Stephen Palmer
Managing Principal
Health Management Associates
Austin, TX
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(512) 473-2626
Stephen Palmer, PhD has a broad range of expertise and skills, which enable him to easily join most types of projects and get up to speed quickly. His career has been focused on Medicaid, healthcare information technology (IT), telehealth, and health professions regulation. He spent more than a decade serving the State of Texas, gaining a deep understanding of state health policy and programs. He is also a skilled researcher, writer, and analyst with expertise in statistical methods and data modeling.
Before joining HMA, Stephen worked as a principal in the Intelligence Practice Area of Leavitt Partners Solutions, focusing on research and state health policy. Stephen also ran his own consulting firm for more than five years, helping organizations navigate the intersections of healthcare, government, and technology.
Stephen served as director of the Office of E-Health Coordination for the Texas Health and Human Services Commission and as the Texas State Health IT Coordinator from 2010-2013. As the state health IT coordinator, Stephen managed the Texas state health information exchange program and coordinated the other federally funded healthcare information technology initiatives throughout the state.
During his tenure with the State of Texas, he served as a healthcare policy advisor to Governor Rick Perry, providing guidance on a wide range of issues. He also worked as a policy advisor on Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program for the Deputy Executive Commission for Health Services at the state Health and Human Services Commission and as a policy staff member in the Texas Senate.
Prior to his public policy career, Stephen was an information technology consultant focusing on interface programming and database administration. He earned a bachelor’s degree in physics and philosophy from Rice University and a Master of Public Affairs and doctorate degree in public policy from the LBJ School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas, where his doctoral research focused on health information technology policy.
Stephen lives in Austin with his wife, sons Benjamin and Henry, and two dogs Maddie and Nacho.