Nicole Comeaux is a Senior Advisor the Data & Systems Group Director within CMCS. She primarily serves as a liaison between the policy and technology teams within the Center for Medicaid and CHIP Services (CMCS) and the Center for Consumer Information and Insurance Oversight (CCIIO) to aid in communication between the increasingly intertwined fields, keeps leadership abreast of operational issues impacting the Marketplaces, and advises on a broad range of Affordable Care Act (ACA) issues. Before to returning to CMS she served as the Deputy Executive Director of kynect, Kentucky's Health Benefit Exchange from 2014 - 2016. Prior to joining kynect, in 2014, Nicole served as the Acting Deputy Director for the State Operations Division in CCIIO. Also at CCIIO, from 2012-2014, she served as a Health Insurance Specialist, managing federal oversight of the establishment of State-based Marketplaces in California, Kentucky and New Mexico. From 2010-2012, she served as a Health Policy Analyst in the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy conducting analysis and revision of ACA regulations that impacted HRSA safety net providers and populations. Nicole earned her J.D. with a certificate in Health Law from Saint Louis University School of Law, and her M.P.H. in Health Policy from Saint Louis University School of Public Health. She received her B.A. in Psychology from the University of San Diego.