Board of Directors

The Board of Directors supports the work of CCCC and provides leadership and strategic governance to the organization. This includes actively participating in strategic planning and major business decisions, overseeing CCCC’s financial operations, acting in the best interest of the organization and its mission, and promoting the organization’s sustainability.

CHAIR

Kimberly Bower, MD, FAAHPM, HMDC

Medical Director, Promise Health Plan
Blue Shield of California

Kimberly Bower is the medical director, Promise Health Plan, at Blue Shield of California. After earning her medical degree from the University of Kansas School of Medicine in Kansas City, she completed her family medicine residency training at Brown University / Memorial Hospital of Rhode Island in Pawtucket, RI. In 2004, Dr. Bower began a fellowship in Hospice & Palliative Medicine at San Diego Hospice & the Institute for Palliative Medicine (SDHIPM). She stayed on for a second year, serving as chief fellow, with a focus on building skills in pediatric palliative medicine and working on international initiatives. In 2006, she became the medical director for the pediatric programs at SDHIPM and also served as core faculty within the palliative medicine fellowship program, designing the pediatric track within the fellowship and the pediatric curriculum for the adult palliative medicine fellows. Dr. Bower believes in medical care that allows patients to live life to the fullest and is provided with kindness, compassion and respect for the values of patients and their families.

VICE CHAIR

Susan Elizabeth Wang, MD, FAAHPM, HMDC

National Leader, Dignified Journeys and Palliative Care
Kaiser Permanente

Susan Wang is the national leader for Dignified Journeys and Palliative Care at Kaiser Permanente (KP) where she supports the implementation of a high-quality ecosystem for the care of people with serious illness. She is working in partnership with market leaders in CA, OR, WA, GA, CO, HI, and Mid-Atlantic States to increase access to palliative care. Dr. Wang is also regional chief of the Dept. of Geriatrics & Palliative Medicine in KP So. CA. In this role, she oversees the palliative clinics, geriatric clinics, inpatient palliative medicine services, and a robust SNF rounding program across 16 hospitals. She is the regional hospice medical director for an agency with an average daily census of 800 patients and home-based palliative care program with an average daily census of 1000. She has led KP SCAL as Medical Director of Life Care Planning and Shared Decision Making for almost a decade, creating a centralized advance care planning tab, an E-POLST, a primary palliative-skills curriculum, and multiple tools to enhance decision support for patients and families. Dr. Wang is Director Emeritus of the KP Los Angeles Hospice & Palliative Medicine fellowship, a program that she created in 2008. She is an assistant clinical professor at UCLA and triple board-certified in Internal, Geriatric, and Palliative Medicine.

 

IMMEDIATE PAST CHAIR

Robert Moore, MD, MPH, MBA

Chief Medical Officer
Partnership Healthplan of California

Robert Moore is the chief medical officer of Partnership HealthPlan (PHC), a well-respected Medi-Cal Managed Care plan, serving 14 Northern California counties. Prior to joining PHC, Dr. Moore was the medical director of Community Health Clinic OLE, an FQHC in Napa County, for 13 years, where he continues to see patients one evening each week. His major professional interests are quality improvement, operational effectiveness, and delivery system transformation. He is a graduate of UCSF Medical School and the Columbia University School of Public Health. Dr. Moore completed post-graduate courses and fellowships in health center management, health care leadership, and quality improvement. His clinical interests include palliative care, intensive outpatient care management, hospital medicine, diabetes care, and pediatrics. 

 

SECRETARY

Elizabeth M. Mahler, MD

Physician

Elizabeth Mahler is a board certified internist-hospitalist and physician executive. She is the former vice president of patient health management at Sutter and led Sutter Health’s enterprise strategy and clinical transformation efforts related to the delivery of clinically integrated, personalized, patient-family engaged care, particularly for high-need, vulnerable populations and oversaw the Sutter Center for Integrated Care. Dr. Mahler also sponsored and supported enterprise-wide Clinical Improvement Communities related to Hospital Medicine and Palliative & Advanced Illness Care, and was the executive sponsor of Sutter’s Management and Clinical Excellence program. She earned her medical degree and residency from the University of California, San Francisco.

