Marsha Simon, Ph.D.
President
Dr. Simon is an expert in legislative strategy, nonprofit management, and public policy research, with over 20 years of experience, including nearly a decade working for the United States Senate. She served as senior committee staff to Senators Edward M. Kennedy, Tom Harkin, and Robert C. Byrd, advising them on public health and welfare policy, as well as on the budget and appropriations processes. These staff positions included minority staff director for the Senate Appropriations Committee's Subcommittee on Labor, Health, and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies for Senator Tom Harkin; and chief policy advisor for Budget and Health Policy for the Senate Committee on Health, Education Labor, and Pensions for Senator Edward Kennedy. Senator Harkin is now chair of the Appropriations Subcommittee, as well as of the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee that is responsible for public health measures, including biomedical research and food and drug law.
In addition to her experience working for the U.S. Senate, Dr. Simon has managed government relations for diverse health, income security, and welfare stakeholders, including for the Jefferson Consulting Group, a lobbying and federal business development firm; the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology; and public interest groups, including Families USA, the Food Research and Action Center, the Housing Assistance Council and Rural America (now the Community Transportation Association of America).
Dr. Simon served on Barack Obama's health advisory committee during his presidential campaign. She also served as a policy advisor on Governor Howard Dean's campaign and drafted his long-term care platform. She was also a member of the Clinton Administration's National Task force on Health Care Reform.
Dr. Simon earned a Ph.D. and an M.S. in political science from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. In addition to her work at Simon & Co., Dr. Simon is also an adjunct professor in the Department of Health Policy at George Washington University.
Karen Late
Director
As director of government relations, Karen Late advocates on behalf of clients before Congress and the Administration, and she conducts research and analysis on a variety of health policy issues. With a strong track record of impacting policy and legislation to benefit clients' needs, she has broad knowledge of healthcare issues and comprehension of the legislative and regulatory process. With 17 years in legislative advocacy experience, Ms. Late is familiar with legislation and regulation impacting Medicare, Medicaid, and CHIP, as well as with physicians, medical equipment, managed care, pharmaceuticals, dialysis, nursing, immigration, and disaster preparedness.
Previously, Ms. Late was the director of federal advocacy for the Florida Hospital Association, where she developed and implemented legislative and political strategies to achieve the association's federal regulatory and legislative goals. Before working for FHA, Ms. Late served as senior associate at Congressional Consultants, a government relations firm with expertise in dialysis reimbursement and related pharmaceuticals. In addition, she worked for the American Hospital Association on the legislative and legal advocacy team.
Ms. Late earned her MHS in health policy management from Johns Hopkins University, her Legislative Specialist Certificate from George Washington University, and her BA from the University of Florida.
Jamison Scott
Government Affairs Manager
As government affairs manager for Simon and Co., Jamison Scott manages the company's administrative and logistical activities and conducts legislative research. Before joining Simon and Co., Mr. Scott worked as a staff assistant in Congressman Brad Sherman's Washington Office. There, his responsibilities included performing administrative duties, conducting legislative research, and meeting with different interest groups and constituents. Preceding his work on Capitol Hill, Mr. Scott interned at the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization, where he lobbied on Medicare reimbursement issues. Mr. Scott earned his BA in economics from the University of Virginia.
Melanie J. Morris
Senior Policy Consultant
As senior policy consultant at Simon and Co., Melanie Morris achieves business and policy goals of our clients by drawing on her years of work in government relations and health policy. Previously, she served as a director at Jefferson Consulting Group (JCG), an established lobbying and federal business development company, where she managed the firm's government relations practice. JCG's clients included many prominent health and information technology companies, including HealthNet, the northeast DoD TriCare contractor, and Apple.
Before working at JCG, Ms. Morris was at Raytheon Company, where she served as a policy specialist coordinating business agreements and handling relations between Raytheon and a range of customers, including the U.S. and foreign governments.
Ms. Morris earned her MA and BA from the University of Arizona, with majors in political science and international relations. She is currently enrolled in Johns Hopkins University's Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Kristin E. Serfass
Consultant
Kristin Serfass graduated from the Pennsylvania State University with a BA in communication arts and sciences and a minor in health policy and administration. She previously worked as a health policy intern at the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society's Eastern Pennsylvania Chapter. There, Ms. Serfass lobbied the state legislature for enactment of the Cancer Clinical Trials Act. She also promoted fundraising activities for the society, organized grassroots advocacy efforts, and handled database entries. As a consultant for Simon and Co., Ms. Serfass consults on the company's logistical and administrative duties.
