Head of Policy

What we’re looking for

Stedi is hiring a Head of Policy. We’re already active within the standards bodies that govern healthcare data exchange – including X12, WEDI, CAQH, and HL7 – and we’re now looking to expand our work to drive a broader impact across healthcare interoperability policy.

Our view is that the biggest points of leverage for reducing administrative burden and improving the exchange of healthcare data typically sit a layer below legislation, in the fine-grained details. Relevant standards and regulations often don’t account for the industry’s nuanced practices, leaving ample opportunity for specific rules that could eliminate an enormous amount of operational toil and move the industry forward. Stedi is uniquely positioned to know what to push for and marshal the resources needed to get it done.

To this end, Stedi is looking for a policy expert who lives in the details. We’re excited for this hire to set Stedi’s comprehensive policy agenda, meticulously build the case and coalition behind each proposal, foster outside engagement, and see these proposals through the standards and rulemaking processes. This role is hands-on, and we need a builder.

What you'll do

• Own Stedi's interoperability and related policy strategy. Work closely with executive leadership to set our policy playbook, prioritize initiatives, and chart the path to adoption.
• Build Stedi’s government affairs program. Stand up the stakeholder relationships and engagement frameworks that position Stedi as the most credible voice on interoperability and administrative simplification.
• Shift our work with the standards bodies from reactive participation to helping to shape the agenda. Lead our participation in X12, WEDI, CAQH CORE, HL7, and other work groups and committees, bring proposals, and establish the relationships that build momentum.
• Run detailed regulatory advocacy with CMS, HHS, and other federal and state agencies, such as comment letters, RFI responses, technical proposals, and direct engagement with staff on specific rule language.
• Choose the highest-leverage initiatives to pursue, working with engineering, product, and operations to translate clearinghouse transaction inefficiencies into concrete interoperability proposals.
• Convert positions into precise text that holds up to scrutiny across both Stedi’s business and the healthcare interoperability ecosystem at large.
• Build support among providers, health tech companies, payers, and trade associations.
• Keep leadership current on the pipeline of critical regulatory updates, including HIPAA administrative simplification, X12 version migrations, and interoperability and prior authorization rulemaking.

Who you are

• 8+ years in health policy, regulatory affairs, or standards work – at CMS or HHS, on Capitol Hill, inside a standards or operating rules body, or on the policy team of a payer, provider system, health tech company, or trade association.
• You like to win and have a track record of doing so. You’re willing to take on powerful incumbents if that's what's needed.
• Working knowledge of HIPAA Administrative Simplification, X12 transaction sets, CAQH CORE operating rules, and federal rulemaking is strongly preferred. We will also consider deep regulatory experience in another technically complex industry.
• A network to leverage. You've established credibility in your space, you have a network you can leverage, and you understand the underlying interests the key players in healthcare have.
• Excited by implementation detail. You would rather get one sentence of a rule right than write a paper about the statute behind it.
• A record of driving concrete outcomes. A provision, an operating rule, or a standard change you helped get adopted.
• Resourceful and frugal. Your first instinct is not “let’s go retain a lobbying firm.”
• A strong writer. Comment letters, proposals, and rule language are an essential output of this job.
• Credible with engineers. You can follow a conversation about an API response or an EDI segment and understand why the details matter.
• Fast. We move quickly and expect policy to keep pace.