Simmons Public Health Consulting is led by Jennifer Simmons, MBA, MPH.
I’ve spent my career working behind the scenes of public health—helping complex programs run smoothly, funds flow responsibly, and partnerships stay strong, even in high-pressure moments.
I’m a facilitator, problem-solver, advocate, and shepherd by nature. I focus on the operational and managerial work that keeps public health moving forward so that technical experts can do what they do best without distraction. Whether it’s guiding Project Officers, strengthening cooperative agreement processes, or making sense of complicated funding landscapes, I bring calm, clarity, and follow-through to the work.
I believe public health programs are strongest when systems are clear, expectations are aligned, and people feel supported. That belief—and more than 20 years of experience working in public health—is what shapes everything we do at Simmons Public Health Consulting.
Fun fact: My calmest work often happens during the most chaotic moments—like stewarding billions of dollars of public health funding during a global pandemic!
- Jennifer Simmons, MBA, MPH
My Favorite Project—And Why It Still Matters
I’ve worked with and for CDC since 2007, and I’ve genuinely valued every opportunity along the way. But if I had to choose one project that best represents how I work—and why I do this work—it would be the CDC Immunization Billables Project.
This project was innovative in the truest sense: it tackled a long-standing, systemic problem in public health—how immunization programs could sustainably bill and receive reimbursement for vaccines administered in public health clinics—by combining policy analysis, program design, financial modeling, and deep partnerships with state and local health departments and private health insurance companies. Rather than creating a one-size-fits-all solution, we worked directly with jurisdictions to test, refine, and scale approaches that fit their operational and regulatory environments.
As a Project Officer, I supported a cohort of nine state and local health departments that collectively received more than $6 million in CDC funding to pilot new immunization billing models. The results were tangible and lasting: jurisdictions improved reimbursement practices, strengthened financial sustainability for immunization services, and demonstrated that public health clinics could modernize operations without sacrificing access or equity. Just as importantly, the project produced tools, lessons learned, and success stories that other programs could adapt, extending the impact well beyond the original recipients.
What made this project especially meaningful to me was the role I played behind the scenes. I handled the program management, fiscal oversight, cooperative agreement mechanics, and partner coordination so that technical experts and jurisdictions could focus on implementation. That combination—innovation grounded in strong management—is where I do my best work.
Let’s Do Something Like This Together!
If your organization is grappling with complex funding, operational bottlenecks, or programs that are strong in theory but difficult to implement in practice, Simmons Public Health Consulting can help. We specialize in turning ambitious public health goals into clear processes, sound financial strategies, and durable systems that actually work.
Contact us to discuss how we can design, manage, or stabilize a program that delivers measurable results—just like this one.