Regional Directors

Tom Maher
HLC Regional Director
tom.maher.nh@gmail.com (603) 738-7429

Region 1  (CT, MA, ME, NH, NJ, NY, OH, PA, RI, VT)

Since February of 1994, Tom has served as a Regional Director for the Healthcare Leadership Council (HLC). Tom has more than 30 years of political and public affairs experience. He has organized and managed political, grassroots and media campaigns throughout the United States. He has held positions on congressional, presidential, and gubernatorial campaigns as well as state ballot initiatives. Additionally, Tom served on the staff of then-United States Senator, former Vice President of the United States of America, and current U.S. President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. (D-DE).

Tom has designed and executed grassroots and public education campaigns for the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO), Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association of America, PhRMA, Citizens for Better Medicare, the Alliance to Improve Medicare, and the ACLU of Florida. Tom has served on the New England Council Healthcare Committee, was a member of the New Hampshire Medicare Benefits Coalition and the New Hampshire Citizens Health Initiative.

In addition to his client work, Tom was elected and served as member of the New Castle, New Hampshire Selectboard for 2 terms (2016-2022), and currently serves as the Town Moderator.

Tom earned his Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of New Hampshire in 1988. He and his wife, Pam Yonkin, live in New Castle, NH. They have two awesome kids Sophie and Cole, and a fantastic grandson, Luke.

Brad Crone
HLC Regional Director
bradcrone.hlc@gmail.com (919) 834-8431

Region 2  (DE, NC, MD, TN, VA, WV)

Brad Crone has served as a regional director for the Healthcare Leadership Council since 1993. He has more than 25 years of government affairs and public relations experience. Prior to joining HLC he was a daily newspaper publisher at The Thomasville Times in Thomasville, N.C. He was the first desktop publisher in North Carolina with his weekly publication The Clayton Star, which he sold in 1989.

Brad served as special assistant to N.C. Commissioner of Agriculture Jim Graham and Deputy Press Secretary to U.S. Senator Lauch Faircloth during his 1984 gubernatorial campaign. During his college years, Brad served as a political reporter and then afternoon editor for WPTF AM 680, a 50,000-watt news/talk radio station in Raleigh, N.C.

He is a former Rotarian, former Board of Directors member and volunteer for the Clayton Rescue Squad, former Board of Directors member for the Davidson County Salvation Army, and former Board of Directors member for Branch Banking & Trust in Thomasville, NC. He currently serves as President of his homeowner’s association and recently completed service on the NC Pottery Center Board of Directors.

Brad earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science with a concentration in Communications from North Carolina State University. Additionally, he has studied at Mount Olive College, N.C., and the N.C. Institute of Government.

Brian Feldman
HLC Regional Director
brian@allisonpr.com  (404) 885-1723    (c) (678) 361-0721

Region 3 (AL, AR, FL, GA, LA, MO, MS, SC)

Since 1994, Brian has served as a Regional Director for the Healthcare Leadership Council. Brian specializes in advocacy and public affairs, providing a variety of grassroots, coalition building and political intelligence services throughout the United States. He has spoken to numerous groups around the country on topics including federal legislation, all aspects of healthcare and politics and elections. Brian has also served as a moderator at hundreds of Congressional meetings on healthcare issues.

Brian is a Senior Partner at Allison + Partners. Brian has also managed numerous state and national projects for other corporate clients, trade associations and non-profits including PhRMA, the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence and The New Georgia Project.

Prior to serving as a public affairs consultant, Brian was an attorney with the Atlanta law firm of Gray, Gilliland & Gold. He is a member of The State Bar of Georgia. He was also active in state and national politics, having worked for the Clinton-Gore campaign as well as numerous Congressional and state campaigns in Florida and Georgia.

Brian earned his Bachelor of Arts degree cum laude from The University of Florida. He also received his Juris Doctor with Honors from the University of Florida College of Law. He is married, has three children and resides in Atlanta.

Kristal Swim
HLC Regional Director
kristal@swimpublicaffairs.com (606) 356-5018

Region 4 (MN, IA, WI, IL, MI, IN, KY) 

Kristal has been deeply involved in public affairs her entire career. She provides a valuable blend of advocacy, health policy, regulatory and legislative issue, government relations, strategic communications, coalition building, and political expertise. As Regional Director for the Healthcare Leadership Council, Kristal oversees the organization’s regional advocacy program for much of the Midwest region of the United States.

Kristal’s background includes deep public affairs engagement for corporations, nonprofits, and trade associations. She also successfully managed and consulted for political campaigns for candidates and ballot initiatives in several states.

Kristal graduated from Transylvania University in Lexington, KY with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and Clemson University for her Master of Arts degree. In the community, she mentors and volunteers with a variety of organizations including the Special Needs Camp of KY, Inc, a national storytelling festival, and a focus on womens’ leadership advancement.

Kiley Raper
HLC Regional Director
Kiley@Pearsonpublicaffairs.com (405) 226-7810

Region 5  (AZ, CO, KS, NE, ND, NM, OK, SD, TX, UT)

Kiley Raper specializes in affecting public policy and federal and state legislation through data fueled communications, coalition building, and advocacy. Since 2002 she has developed winning strategies for campaigns on health, retail, agriculture, education, tax reform, technology, energy, and military affairs.

In 2005, Kiley served as interim executive director for the Medicare Today program with the Healthcare Leadership Council. Kiley managed the national coalition and coordinated Part D enrollment events. She developed and maintained the field’s ambassador program and managed the Medicare Today toll-free enrollment hotline through the second open enrollment period. This soup-to-nuts opportunity provided a 360 education on the importance of field experience in building winning messages.

In 2015, Kiley, with local retail business leaders, founded the Oklahoma Retail Merchants Association and as CEO, quickly developed the organization into a top-rate trade association for the state. She is a known resource on retail issues to state and federal legislators and a frequently an invited public speaker and media representative for her clients and acts as guest lecturer on public advocacy at Oklahoma City University.

Before joining Pearson Public Affairs in 2002, Kiley was Marketing Director for a manufacturing company, where she utilized customer data and interviews to modernize the company’s marketing strategy to bring the company “online.” Kiley’s strategic planning brought the corporation into the new millennium and also allowed the company to expand their US distributorship and find new distributors in Europe, Asia, and South America.

Kiley is an alumna of the University of Oklahoma where she majored in Communications with a minor in Political Science. She is married with two children. In her spare time, Kiley utilizes her professional skills as a volunteer advisor to nonprofits and local political candidates seeking to strategically refine their messaging to better align with their goals.

Amanda Stayton
HLC Regional Director
Amanda@StaytonSolutions.com (916) 431-0262

Region 6  (AK, CA, HI, ID, MT, NV, OR, WA, WY)

Amanda Stayton joins Healthcare Leadership Council after working for two California Members of Congress as a Legislative Assistant responsible for strategically implementing legislative priorities on a wide range of policy areas, including healthcare policy priorities.

Prior to working for Congress, Amanda was with SCAN Health Plan, an HLC member company, as a legislative representative advocating at the federal, state, and local levels. Amanda participated in several regional advocacy meetings with HLC as SCAN Health Plan’s Legislative Representative.

A tireless advocate and creative policy professional, Amanda has a proven record of coalition building and creating effective strategic communication plans around priority policy areas for both the public and private sectors.

Amanda is actively engaged in community leadership and volunteers with community organizations in the Sacramento region.

Amanda is an alumna of California State University Long Beach where she graduated with University Honors and a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and minor in Communications Studies. Amanda is based in California.