Rita Carreón is Vice President for Health at UnidosUS, a national Hispanic civil rights and advocacy organization based in Washington, DC. Ms. Carreón oversees the organization’s strategic direction in health, including community engagement and programming, addressing social determinants of health, and advancing health equity. She currently leads a team on the public health response for COVID 19 through UnidosUS Esperanza Hope for All campaign. She works in close partnership with UnidosUS Affiliates, public and private partners, and other stakeholders to advance access to quality and equitable health care. Previously, she was Vice President of Clinical Strategies and Health Care Equity at America’s Health Insurance Plans (AHIP) and led health programming at the National Association of Community Health Centers, Inc.
Ms. Carreón expertise and interests include improving health and quality of care for diverse communities. She advises organizations on envisioning where health happens, including advancing a culture of health with the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, in addition to the American Cancer Society and American Heart Associations’ Health Equity Councils and Pfizer’s Multicultural Advisory Council. Ms. Carreon is also co-chair of the steering committee for the National Institutes of Health’s Community Engagement Alliance Against COVID 19 Disparities (CEAL Alliance). She is a Carol Emmott Foundation Fellow and a member of the Women of Impact for Health Care – a group of female health care executives with a shared goal to realign the health care system to meet the needs of all Americans, recognizing that people who need care come from all walks of life. Ms. Carreón is a certified health insurance executive, holds a post graduate certificate, health care administration and Bachelor of Science degrees in Community and School Health from California State University, Long Beach.