Connections 2022 Speakers and Panelists
Marcy M Buckner
Senior VP, Government Affairs, National Association of Health Underwriters
Marcy Buckner manages NAHU’s government affairs team, including the monitoring of activities of all state legislatures, insurance departments, and intergovernmental organizations to coordinate efforts to advance the interests of professional health insurance producers. In addition, she serves as the association’s liaison to federal agencies such as the Department of Health and Human Services (DHS), Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), Internal Revenue Service (IRS), and the Department of Treasury. Marcy is also the staff liaison to NAHU’s legislative management team, Legislative Council, and Legislative Council working groups.
Marcy received her Juris Doctor from New England School of Law in Boston, Massachusetts, and her Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science and History from the College of Charleston in South Carolina. She is a frequent speaker at healthcare symposiums nationwide.
Elaine Harkins
Vice President, Healthcare Business Development, Mastercard
Elaine leads Mastercard’s Healthcare Business Development team, responsible for revenue growth in the healthcare payments market. In this role, she is a key resource for healthcare payments product and industry information for Mastercard’s leading healthcare business partners. Prior to this role, Elaine was responsible for prepaid and consumer credit co-brand business development for key Mastercard issuing banks.
Prior to joining Mastercard, Elaine served as SVP of Relationship Management at Citi Cards, managing the strategic relationship with AT&T. She led the Financial Services Northeast Sales team for D&B, responsible for the sales of information products to the financial services industry. She also has significant experience in risk management at both Citi Cards and American Express.
Elaine holds both MS and BS degrees in Industrial Engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. She is an avid skier, theater lover and private pilot. Elaine is a NYC transplant into southern Vermont where she lives with her husband and two children.
Colleen Boyle
Manager, Healthcare Business Development, Mastercard
Colleen is a Manager within Mastercard’s Healthcare Business Development team, responsible for revenue growth in the healthcare payments market. She manages key healthcare customer relationships and drives business development of Mastercard Healthcare Solutions. Prior to this role, Colleen served as a Managing Consultant in Mastercard’s Data & Services arm, where she led engagements for Fortune 500 clients in business analytics, fraud prevention, & market research.
Prior to Mastercard, Colleen was a Senior Consultant at Optum, where she led strategic planning initiatives for providers and payers. She also held roles in new product development and research within Optum. Before her tenure at Optum, she led EMR implementation projects at Epic Systems.
Colleen holds a BS from Vanderbilt University. She currently lives in Arlington, VA with her husband.
John Hickman,
Partner, Alston & Bird LLP
John Hickman is the leader of Alston & Bird’s Health Benefits Practice, where he leads several attorneys devoted exclusively to health care reform issues under the Affordable Care Act, HIPAA privacy, health savings accounts (HSAs), and consumer-directed health care, flexible benefit plans, and related health benefit issues. John has worked closely with health plans, financial institutions, and employers, as well as the IRS, Treasury, and Department of Labor, in addressing health benefit issues.
John has been inducted into the American College of Employee Benefits Counsel and is listed in The Best Lawyers in America© and Who’s Who Legal. The Best Lawyers in America named him a 2016 “Lawyer of the Year” in the area of Employee Benefits (ERISA) Law, and Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business has recognized him as Band 1 in Georgia for Employee Benefits & Executive Compensation. John has lectured widely and published articles on health care reform, ERISA, and cafeteria plan issues. He is co-author of the following health benefit treatises: EBIA Cafeteria Plans, EBIA HIPAA Portability, Privacy & Security, and EBIA Consumer-Driven Health Care (all published by Thomson Reuters). John is head of the Technical Advisory Committee and is on the board of the Employers Council on Flexible Compensation (ECFC). John was also an adjunct professor of law at Emory University School of Law.
Amy Phillips
Enrollment Services Manager, WebTPA
Amy Phillips joined the WebTPA team in 2013, bringing with her several years of industry experience and a drive for professional growth. Though she initially supported Operations, assisting Eligibility Coordinators, Claims Managers, Mailroom and Data Entry professionals, and Customer Service Representatives across 3 locations, Amy quickly transitioned to her previous position as Account Management Associate. In this role, she used her diverse background in eligibility, customer service, claims processing and stop loss operations to build front-line relationships with WebTPA clients. At this time, Amy serves as the Manager of the Enrollment Services team at WebTPA, overseeing EDI and manual eligibility, COBRA and policy administration, and ID card design and fulfillment.
WebTPA currently has 4 COBRA specialists that support over 45 direct COBRA clients and over 30 indirect COBRA clients. Each year, they process 20,000+ COBRA election notices and 9,500+ initial notices and collect $5 million in COBRA premiums each year.
