Brewer announces Advisors for K-12 Education, Health and Human Services

For Immediate Release
January 27, 2009

Brewer Adds to Policy Staff Team
Names Advisors for K-12 Education, Health & Human Services

PHOENIX – Arizona Governor Jan Brewer today announced the addition of two policy advisors to her staff, naming Karla Phillips as Policy Advisor for K-12 Education and Beth Kohler Lazare as Policy Advisor for Health and Human Services.

“I am honored to have Ms. Phillips and Ms. Kohler Lazare join my extremely qualified and experienced team,” stated Brewer. “Both women bring to my staff a wealth of expert knowledge and numerous years of pertinent experience. They are highly regarded professionals that will advise me on areas of critical importance to the future of our great state.”

Prior to her appointment to the Brewer Administration, Karla Phillips served as Director of State Government Relations for Arizona State University. In that role she served as the university representative at legislative hearings and stakeholder meetings, advised university officials on issues impacting the university, developed strategies to advance major legislative initiatives, and helped to coordinate legislative activities with the Arizona Board of Regents as well as Northern Arizona University and the University of Arizona.

Prior to that, Ms. Phillips worked for seven years as a senior policy advisor for the Arizona House of Representatives. She advised the Speaker and other elected officials on issues relating to K-12 and university policy and finance, minority issues, welfare and child welfare issues. She was also responsible for researching, drafting, summarizing and advancing major legislative initiatives.

Ms. Phillips received her Bachelor of Arts degree in East Asian Studies from Indiana University. She also received her Masters in Public Administration from Arizona State University.

For the past year, Beth Kohler Lazare has worked as a Managing Consultant in the Phoenix office of Navigant Consulting, where she assisted numerous clients with Medicaid and other healthcare projects. Her projects included assessing the adequacy and appropriateness of Title XIX reimbursement rates for service providers, conducting program evaluations, assisting with procurement and reprocurement of contractors for a range of healthcare program types as well as analyzing Medicaid cost containment and health reform issues across the country.

Prior to her work in the private sector, Ms. Kohler Lazare served on the research staff of the Arizona Senate. She was the Legislative Research Analyst for the Health Committee for three years, the last year of which she was also the Research Staff Assistant Director. As Assistant Director, she was responsible for all operations of the research staff and for conducting comprehensive public policy research and analysis. She advised senators on health and policy issues including Medicaid, health insurance, small business health coverage, regulatory policy and health care finance and reform issues. She was also responsible for tracking and analyzing proposed legislation and for monitoring federal legislation and policy to determine the impact on state programs.

Ms. Kohler Lazare also served as Senior Fiscal Analyst for the Joint Legislative Budget Committee of the Arizona Legislature, advising legislators on fiscal and policy issues including Medicaid, long-term care, children’s health coverage, prescription drug issues, state employee health insurance, public health programs and health care regulations.

Ms. Kohler Lazare earned her Bachelor of Arts degree with High Distinction in Government from the University of Virginia. She went on to earn her Masters in Public Affairs with a concentration in health policy from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

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