Jennifer Garber

Associate Principal

Health Management Associates

St. Paul, MN

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Jennifer Garber has more than 20 years of executive experience working with payers and providers in the behavioral health sector. She specializes in managed care and care advocacy, case management, substance use disorder (SUD), social determinants of health (SDOH), and holistic care.

Before joining Health Management Associates, Jennifer was vice president of behavioral health at UCare, an independent, nonprofit health plan company. Jennifer was tapped to establish and lead the Behavior Health Team, assisting members with the various UCare products, including Medicare, Medicaid, Medicaid Dual, and individual and family plans sold on the Exchange. She established key behavioral health operational structures, including case management and utilization management services, and redesigned the company’s Special Needs Basic Care plan.

Jennifer has developed a broad understanding of payer-provider relationships throughout her career. She was Optum Health Behavioral Solutions’ director of clinical operations and, later, director of clinical operations and community initiatives and government programs. In these roles, she oversaw operations for the Medica Behavioral Health Care Advocacy Center, managed strategic partnerships and stakeholder relationships, and served over 800,000 covered lives.

Working with Blue Cross Blue Shield of Minnesota, Jennifer managed the Clinical Queue, Crisis, Outpatient & Inpatient Behavioral Health Team. She was involved with the organization’s restructuring and service delivery integration initiatives, incorporating behavioral health and medical care. She acted as chair of the Behavioral Health Policy Committee, participated in regulatory compliance activities and contributed to quality improvement efforts.

Jennifer also has a clinical background in assessment, referrals and case management. On the provider side, she has worked with Allina Behavioral Health Services, Ceridian Performance Partners and HealthEast: Adolescent Psychiatric & Substance Abuse Services. Her experience includes chemical dependency assessments, crisis care, and individual, family and group therapy.

Jennifer earned her master’s degree in biblical counseling from Grace Theological Seminary and her bachelor’s degree in secondary education from the University of Iowa. She is a licensed independent clinical social worker  in the State of Minnesota.

Outside of the office, Jennifer enjoys spending her time gardening, reading, playing pickle ball and walking with her two labrador retrievers.