Lisa Albers is a board-certified pathologist who practiced forensic pathology for 7 years prior to transitioning to health care policy. She is currently the Director of Clinical Policy and Programs at the California Public Employee Retirement System (CalPERS). She started her career practicing forensic pathology in Sacramento County, where stark disparities in health care access, stigma associated with behavioral health diagnosis and treatment, and the critical impact of social determinants of health were on full display, providing her with a unique public health perspective. She then transitioned into public health policy, working for ten years for the Medicaid program in California, known as Medi-Cal, working with health plans, stakeholders and other state partners to help to improve on quality and access of care for Medi-Cal beneficiaries. She came to CalPERS three years ago, where she helps to lead efforts around improving behavioral health care access, the expansion of advanced primary care, pharmacy access and affordability, and alignment with state partners on key initiatives linked to quality.