 

Jennifer Moore Ballentine, MA

Chief Executive Officer
Coalition for Compassionate Care of California

Jennifer Moore Ballentine is CEO of the Coalition for Compassionate Care of California. She is an educator, consultant, and advocate with more than 20 years’ experience and expertise in palliative care and hospice, adult education, healthcare ethics and policy. She is the former Executive Director of the California State University Shiley Haynes Institute for Palliative Care and previously held leadership roles for Life Quality Institute, The Denver Hospice, and the Colorado Center for Hospice and Palliative Care. 

 

Tao Le, MD

Senior Healthcare Executive

Tao Le is widely recognized as an innovative driver of transformative change within complex healthcare ecosystems. He is passionately committed to fostering innovation and sustainable growth, with an established record of success in marrying strategic vision with operational excellence and nurturing productive collaborations that improve healthcare outcomes and patient experience.  As a member of multiple boards, Dr. Le has established a firm foundation in governance and a commitment to ethical leadership where personal insights and a holistic perspective have contributed to the strategic direction of multiple organizations, supporting the interests of stakeholders and ensuring long-term sustainability. Dr. Le holds an MD degree from the Faculty of Medicine, University of Saigon in Vietnam. He completed residencies in Family Medicine at UCI Medical Center in California and a Faculty Development Fellowship on Cultural Competency in Medicine at White Memorial Medical Center. He was a faculty member at the Institute for Health Care Communications. Dr. Le also holds a Certification in Medical Management from the American College of Physician Executives.

 

Praba Koomson, DNP

Director, Advanced Illness Management (AIM)
Sutter Health

Praba Koomson is a healthcare leader with over 26 years of progressive experience in USA, United Kingdom, and Africa. She has a broad knowledge and experience of the healthcare continuum in different settings including Innovations Development, Professional Legal Nurse Consulting, Research and Academic Nursing Faculty. Dr. Koomson is a specialist in reflective-practice with focus in inter-professional, inter-sector and inter-agency collaborative practice. She is a healthcare thought leader, and a national and international speaker.

James Mittelberger, MD, MPH

Chief Medical Officer
Center for Elders Independence

James Mittelberger is a nationally recognized physician leader who has dedicated his 30+ year career to the care of vulnerable patients across the continuum of care from hospital to home. His roles have included medical director of the Over 60's Clinic; 20 years as chief of the Division of Geriatrics at Highland Hospital in Oakland; and a decade building innovative geriatric, palliative care, and hospice programs for UnitedHealth Group and Optum as West Region chief medical officer for Medicare and Medicaid, then as founding director and chief medical officer for the Optum Center for Palliative and Supportive Care. Prior to joining CEI's leadership team in 2019,Dr. Mittelberger was the chief medical officer for UCSF's affiliate hospice, Hospice by the Bay. His leadership roles have also included president of the multi-specialty OakCare Medical Group, and interim CEO of the Alameda Health Care System.

Karl Steinberg, MD, CMD

President
Stone Mountain Medical Associates, Inc.

Karl Steinberg is chief medical officer, Mariner Health Central Health, and a past chair of the Coalition for Compassionate Care of California. He is board certified in family medicine with CAQ in hospice and palliative medicine. He is also a certified medical director for skilled nursing facilities and hospices. Dr. Steinberg supervises the operation for 20 skilled nursing facilities and focuses on quality initiatives and efficient, person-centered care. He is associated with numerous professional organizations. Dr. Steinberg is a first-generation American. His mother was born and raised in Guadalajara, Mexico, and immigrated to the US to attend college, then medical school. He is a US citizen and a Mexican national, and Spanish was his first language. After graduating from Harvard College with a degree in biochemistry and molecular biology, Dr. Steinberg attended medical school at Ohio State University. He did his training in family medicine at the University of California, San Diego. Dr. Steinberg thinks he is best known for taking his two dogs to work with him nearly every day.