In his previous role as vice president of legislative affairs at America’s Essential Hospitals (AEH), he led AEH’s federal legislative and political strategies and advocacy activities. He was responsible for advancing the association’s legislative policy priorities, focused on increasing access to care for the nation’s most vulnerable patients, with key authorizing committees and House and Senate leadership. Before joining AEH, Carlos was based in Cleveland, Ohio, managing the Cleveland Clinic Health System’s legislative and regulatory policy agendas as executive director of government relations and overseeing the Clinic’s advocacy engagements at the state and federal levels of government, including direct outreach and interface with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).

Prior to his time at the Cleveland Clinic, Carlos spent more than six years on the lobbying team at the American Hospital Association (AHA), where he served as a senior associate director of federal relations. He advocated for AHA’s legislative and regulatory agenda to members of Congress on both sides of the aisle, including during the development of the Affordable Care Act and Budget Control Act deficit reduction law.

Before joining AHA, Carlos was a member of the government affairs team at the American Nurses Association (ANA), and also worked on Capitol Hill in the offices of two members of the Wisconsin congressional delegation. Additionally, he worked on the staff of two national campaigns during the 2004 presidential election cycle.

Carlos is a graduate of the University of Missouri and resides in Washington, D.C. with his wife and two children.