Chief of Government Relations and External Affairs

Job Summary

The Chief of Government Relations and External Affairs provides strategic leadership for all aspects of L.A. Care's engagement with government entities, elected officials, regulatory agencies, and the public. This position is based in Sacramento, CA, and directs the organization's advocacy agenda across local, state, and federal levels in an increasingly complex and politically sensitive environment.

The Chief develops and executes integrated government relations and public affairs strategies that advance L.A. Care's mission, protect its regulatory standing, and shape the legislative and policy landscape affecting government-sponsored health programs. This role leads crisis communications and public affairs responses to emergent issues, manages contract lobbyists and external advocacy resources, and serves as a senior spokesperson and representative before government bodies.

This is a senior leadership position with full management responsibility for staff and external resources, including direct oversight of the hiring, performance evaluation, and strategic direction of contract lobbyists, consultants, and department personnel.

Duties

Government Relations Strategy and Execution

Develop and implement comprehensive, multi-year government relations strategies aligned with L.A. Care's strategic goals and operational priorities.  Serve as L.A. Care's primary representative and spokesperson before federal, state, and local legislative bodies, regulatory agencies, and executive-branch officials. Build and maintain high-value relationships with elected officials, agency leadership, legislative staff, and key government stakeholders at all levels.  Direct L.A. Care's participation in legislative hearings, testimony opportunities, coalition advocacy efforts, and regulatory proceedings.  Facilitate and oversee L.A. Care's annual legislative day and other structured engagement events between policymakers and L.A. Care leadership, board members, and consumer advocates.

Legislative and Regulatory Monitoring and Analysis

Establish and manage systems for continuous monitoring of federal and state legislative activity, regulatory promulgations, and agency rulemaking that affect L.A. Care's operations, member populations, and competitive positioning. Provide timely, expert analysis of proposed legislation, enacted laws, and regulatory actions; assess potential operational, financial, and reputational impacts.  Prepare and disseminate legislative and regulatory briefings, position papers, and policy updates for the Senior Leadership Team, Board of Directors, and relevant internal committees. Track regulatory calendars for DHCS, CMS, DMHC, and other applicable agencies; anticipate emerging issues and proactive position L.A. Care for effective response.

Policy Development and Advocacy

Lead the development of L.A. Care's formal policy positions on state and federal legislation and agency regulations. Coordinate with internal subject-matter experts, legal counsel, and external partners to draft legislative comments, regulatory submissions, testimony, fact sheets, and position statements. Manage L.A. Care's participation in public comment processes for proposed state and federal rules, including comment letter drafting, coalition sign-on coordination, and agency follow-up. Represent L.A. Care in trade association policy committees and multi-stakeholder coalitions; advance the organization's priorities in collaborative advocacy environments. Develop and deliver training for staff, board members, and consumer members to serve as effective advocates and spokespersons before governmental bodies.

Public Affairs and Strategic Communications

Direct all public affairs communications, ensuring consistent and strategically sound messaging that reflects L.A. Care's mission and public responsibilities as a nonprofit, government-sponsored health plan. Oversee development and distribution of public-facing materials related to legislative and regulatory activities, including statements, press materials, testimony, and digital content. Manage media relations for government affairs matters; serve as principal spokesperson or prepare and coach organizational spokespersons for high-stakes media engagements. Align public affairs messaging with legislative strategy; ensure that external communications reinforce advocacy objectives and protect organizational credibility. Monitor the media and political environment for emerging narratives, reputational risks, and opportunities to advance L.A. Care's policy agenda, report findings to senior leadership with recommended responses.

Crisis Communications and Issues Management

Lead L.A. Care's crisis communications function for emergent events, regulatory actions, adverse legislative developments, or high-profile operational issues affecting the organization's public standing.

Duties Continued

Develop and maintain crisis communications protocols, rapid-response procedures, and stakeholder notification frameworks in coordination with the Senior Leadership Team, Legal, and Compliance. Serve as primary strategist and coordinator for communications responses to audits, corrective action plans, enforcement actions, or adverse media coverage involving government-sponsored programs.

Conduct post-crisis review and remediation planning; integrate lessons learned into updated protocols and stakeholder engagement strategies.

