Leadership
Our experienced leaders work hard to ensure our members get the best quality health care possible.
Annie H Lee, JD, President and CEO
Annie Lee, JD, president and chief executive officer, is responsible for advancing the Colorado Access corporate mission and provides executive oversight for all programs.
Annie is known as a trusted and collaborative leader with extensive experience working within the Medicaid landscape in Colorado. Prior to joining Colorado Access in 2022, she served as executive director of community health and Medicaid strategies at Children’s Hospital Colorado for over five years. In that role, Annie led partnerships with schools, local public health agencies, and primary care providers to develop and support holistic models of care that address social determinants of health. She also served as senior director of Medicaid and charitable coverage programs at Kaiser Permanente Colorado, where she led a payment reform initiative and advanced growth of Kaiser Permanente’s Medicaid and Child Health Plan Plus (CHP+) membership. Prior to that, Annie worked at the Colorado Department of Health Care Policy and Financing in both CHP+ and Medicaid benefits policy.
She was appointed to serve on the board of the State of Colorado’s health insurance marketplace, Connect for Health Colorado, in 2017. She received her Juris Doctor (JD) from the University of Denver Sturm College of Law and her undergraduate degree in political science from the University of Colorado in Boulder.
Philip J Reed, Senior Vice President, Chief Finance and Operations Officer
Philip Reed, chief finance and operations officer, provides financial oversight for Colorado Access.
Philip (Phil) is accountable for ensuring enterprise fiduciary accountability under Division of Insurance, state and federal requirements. His oversight responsibilities include accounting, budget, and payroll. He maintains an exceptional understanding of the responsibilities of providing services under state-contracted programs while balancing expertise in the variability of new ventures. Phil has served as the chief financial officer since 2005.
At Colorado Access, Phil provides an exceptional understanding of the responsibilities of Colorado state agencies and its contractors in providing services under state programs. Before joining Colorado Access, Phil served as the controller for the State of Colorado Department of Health Care Policy & Financing where he also managed the procurement office and people services. Phil earned a Bachelor of Science degree in business administration from Colorado State University.
April Abrahamson, Chief People Officer and Talent Development Officer
April Abrahamson, chief people officer and talent development officer, oversees all health plan operations and workplace culture at Colorado Access.
April’s health plan experience includes leadership of people services, facilities, legal, process architecture, business intelligence, claims and appeals services, provider and member services, pharmacy, utilization management, information technology, and system configuration and performance, including eight years with PacifiCare and Great-West Healthcare. She joined Colorado Access in 2004. Before becoming the COO, April served as the executive director, Medicaid at Colorado Access, overseeing the three Regional Care Collaborative Organization (RCCO) contracts awarded by the State of Colorado.
April has spent more than two decades working in the health care industry, which includes a wide range of experiences such as providing personal care assistance in a client’s home, supporting physicians in private offices and hospitals, and managed care. She’s gained perspective and compassion for an individual’s needs as well as broad insight into system-wide opportunities for improving Colorado’s health care system. April received a Bachelor of Arts degree in kinesiology from the University of Colorado, Boulder and a Master of Science degree in health services administration from Regis University.
Jaime Moreno, Chief Communications and Member Experience Officer
Jaime Moreno, chief communications and member experience officer, works across the organization to set short-term and long-term communications, member experience and branding strategies for Colorado Access.
Jaime has worked in marketing and communications for more than 20 years and has a proven track record in community relations and partnership development. He is well versed in the Denver metro community with more than 25 years of experience in the area. Most recently, Jaime served as the director of communications and community relations at Enhance Health where he formed impactful communication and connectivity strategies for diverse stakeholders, encompassing communities, clients, staff, media, and collaborative partners. Prior to that, he acted as the director of community relations at Friday Health Plans and the vice president of marketing and communications at Nurse-Family Partnership. He has also held positions with Denver Public Schools, Inventory Smart, Altitude Sports & Entertainment, and the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Metro Denver.
Jaime is fluent in both English and Spanish and has more than 15 years of expertise in the Latino or multicultural market. He has actively participated in various leadership programs including the Hispanic Chamber of Foundation’s Leadership Program, Denver Metro Chamber Leadership, Foundation’s Leadership Denver, Denver Health Lean Academy’s Lean Foundation, and Lean Management.
Jaime has a Bachelor of Arts degree in marketing and advertising from Universidad del Istmo in Panama. He also earned a Master of Business Administration degree in international business and marketing.
