Meena Abraham

Meena Abraham, DrPH, MPH, is the Director of the Program Alignment and Partner Engagement Group (PAPEG) in the CMS Office of Minority Health (CMS OMH). PAPEG is responsible for working across CMS programs, policies, models, and demonstrations to ensure that the needs of minority and underserved populations are met.

She comes to OMH from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) where she served as Deputy Director at the Center for Substance Abuse Treatment (CSAT), providing oversight for planning, staff engagement and professional development, and program performance management, and later Senior Advisor in the Office of the Chief Medical Officer, supporting policy and program initiatives across the agency.

Dr. Abraham began her federal career at CMS’ Innovation Center in 2014 as Director of the Division of Health Care Models managing a portfolio of Health Care Innovation Awards and Strong Start for Mothers and Newborns model. She then served as Senior Advisor in the Learning and Diffusion Group working on stakeholder engagement, quality improvement, and clinician workforce development, with an emphasis on sustainability of care delivery adaptations, including ones implemented in response to the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency.

Prior to entering federal service, Dr. Abraham held executive positions at the Maryland State Medical Society, Maryland State Department of Health, and Baltimore City Health Department, where she established public health and quality initiatives on a range of topics, including maternal and perinatal outcomes, HIV/AIDS and sexually transmitted infections, and substance use disorder. A key focus throughout her career has been to bring together the patient, provider, and institutional perspectives to inform health policy development and design health system adaptations.

Dr. Abraham earned Master of Public Health and Doctor of Public Health degrees from the Johns Hopkins University School of Public Health in Baltimore, Maryland.