Contract Lobbyist and External Advocacy Oversight

Direct the recruitment, contracting, and performance management of external lobbyists, government affairs consultants, and other advocacy resources retained to advance L.A. Care's strategic interests. Establish performance expectations, reporting standards, and accountability metrics for all contract advocacy personnel; conduct regular performance reviews and alignment sessions. Ensure contract lobbyists are fully briefed on L.A. Care's policy priorities, organizational sensitivities, and communications standards; review all lobbying activity and reporting for accuracy and strategic alignment. Monitor compliance with state and federal lobbying disclosure requirements; maintain accurate records of all lobbying expenditures and activities. Evaluate ROI of external advocacy engagements and make recommendations for resource reallocation or contract adjustments to senior leadership.

Board and Senior Leadership Engagement

Provide regular, strategic briefings to the Board of Directors and Senior Leadership Team on the legislative and regulatory landscape, emerging risks, and policy opportunities. Prepare board-ready materials including policy summaries, advocacy reports, and briefing documents for use in board and committee meetings. Serve as a strategic advisor to the CEO and executive team on government relations strategy, political risk assessment, and the policy implications of organizational decisions. Support board member development as government affairs ambassadors; coordinate board-to-official engagement as appropriate.

Coalition Building and External Partnerships

Develop and maintain strategic alliances with peer health plans, trade associations, community organizations, and advocacy groups to advance shared policy objectives. Represent L.A. Care in statewide and national forums relevant to Medicaid, public health policy, and managed care regulation.

Identify and pursue opportunities to position L.A. Care as a thought leader in government-sponsored health care, including publication of policy white papers, participation in public panels, and engagement with academic and policy institutions.

Department Leadership and Administration

Exercise full management authority for the Government and Public Relations department, including hiring, onboarding, performance evaluation, compensation review, and disciplinary actions. Set departmental goals, develop operating plans, and manage budgets to ensure efficient deployment of resources in pursuit of organizational priorities. Foster high-performance, collaborative team culture oriented toward accountability, mission alignment, and continuous improvement. Partner with Legal, Compliance, Finance, and Operations to ensure government relations activities are coordinated, legally sound, and organizationally integrated.

Perform other duties as assigned.

Education Required

Education Preferred

Experience

Required:

At least 10 years of progressive experience in government relations, legislative affairs, public affairs, or policy advocacy, with demonstrated success influencing outcomes in complex political environments.

At least 10 years in positions with significant supervisory and managerial responsibility, including management of professional staff and external contractors.

Demonstrated experience in legislative and regulatory monitoring, policy analysis, and the development of formal advocacy strategies at state and/or federal levels.

Proven track record in crisis communications and issues management on behalf of a regulated or publicly accountable organization.

Experience managing contract lobbyists or external government affairs consultants, including performance oversight and compliance management.

Preferred:

Experience working with and reporting to boards of directors or governors and senior executive leadership teams.

Experience in the California legislative and regulatory environment; established relationships with state officials, legislative staff, and agency leadership.

Experience in issues management involving California state agencies such as DHCS, DMHC, or CDPH, or federal agencies including CMS.

Skills

Required:

Exceptional written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to translate complex legislative, regulatory, and technical content for diverse audiences, from board members to frontline staff to elected officials.

Expert-level understanding of government processes, regulatory frameworks, and legislative procedures at local, state, and federal levels.

Strong public speaking and testimony skills for representing the organization at hearings, coalition meetings, press events, and government proceedings.

Advanced analytical capability to evaluate legislation, regulations, and policy proposals and assess their financial, operational, and reputational implications for L.A. Care.

Skilled in negotiation, coalition management, and conflict resolution in politically charged environments.

High ethical standards and sound judgment in managing sensitive governmental relationships and confidential organizational information.

Capacity to operate effectively under pressure, adapt to rapidly shifting political conditions, and manage multiple high-priority initiatives concurrently.

Proficiency in lobbying compliance, disclosure requirements, and related regulatory obligations.

Preferred:

In-depth knowledge of Medi-Cal, Medicare, or other government-sponsored health programs, including the relevant regulatory and legislative frameworks.

In-depth knowledge of the structure and operations of California state government and the federal legislative and regulatory process as it applies to Medicaid and managed care.

Familiarity with digital advocacy platforms, legislative tracking tools, and media monitoring systems.

Licenses/Certifications Required

Licenses/Certifications Preferred

Required Training

Physical Requirements

Additional Information