Ann Edelman, MA, JD, Chief Legal Officer and Vice President of Compliance
Ann Edelman, MA, J.D., chief legal officer and vice president of compliance, provides a full range of legal counsel and services and oversees compliance for Colorado Access.
Ann joined Colorado Access in July 2012. She is accountable for corporate governance, maintaining and establishing all levels of legal compliance, servicing the legal needs of all departments, corporate contracting, procurement, as well as practicing preventive law.
Ann received her Juris Doctor degree from the University of Colorado, and focused her law practice on health care, insurance, and employment law in both litigation and transactional matters. She has written and lectured on health care, insurance and employment law topics and represented Colorado Hospital Association, pro bono, on legislative matters. In 1996, she represented the Health Insurance Association of America, as amicus curiae, before the United States Supreme Court in a health insurance benefits case. Additionally, she defended and won a case that made important law in Colorado regarding reimbursement to hospitals. She operated her solo law practice for 12 years, representing the major health care providers in the Denver metro area in business and insurance coverage matters. In addition to her law degree, Ann holds a Master of Arts degree in writing and is certified in health care privacy compliance by the Compliance Certification Board.
Dr. William Wright, Chief Medical Officer
Dr. William Wright, chief medical officer, is responsible for providing strategic leadership for the clinical direction of the company, improving health outcomes and clinical performance, and promoting health equity.
Before joining Colorado Access, Dr. Wright served as executive medical director of the Colorado Permanente Medical Group. He also previously spent six years as the chief of primary care for Kaiser Permanente where he worked in assessing and developing community network relationships.
Dr. Wright currently serves on the board of Center for Improving Value in Health Care (CIVHC), the Colorado Physician Health Program, the Colorado Institute of Family Medicine, and the Political Action Committee for the Colorado Medical Society. He is current a member of the American Academy of Family Practice, the Colorado Academy of Family Practice, and the Colorado Medical Society. He was formerly a trustee for the Colorado Trust.
Dr. Wright has been a continuously board-certified family medicine physician since 1984 and has been licensed in the state of Colorado since 1982. He holds a medical degree from the University of Oklahoma College of Medicine and a Master of Science in public health degree from the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center. After medical school, Dr. Wright completed a family medicine residency at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Denver. Dr. Wright also earned a master’s degree in public health from the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center, where his thesis project focused on factors that affect health care utilization.
Paula Kautzmann, Chief Information Officer
Paula Kautzmann, chief information officer, is responsible for managing the development and execution of the IT direction of Colorado Access, including providing vision and leadership for corporate IT operations and infrastructure and for developing and implementing an IT strategy that supports company growth and strategic initiatives.
Paula’s experience includes more than two decades in the Medicaid health plan space, where she created and maintained a successful IT program that met the regulatory, financial viability and quality requirements of the plan.
Prior to joining Colorado Access, Paula served as the chief information officer at Upper Peninsula Health Plan in Marquette, Michigan, a company for which she worked for more than 20 years. While there, Paula led all IT operations for the health plan, managed multi-million dollar budgets and created or improved processes that brought great value to the company. As such, Paula was awarded accolades from the board of directors for “Creative and Innovative Use of Technology to Propel Cost-Effective Business Expansion for the Health Plan” during the plan’s formative years. Paula excels at building strong internal and external partnerships and successfully identifies new areas of business expansion leveraging technology solutions.
Paula received her associate’s degree in computer science from Las Vegas Business College and her Bachelor of Science degree in computer network and systems administration from Michigan Technological University.
Bobby King, Vice President of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
Bobby King, vice president of diversity, equity, and inclusion, is responsible for the strategic leadership, direction, and accountability of internal and external diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives at Colorado Access. This includes the implementation of short-term and long-term strategic priorities along the pillars of members, providers, health care systems, workplace, procurement, regulatory, and community.
Bobby’s experience includes more than 25 years in high tech, municipal government, and health care roles within the areas of people services operations; executive search, business process improvement, systems redesign, cultural change, diversity, equity, and inclusion; cultural responsiveness, supplier diversity; leadership, training, and organization effectiveness.
Prior to joining Colorado Access, Bobby served as the senior vice president and chief human resource officer for the YMCA of Metro Denver, director of diversity, equity, and inclusion for Kaiser Permanente’s Colorado region and chief human resources officer for the city of Longmont, Colorado.
