Leadership

Who We Are

Led by Cogency IPA, members of the Independent Practice Association (IPA) work together to share their insights and expertise and ensure that the organization works effectively and efficiently toward its goals.

Our Chair

Valerie Walters

Cogency Integrated Healthcare IPA, LLC, President & Chief Executive Officer (CEO)

Ms. Walters joined Lower Eastside Service Center (LESC) in 1995 and continues to set the organization’s vision. As CEO, she has expanded Cogency IPA’s supportive housing capacity, increased the organizational budget, and launched numerous new programs to help New Yorkers address opioid dependency. With years of experience successfully delivering comprehensive, client-centered care using evidence-based practices, Ms. Walters saw an opportunity to form the Behavioral Health Care Collaborative in 2018 using similar strategies with funding from Governor Cuomo and has grown Cogency IPA from a Behavioral Health Care Collaborative (BHCC) to an Independent Practice Association (IPA). She looks forward to working closely with Cogency’s network partners to continue improving the health and wellbeing of underserved New Yorkers.

Our COMMITTEE Members

Clinical Integration Committee

Patricia Alisme (Betances Health Center)
Robert Anderson (Educational Alliance)
Lilya Berns (Hamilton-Madison House)
Alexis Bosco (South Brooklyn Medical Administrative Services)
Daniel Donoghue (Transitional Services for New York)
William Gonzalez (TRI Center)
Lourdes Herrera (Reality House Inc.)
Daniel Huang (Hamilton-Madison House)
Hawa Jalloh (Addiction Care Interventions)
Galina Klebanova (People Care)
Rebecca Krakauer (Upper Manhattan Mental Health Center)
Connie Pentony-Brown (Resource Beacon of Hope)
Eleanor Pope (Association to Benefit Children)
Andrea Porter (Unique People Services)
Leonora Ramirez (OASAS-South Beach)
Sakinah Robbins (Reality House Inc.)
Mohsin Sardar (Cogency Integrated Healthcare IPA LLC)
Mary-Pat Schaefer (People Care)
Abraham Solomon (Hamaspik of Kings County Inc.)
Yuliya Vaynrub (Post Graduate Center for Mental Health)
Keisha Williams (VIP Services)

Compliance Committee

Peter Amato (Transitional Services for New York)
Larry Fowler (Upper Manhattan Mental Health Center)
Tabitha Gaffney (VIP Services)
Eri Noguchi (Association to Benefit Children)
Connie Pentony-Brown (Resource Beacon of Hope)
Mohsin Sardar (Cogency Integrated Healthcare IPA LLC)
Lolita Silva-Vazquez (Cogency Integrated Healthcare IPA LLC)
Marie Simeone (People Care)
Naftali Tessler (Hamaspik of Kings County Inc.)
Brad Thomas (Addiction Care Interventions)
Rachel Townsend (Educational Alliance)
Patsy Yanchik (The Floating Hospital)

Data Analytics Committee

Alexis Bosco (South Brooklyn Medical Administrative Services)
Ivelice Cacioppo (Lower Eastside Service Center)
Daniel Donoghue (Transitional Services for New York)
Everson Gibson (Unique People Services)
Timothy Howard (OASAS-South Beach)
Shulem Jeremias (Hamaspik of Kings County Inc.)
Jimmy Liranzo (VIP Services)
Shannon McKinney (TRI Center)
Karl Morris (Addiction Care Interventions)
Orlando Perez (Betances Health Center)
Michael Rosenberg (Upper Manhattan Mental Health Center)
Mohsin Sardar (Cogency Integrated Healthcare IPA LLC)
Mary-Pat Schaefer (People Care)
Rue Silver (Upper Manhattan Mental Health Center)
Michael Stevenson (Addiction Care Interventions)
Naftali Tessler (Hamaspik of Kings County Inc.)
Brad Thomas (Addiction Care Interventions)
Rachel Townsend (Educational Alliance)
Yuliya Vaynrub (Post Graduate Center for Mental Health)
Linda You (The Floating Hospital)

Finance Committee

Sam Benitez (Resource Beacon of Hope)
Alexis Bosco (South Brooklyn Medical Administrative Services)
Stan Corfman (Transitional Services for New York)
Mohammed Dutt (Addiction Care Interventions)
Mark Enselman (Educational Alliance)
Joe Gonzalez (TRI Center)
Rosemarie Gooden (Unique People Services)
Israel Greenzwig (Hamaspik of Kings County Inc.)
Tom Haggarty (Upper Manhattan Mental Health Center)
Frank Kploanyi (VIP Services)
Lourdes Raspante (People Care)
Evelyn Romero (Reality House Inc.)
Mohsin Sardar (Cogency Integrated Healthcare IPA LLC)

Governance Committee

Robert Anderson (Educational Alliance)
Alexis Bosco (South Brooklyn Medical Administrative Services)
Susan Brett (People Care)
Isabel Ching (Hamilton-Madison House)
Stan Corfman (Transitional Services for New York)
Hewitt DePass (Reality House Inc.)
Daniel Donoghue (Transitional Services for New York)
Mohammed Dutt (Addiction Care Interventions)
Mark Enselman (Educational Alliance)
Debbian Fletcher-Blake (VIP Services)
Larry Fowler (Upper Manhattan Mental Health Center)
Matthew Manger (Association to Benefit Children)
Mohsin Sardar (Cogency Integrated Healthcare IPA LLC)
Julia Tsien (Betances Health Center)
Yuliya Vaynrub (Post Graduate Center for Mental Health)
Valerie Walters (Cogency Integrated Healthcare IPA LLC)
Tzvi Wertheimer (Hamaspik of Kings County Inc.)

Quality Oversight Committee

Alexis Bosco (South Brooklyn Medical Administrative Services)
Timothy Howard (OASAS-South Beach)
Brendan Kavanaugh (Educational Alliance)
Galina Klebanova (People Care)
Leslie Lusterman (Transitional Services for New York)
Karl Morris (Addiction Care Interventions)
Marie Nguyen (Association to Benefit Children)
Connie Pentony-Brown (Resource Beacon of Hope)
Sakinah Robbins (Reality House Inc.)
Barbara Salcedo (VIP Services)
Mohsin Sardar (Cogency Integrated Healthcare IPA LLC)
Mary-Pat Schaefer (People Care)
Lolita Silva-Vazquez (Cogency Integrated Healthcare IPA LLC)
Rue Silver (Upper Manhattan Mental Health Center)
Naftali Tessler (Hamaspik of Kings County Inc.)
Linda You (The Floating Hospital)