Ben Robbins
Director, DataPath Administrative Services
Ben Robbins joined DataPath in 1997. After more than a decade of working in various company departments, including two years as Director of Sales, Ben assumed leadership of DataPath Administrative Services in 2009. He has guided the subsidiary to tremendous growth while cementing our relationships with the Arkansas insurance and employer communities. In recent years, Ben has been instrumental in working with DataPath and Overbrook to help develop our BPO services offerings.
Ben is a Certified Flexible Compensation Instructor (CFCI) and COBRA Administration Specialist (CAS) by the Employer’s Council on Flexible Compensation (ECFC). He and wife Kelsey are the parents of seven, including two girls and five boys.
Jennifer Steele
Manager of Administrative Services, VantagePoint Benefit Administrators
Jennifer Steele joined VantagePoint Benefit Administrators in 2008 as a customer service rep
and worked her way up through the accounting department to her current position as Manager
of Administrative Services. Prior to VantagePoint she spent 15 years in mortgage services, bank
operations, and compliance.
Jen holds a BA in Accounting from Molloy College, a BA in Finance from Long Island University, and
an AS in Business Management from the State University of New York.
Mark Schmersahl
Senior Account Executive, DataPath, Inc.
Mark is passionate about the employee benefits industry and about helping TPAs and brokers grow their business through DataPath’s technology, BPO, and marketing opportunities. Prior to joining us in 2022, he was an FSA Specialist and Benefits Technology Advisor for Lively and a TPA Benefits Technology Advisor and Director for Paylocity. Paylocity acquired his company, BeneFLEX HR Resources, a leading TPA in the tax-advantaged benefits space. BeneFLEX itself had completed two substantial TPA acquisitions during their 24 years in business and worked closely with a sister company of 40 CPAs and tax accountants.
Outside of work, Mark is a member of Rotary International and a frequent business speaker. He is also an avid community volunteer. In fact, Mark had the honor of carrying the Olympic torch in 1996 due to his extensive volunteer work with the Atlanta Olympics organizing committee.
Stephanie Alwan
Senior Account Executive, DataPath, Inc.
Prior to joining DataPath in 2021, Stephanie Alwan was the operations supervisor for a prominent TPA and knows first-hand what TPAs need to run smoothly and provide excellent customer service. She has direct experience in managing and administering CDH, HSA, Transit, COBRA, Retiree and Direct Bill programs at the TPA level.
As a former user of both DataPath Summit and DPI-Suite, Stephanie brings a tremendous perspective to our sales team and is excited about working with TPAs and brokers to provide their clients and participants with the utmost customer experience. Outside of work, she enjoys traveling, cooking, crafting and spending time with her amazing daughters!
Missy Brown
Controller, Medcom
Missy Brown has been Medcom’s Controller and Director of COBRA for over 25 years. Medcom provides CDHP, COBRA, Compliance, and ACA services and has been a TPA since 1983.
Missy is responsible for all Accounting, Human Resources, COBRA, and Retiree operations. In just the last four years, she has doubled Medcom’s COBRA business to more than 2,000 clients – and still growing. The company received DataPath’s Triumph Award in 2018 in recognition of its tremendous growth using our platforms.
Missy holds a BS degree in Accounting from the University of North Carolina at Wilmington. She is a member of Beta Gamma Sigma and Beta Alpha Psi.
Rance Hairson
Head of Quality Assurance, DataPath, Inc.
Rance oversees all software testing procedures for DataPath to ensure we provide the highest quality product possible to our clients. The QA team is primarily focused on preventing issues through various forms of testing and identifying areas where we can improve the overall user experience.
Rance joined DataPath in 2012, starting in Support and advancing into various leadership roles during his career, including CDH Solutions Team Lead and Client Services Supervisor. He holds a BA in Mathematical Sciences from Westminster College and is certified by ECFC as a Flexible Compensation Specialist.
John Robbins,
President/CEO, DataPath, Inc.
John Robbins, Jr. , DataPath president and CEO, has responsibility for molding the company's vision and providing the leadership needed for us to stay at the forefront of the CDH industry. Since becoming CEO in 2011, John has led DataPath through extraordinary growth, more than doubling its size while also maintaining a family-friendly culture focused on helping clients succeed and employees learn, grow, and reach their full potential.
