Annual meeting convened at 'Benefest 2015' in May
June 23, 2105 — (Boston, MA) — The Massachusetts Association of Health Underwriters (MassAHU) is a professional trade organization whose membership consists of health insurance professionals, brokers, and consultants.
On May 14, 2015, MassAHU installed its 2015-2017 board during its Annual Meeting held at their annual conference and trade fair, Benefest.
David A. Shore, VP Employee Benefits Practice Leader, Borislow Insurance, was installed as President of MassAHU, continuing the consistency of leadership and involvement representing MassAHU. “MassAHU delivers extraordinary value to our members and the employers that they represent each and every day.
The Association promotes and protects the role of the broker as strategic advisor, advocates for sensible legislation, provides professional development, and perhaps most importantly, serves as a voice from the trenches on behalf of our clients.” said MassAHU’s president David A. Shore. “Staying informed and influencing health insurance/care policy is paramount and brokers are busier than ever in this critical stakeholder role.”
Christopher Powers, Senior VP with Benefit Development Group, a Risk Strategies Company, will continue his role on the board as President-elect and Mim Minichiello, Senior Partner and COO of EBS Capstone will continue to serve as Vice President.
Leadership drives advocacy
This leadership and consistency helps MassAHU deliver a strong direction of advocacy that ensures ethical practices of its members and to advocate for the best possible application of all health insurance and related products and services.
No two board members exemplify greater stewardship and integrity of the Massachusetts Association of Health Underwriters than Marie Chalmers and Paul Pietro. Their dedication to the growth and management of MassAHU cannot be emphasized enough or appreciated more by colleagues. Thankfully, both Marie and Paul will remain active on the board as they hand over the torches of Secretary and Treasurer to two seasoned professionals and directors.
Marie Chalmers, Senior Vice President|Partner Relations at Marsh & McLennan Agency is passing the torch of Secretary to Joe Lawler, Benefits Consultant with The Gaudreau Group and who specializes in the corporate employee benefits market for firms of all sizes.
Ms. Chalmers has over 35 years of experience within the Employee Benefits industry and oversees all partner relationships and vendor operations of Marsh & McLennan Agency New England Region's Employee Benefits Practice. Prior to being at MMA Marie was a member of the U.S. Health Care Reform Task Force at Mercer, responsible for developing collateral to educate clients and colleagues on the impact of this legislation.
Paul Pietro CLU, Chairman of Mid-State Insurance in Worcester is handing over the torch of Treasurer to Todd McDonald, President of Aisling Partners, whose specialty is business consulting in the arena of employee benefits.
Paul has a long history with MassAHU, serving as President from 2003 – 2005, past president 2005-2007 and the position of Treasurer for the last eight years. Paul has been so very instrumental in guiding the direction of the association and will continue to do so.
Continuing on the Massachusetts Association of Health Underwriters’ board of directors are Julie Jennings RHU, CLTC, LIA, Vice President, Employee Benefits, Sylvia & Company Insurance Agency in North Dartmouth; Jean Russell, President, BenefitsMart in Burlington; Jeff Rich, CEO of NFP Health in Braintree; Rob DiMase AIF ®, Executive Vice President with Sentinel Benefits & Financial Group in Wakefield; Holly Taylor, President and COO, True North Insurance Agency in Pittsfield; Mark Gaunya, GBA, LIA, Co-owner/Chief Innovation Officer with Borislow Insurance in Methuen; Gary Fradin, President of TheMedicalGuide; Brian Cavallo, Director of Sales/Health Services Administrators in Billerica.
New to the board is Matt Shadrick, Executive VP leading the Employee Benefits division of Eastern Insurance. Matt has over 27 years of consulting and brokerage experience providing solutions to clients in the Employee Benefits, Outsourcing, and Property and Casualty arenas.
He is MassAHU's newest member on the board of directors for the 2015-2017 term. Matt has worked with small, medium and large employers in the delivery of HR consulting, health and welfare, retirement, communications, executive benefits, global benefits and property and casualty solutions.
The National Association of Health Underwriters represents more than 100,000 professional health insurance agents and brokers who provide insurance for millions of Americans. NAHU is headquartered in Washington, DC. For more information, visit our web site at www.nahu.org.