Bobby currently serves on the board of directors for the Liv Project and as co-chair for the White Bison Foundation. He is a Six Sigma Brown Belt/Champion, certified organization development consultant, professional trainer, and a member of the Society for Human Resources Management, as well as a lifetime member of the National Association of African Americans in Human Resources and Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. Bobby is a recipient of the Denver Business Journal’s inaugural Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Leadership award and was featured in the Marquis Who’s Who in America in 2023.
Bobby has a Bachelor of Science degree in political science from Tennessee State University and holds a Master of Arts degree in organization management from the University of Phoenix.
Cheri Reynolds, Vice President of People Services
Cheri Reynolds, vice president of people services, is responsible for strategic leadership, direction and accountability for talent acquisition and retention, talent and performance management, team engagement, diverse culture, and employee well-being at Colorado Access.
Cheri’s experience includes more than two decades of people management in the health care, nonprofit, government contracting, and telecommunications industries.
Cheri joined Colorado Access in 2016. Before becoming the vice president of people services, she served as the senior director of people operations. She was also the director of people resources for a local nonprofit serving at-risk children.
John Priddy, Vice President of Health Plan Operations
John Priddy, vice president of health plan operations, provides oversight for the customer service, member and provider data integrity, claims and enterprise project management office teams at Colorado Access. John is responsible for executing health plan operational strategies and administrative plans in support of the company’s strategic plan.
John joined Colorado Access in June 2013 and during his tenure has built an enterprise project management department that supports execution of projects and initiatives across Colorado Access.
John has broad and diverse leadership experience in business operations, financial management and project leadership roles in both the for-profit and nonprofit sectors. Prior to Colorado Access, John spent more than 20 years in the telecommunication and technology sectors with large Fortune 100 companies and with startup and entrepreneurial ventures in IT and wireless communications.
John is a graduate of the University of Washington Foster School of Business with a Master of Business Administration degree in both finance and accounting. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in finance with honors from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. He is also a certified project management professional and an information technology infrastructure library professional.
Dana Pepper, MPA, BSN, RN, Vice President of Provider Performance and Network Services
Dana Pepper, MPA, BSN, RN, vice president of provider performance and network services, is responsible for integrated health strategy and provider network management for Colorado Access.
Dana brings more than 20 years of executive experience in health plans and health systems coupled with her strong background in Medicaid, accountable care, value-based payment models, and population health.
Dana has held executive roles at Contessa Health, Anthem, Centura Health, and Aetna, among other health care organizations. As regional vice president at Contessa Health, Dana focused on creating health delivery models that improve access to care, lower the total cost of care, and improve health outcomes. At Anthem, Dana served as staff vice president of care delivery transformation where she directed, designed, and led transformation efforts across all payment innovation programs and lines of business. Dana also served as vice president of program operations at Aetna, where she supported the Medicare and Medicaid programs by creating value-based contracting strategies, accountable care organizations, population health management services, and patient-centered medical home care models.
Dana earned her Bachelor of Nursing degree from the University of Kansas, a Nursing Leadership Degree from Metropolitan State University of Denver, and a Master of public administration from the University of Colorado.
Joy Twesigye, MSN, MPP, NP, Vice President, Health Systems Integration
Joy Twesigye, MSN, MPP, NP, vice president, health systems integration at Colorado Access, oversees the care management and utilization management teams, and spearheads strategies that enhance and optimize our members’ access to services across provider settings, programs, and systems.
Joy is a nurse practitioner with a diverse background that includes direct care delivery and more than 30 years of starting socially responsible organizations and community building. Dating back to 1991, when Joy founded The Dining Room (now Community Meals), the first sustainable soup kitchen in Delaware, OH, she has continually strived to find community solutions to address health needs.
Joy brings significant experience implementing strategies to increase access to primary care, stabilizing funding mechanisms, leading business and clinical coaching, and implementing community-based interventions to improve public health outcomes. Most recently, Joy served as the acting assistant commissioner for school health with the Baltimore City Health Department. Concurrently, Joy served as the director of health program planning and evaluation for the department in addition to being the president of the Maryland Assembly of School-Based Health Centers. Joy also has an extensive background in leading initiatives and organizations that support successful maternal and child health outcomes, including as executive director of Baltimore Health Start, Inc.
Joy earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Ohio Wesleyan University, as well as a Master of Science degree in nursing from Ohio State University. She also holds a Master of public policy degree from Johns Hopkins University.