and Glacier, and sits on the boards of the Zakat Fund of NYC and the Penn Muslim Life Program.

About Health Enterprise Partners
Health Enterprise Partners provides expansion capital to innovative healthcare services and healthcare information technology companies. Central to HEP's strategy is its unique and extensive hospital system and health plan network, 36 members of which are investors in HEP's funds. HEP seeks to invest in companies that improve the quality of the patient experience, expand access, and reduce the cost of healthcare.

SOURCE Health Enterprise Partners