A veteran of over 25 years in the CDH industry, John sits on the Board of Directors for the Employers Council on Flexible Compensation (ECFC) and is a co-founder of the Special Interest Group on IIAS Standards (SIGIS). He also holds patents for electronic receipts storage and specialized credit card payment mechanisms. John speaks at regional and national conferences and is often interviewed by print and broadcast media. He has also published a number of thought leadership articles in CDH industry publications.
Sean Cox,
Chief Revenue Officer, DataPath, Inc.
Sean Cox, Chief Revenue Officer, is responsible for leading DataPath’s sales, implementation, account management, and customer service departments. He joined the company in 2016.
Sean is a strategic and analytical leader with expertise in sales, operations, process development, and finance. Prior to joining DataPath, Sean spent over 15 years in sales leadership positions for multiple Fortune 500 companies, including operations planning for a sales organization of over 2000. In addition, he successfully managed eight- and nine-figure revenue and expense budgets.
Sean has a proven record for achieving dramatic improvement in sales team productivity and performance through operational changes and streamlined processes across multiple markets. With particular strengths in leadership, sales management, talent development, forecasting, budgeting, and analysis, he is an excellent listener, adviser, and collaborator.
He holds a BBA in Accounting from Georgia Southern University and an MBA from Colorado State University.
Bo Armstrong,
Chief Marketing Officer, DataPath, Inc.
As Chief Marketing Officer, Bo Armstrong leads all marketing and product initiatives for DataPath. He joined the company in 2015 and has 25 years of marketing leadership experience.
Prior to joining DataPath, Bo held multiple leadership positions at companies ranging in size from Fortune 500 to start-ups. He has a proven record for driving results and growing revenue through dynamic marketing programs, targeting both businesses and consumers. He also possesses extensive experience launching new companies, products and services.
Bo’s responsibilities include branding, client communications, social media, public relations, product management, product marketing, and promotions. He focuses on identifying emerging market trends within the benefits industry, advocating for customers and their needs within DataPath, and communicating the value of our solutions to our clients.
Bo is also a national conference speaker and author of numerous white papers and articles on the healthcare benefits industry. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science from Texas A&M University and a Master’s degree in Religion from Liberty University.
Adam Rockers
Chief Technology Officer, DataPath, Inc.
As Chief Technology Officer, Adam Rockers is responsible for ensuring that DataPath’s technology delivers a modern, secure, and superb experience to our clients. Adam possesses firsthand, expert knowledge of both DataPath’s cloud-based Summit platform and the complexities of benefits administration.
Adam started his career with DataPath in 2002. Over the past two decades, he has accepted increasing responsibilities, demonstrating both in-depth knowledge of system development processes and leadership excellence. Adam oversees all aspects and strategic planning for the DataPath technology teams.
Adam has two decades of experience in the benefits administration industry, developing software platforms that administer 105, 125, 132, and HSA plans as well as COBRA, card solutions, and Fulfillment. He possesses a comprehensive understanding of the company’s solutions and network infrastructure.
Adam’s responsibilities include setting the technology strategy for DataPath, improving processes, and delivering quality and superior functionality to our clients. As CTO, he oversees the collaboration between the Development, Quality Assurance, Project Management, and IT teams.
Adam received his BS in Computer Science from Arkansas State University.
Aaron DerGazarian
Summit Product Manager, DataPath, Inc.
Aaron DerGazarian has been on the DataPath team for 22 years, and no one knows more about the entire range of DataPath products. Aaron's clarity and detail when explaining DataPath products and processes are always well received by clients.
Since 2017, Aaron has served as the Summit Product Manager. Previously, he had served as a Business Analyst, Sales Engineer, Implementation Manager, Support Manager, and Support Representative. Aaron attended the University of Arkansas and Arkansas State University, studying computer science, political science, and foreign languages. He is a Certified Flexible Compensation Instructor (CFCI) by ECFC.
Zack Truemper
Head of Client Services, DataPath, Inc.
As DataPath’s Head of Client Services, Zack Truemper oversees all aspects of technical support and customer experience for our clients.
Zack started with DataPath in 2012 as a technical support representative. Throughout his time with the company, Zack has assumed multiple leadership roles as a Client Support Coordinator and Supervisor, and has demonstrated a passion for serving our clients.
Zack studied Engineering and Liberal Arts at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. He is an ECFC-certified Flexible Compensation Specialist.
Candy Darr
Senior Manager for Content and Partner Marketing, DataPath, Inc.
Candy is responsible for overseeing all content developed for DataPath marketing and communications as well as the preparation of marketing programs and materials to support our clients. Prior to joining DataPath in 2008, Candy had worked in the marketing and advertising field for nearly 25 years, including 11 years as president and creative director for a full-service ad agency.