Maria Ghazal serves as President and CEO of the Healthcare Leadership Council (HLC), the leading healthcare industry association representing all segments of American healthcare. A recognized health policy leader with nearly three decades of experience advising CEOs of healthcare organizations, Maria has transformed HLC’s member offerings, modernized its operations, elevated its influence in Washington, and significantly expanded membership in less than two years since she took the helm.
Ms. Ghazal previously was Senior Vice President and Counsel for Business Roundtable (BRT), an association representing the CEOs of America’s top companies. Throughout her nearly two decades with BRT, Ms. Ghazal played a leadership role in the public policy work of the organization, including health policy, serving as the primary advocate for America’s leading corporations during the debate over the Affordable Care Act. She also directed membership outreach, recruitment, and retention, and oversaw policy development and advocacy for the Business Roundtable Corporate Governance Committee. This led to the Roundtable’s groundbreaking work on a new “Statement on the Purpose of a Corporation” which sparked a worldwide dialogue on the role of corporations in society.
Prior to joining the Business Roundtable, Ms. Ghazal was Director of Health Policy at the American Benefits Council, the leading voice for employers that offer benefits programs to their employees. Previously, she served as Director of Government Relations at Verizon and worked as a Legislative Assistant at the Metropolitan Life Insurance Company. Her career began as an aide to Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan (D-NY).
Ghazal earned a law degree from American University, a master’s degree in public policy from Georgetown University’s McCourt School of Public Policy and a bachelor’s degree from Bates College. She has testified before Congress and the SEC, is a frequent speaker at national conferences and regularly provides healthcare insights to the national news media. She is a member of the Massachusetts and District of Columbia Bar Associations, Health on Wednesday, the Tax Coalition, and Co-chairs the Washington, DC Chapter of Women Corporate Directors. In addition, Ms. Ghazal is a founding member of Georgetown University’s McCourt School of Public Policy Advisory Board and serves on the Advisory Board of the Wake Forest University Center for the Study of Capitalism. She is an active member of the invitation-only U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Committee of 100 and the CEO Update Women in Leadership initiative.
