The New England Rural Health Association was established in 1997 with funding from the National Rural Health Association (NRHA). The Association serves as the rural health association for the six New England states. We are a non-profit, membership-driven organization that serves as a regional rural health advocate. Headquartered in Maine, the Association is governed by a Board of Directors and administered by an Executive Director.
Our organization includes hundreds of members from across the region who are also committed to improving the health and well-being of our rural communities.
Together, our board members and executive director work hard on behalf of our members to advance the work of the New England Rural Health Association and improve the health of rural New Englanders.
If you need assistance, feel free to contact us with questions, suggestions, and concerns. We appreciate your input, and are always looking for new ways to help rural communities and organizations throughout New England.
Our Bylaws can be read here.
Our mission is to improve the health and wellbeing of communities throughout rural New England.
Our Objectives are to:
Serve as a unified voice for the promotion of rural health needs and issues in New England.
Identify rural health needs and issues in New England.
Share timely information about key state and federal rural health policies and programs.
Educate and advocate for rural health.
Encourage networking and collaboration in support of rural health.
Board of Directors
Lora Gerard - Dartmouth Centers for Health and Aging - VT - President
Michael Pancook - Consultant - ME- President-Elect
Luca Fernandez - State Office of Rural Health, Program Administrator - VT - Secretary
Kirby Lecy - Manager of Healthy Community Initiatives, MA DPH - MA - Treasurer
Jeffrey Waldron - MS, PA-C, Faculty, Franklin Pierce Masters PA Program - NH - Member At Large
Lori Fedewa - CT State Office of Rural Health -Ex-Officio
Nicole Breton - ME State Office of Rural Health - ME - Ex-Officio
Cathleen McElligott - MA State Office of Rural Health - MA - Ex-Officio
Manuel Ortiz - MPA, CAGS, Chief, RI State Office of Primary Care and Rural Health - RI - Ex-Officio
John Olson - VT State Office of Rural Health - VT - Ex-Officio
Stephen Martin - MD, Director of the Rural Scholars Program, UMASS Medical School - MA - Board
Jeffrey Dodge - Private Practice - RI - Board
Susan Woods, MD, MPH - President and Founder, Generated Health; Editor in Chief, Journal of Participatory Medicine - ME
Elizabeth Winterbauer - MPH, CPHQ, Vermont Analysis and Programming Services - VT - Board
Ann Turner - MS, RN, CCM, Clinical Director, Integrated Healthcare - NH - Board
Sharon O'Connor, MBA, MS, Senior Research Scientist - CPDE | Dartmouth - NH - Board
Roberta diFlorio-Alexander, MD, MS, Staff Radiologist/Associate Professor - Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center/Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth - VT - Board
T.J. Clarke II, Executive Director - Connecticut Oral Health Initiative, Inc. - CT - Board
Justin Hamrick, Primary Care Office Director / Associate Research Analyst - Connecticut Department of Public Health - CT - Board
Micaela Maynard, AHEC Scholars Program Manager - University of New England - ME - Board
Alison Warfel, Chief Operating Officer - Block Island Health Services - RI - Board
Kim Savery, Director of Community Programs, Hilltown Community Health Centers - MA - Board
John Gale, NRHA President - Life Time