Our Team Members

Bethany Hamilton, JD

DIRECTOR

Bethany Hamilton is the Director of the National Center for Medical-Legal Partnership (NCMLP) based at The George Washington University’s Milken Institute School of Public Health.

Hamilton has spent her career working at the intersection of health equity and social justice. She previously served as Deputy Director, State Affairs at the National Association of Community Health Centers (NACHC), where she led projects focused on expanding Medicaid, defending the Affordable Care Act, and strengthening the ability of community health centers to carry out their mission.

She advanced healthcare workforce development initiatives as part of NACHC’s Community HealthCorps Program, and began her career as an Equal Justice Works AmeriCorps Legal Fellow at Legal Assistance of Western NY, where she built a re-entry law clinic and co-managed a law student summer associate program. As a former member of NCMLP’s Advisory Council from 2014-2019, she served as a bridge between the two sectors and was part of the team that oversaw NCMLP’s transition to become a federally-funded technical assistance hub for health centers.

Hamilton has worked in every policy environment across the country – from local to federal, red to blue, rural to urban. She has a unique understanding of healthcare and legal services operations, and the challenges and opportunities inherent in each. She sees medical-legal partnership and NCMLP as a vehicle to help dismantle the systemic inequities that have hindered our progress as a country and threaten to further divide us. Hamilton is dedicated to leveraging her knowledge, leadership, and savvy to accelerate opportunities to improve the systems and policies that most affect health and well-being.

Hamilton earned her Bachelor’s Degree at the University of Miami and a Juris Doctor with a Certificate of Advanced Studies in Health Law and Policy from the University of Pittsburgh School of Law.

Hamilton’s top five quotes: “Make it happen.” “Challenge accepted.” “Fix your face.” “I’ve got a song for this.” “You’ve got this!”

Rehapriadarsini Manikandasamy, MS

CENTER ASSOCIATE

Rehapriadarsini Manikandasamy specializes in data mining and analysis. She earned her Master’s of Science in Data Science from The George Washington University, and Bachelor’s in Information Technology from Sri Ramakrishna Engineering College, India. Her academic background helped her to develop a high proficiency in data analysis and visualization skills. She also has experience in conducting research, webinars, and presentations related to Global Health. She likes to engage with people who comprehend and make inferences from data. She hopes to be one of them in the future.

Hannah Silverman, MPH

SENIOR RESEARCH ASSOCIATE

Hannah Silverman (she/her) supports policy research, program development, and project management for the National Center for Medical-Legal Partnership (NCMLP) and its partners.

Silverman is passionate about health equity, bioethics, and social justice, particularly at the intersection of medicine and law. She has a strong interest in disability policy and has worked with numerous organizations in the non-profit, public, and private sectors focused on this area.

Most recently, Silverman conducted data privacy policy research, exploring the legal issues surrounding the collection, use, and exchange of health information. This work has allowed her to delve into many timely policy topics.

Silverman holds a Bachelor of Science in Public Health and a Master of Public Health with a concentration in Health Policy from The George Washington University. She is also a David A. Winston Health Policy Scholar.

Maria Casoni MSL, MPH

RESEARCH SCIENTIST

Maria Casoni specializes in Medicaid health law and policy. She has worked on a number of sponsored projects focused on federal and state Medicaid policy analyses, including review of managed care contracts, waivers, bills, and regulations. She also previously supported the amicus brief writing project housed in the Department of Health Policy and management, which is the only initiative in the nation that regularly represents public health deans and schools in pressing health-related litigation.