CMS Leadership

Aryana Khalid is currently serving as Chief of Staff to the Acting Administrator for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).  Prior to this role, she was Senior Advisor to the Principal Deputy Administrator and COO at CMS.  Aryana focuses on the day to day operations of CMS, project management for the Affordable Care Act, and working with the Secretary’s Office and the White House on CMS policy and operational decisions.

During her time at CMS, Aryana took on a temporary assignment at the White House working with the Domestic Policy Council to provide Medicare and Medicaid policy analysis.  She was responsible for reviewing, analyzing, and making recommendations on all regulations, sub-regulatory guidance, State Medicaid Director letters, correspondence, Reports to Congress, and communications items to ensure they were in line with the Administration’s goals and priorities. 

Previously, Aryana served as Senator Mark Warner’s Health and Education Legislative Assistant.  In this role, she was responsible for legislation development and analysis involving health and education.  One of her accomplishments in this role was the development of the Freshman Democrats health reform package, which was ultimately included in the Affordable Care Act.  This package included 41 amendments that were primarily focused on delivery system reform.

Aryana also served as Deputy Secretary of Health and Human Resources (HHR) for the Commonwealth of Virginia.  As Deputy Secretary, her primary responsibility was to assist the Secretary in directing the HHR agencies.  Her additional job responsibilities included representing the Secretariat on Health IT projects and coordinating the legislative and budget process.  Aryana staffed the Governor’s Health Reform Commission, primarily focusing on the healthcare workforce and quality, transparency, and prevention. 

Prior to her appointment in State Government, Aryana worked for the Hospital Corporation of America (HCA).  She was in the Chief Operating Officer Development Program at HCA and spent the majority of her time working in hospital operations, outpatient services, and strategic planning.

Aryana received her B.S. in Systems Engineering from the University of Virginia and her Master of Health Administration from Virginia Commonwealth University.  Aryana is an alumnus of the Virginia Executive Institute and the Sorenson Political Leaders Program.