Debra Kazmerzak

Deb Kazmerzak has been working within Iowa’s health and human services systems for more than 30 years in a variety of roles – from front-line direct care, to program management and administration, to direction setting and leadership. Mission is central to the organizations and issues Kazmerzak supports, with a focus on project management, supporting systems, promoting innovation, and fostering positive change for under-represented populations and communities.  Currently Kazmerzak works as an independent contractor supporting a variety of nonprofit organizations, focused on Medicaid managed care, primary and behavioral healthcare integration, evidence-based practices, and rural health.

For the last seven years, Kazmerzak has partnered with the Iowa Chronic Care Consortium to raise awareness, build support, and create infrastructure to support training and utilization of community health workers in Iowa. At the outset, there was little awareness or utilization; but Iowa now enjoys significant momentum in increasing utilization of this workforce to improve access, engagement, and outcomes for under-represented communities. 

Kazmerzak completed a Bachelor’s Degree in Social Work from the University of Northern Iowa and earned a Certificate as a Community Health Center Executive Fellow from the University of Kansas Medical Center.