Our Staff
Melissa Holmquist
executive director
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Melissa Holmquist is the Chief Executive Officer for the Upper Peninsula Health Plan (UPHP), which serves approximately 50,000 Medicaid, Healthy Michigan Plan, Children with Special Health Care Services, and Medicare beneficiaries in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. She has been employed by UPHP since 2002 in a variety of positions and departments, including claims services, reimbursement analysis, utilization management, case management, and government programs.
Melissa provides leadership and direction for UPHP, Upper Peninsula Managed Care (UPMC), and Upper Peninsula Health Care Solutions (UPHCS), oversees all operations of the plan and works closely with the UPHP and UPMC Management Committees, UPHCS Board of Directors, and Senior Management (company officers and department directors) to ensure quality, efficiency and effective cost-management strategies.
A native of Crystal Falls, Melissa received both her Bachelor’s and Master’s Degrees from Northern Michigan University. Additionally, she was named one of Crain’s 2020 Notable Women in Health, which recognizes women in the health care field for their career accomplishments and involvement in nonprofits and community organizations.
Tyler LaPlaunt, MS
assistant director
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Tyler LaPlaunt “Migizii Migwan” (meaning “Eagle Father”), our new Assistant Director of UPHCS! Tyler was born in Sault Ste. Marie, raised in Marquette, and currently resides in Ispheming with his wife, Jessie, and his daugheter, Gianna “Mino Giizhig Kwe-Zance,” which means “Good Day Girl.” He’s a graduate of Northern Michigan University and before joining us, worked as the Executive Director of the Great Lakes Area Tribal Health Board and was the Program Director/Senior Epidemiologist at the Great Lakes Inter-Tribal Council, Inc. His hobbies include walks through the woods, harvesting/gathering, reading, and weightlifting.
“I am a citizen of the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians and proud of my heritage. I have been an outspoken Indigenous advocate and am thrilled to join the team and utilize my knowledge and experience to increase health outcomes for all populations.”
andy chosa
grant administrator
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Andy Chosa grew up in Baraga, MI and received a Bachelor of Business Administration from the University Of Michigan School Of Business. He worked as a finance manager for a non-profit Indian Health Services Urban Clinic in Detroit, MI for several years before returning to the UP. He received his MBA from Northern Michigan University, worked as the Foundation Coordinator for Great Lakes Recovery Centers, and as the CEO of the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community’s Economic Development Corporation before joining UPHCS in 2017 as the Grant Administrator. Since then, he’s overseen the successful conclusion of several UPHCS grant funded projects, edited successful proposals for partner organizations for hundreds of thousands of dollars, and written over $1.2M in successful proposals for UPHCS. When not working, he enjoys losing at video games, board games, and adult hockey; reading, hunting; fishing; and walking/dragging/chasing his disobedient dog around his neighborhood with his wife in Negaunee, MI.
katrina keough
project director
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Katrina Keough is the Project Director with Upper Peninsula Health Care Solutions where she develops, leads and implements UPHCS grant project activities, provider and program outreach, education and training, and coordination of the Region 1 U.P. Perinatal Collaborative. She also functions as a liaison for statewide collaborative projects aimed at serving rural, vulnerable populations for the Upper Peninsula.
An experienced Registered Radiologic Technologist, Cardiovascular Interventional Technologist, and previous adjunct faculty for Northern Michigan University, Katrina also previously operated as the Executive Director to the UP Area Health Education Center serving rural health care students and professionals, and connecting communities to health care in health care professional shortage areas. She holds a Bachelor in Clinical Science and a Master in Public Administration from Northern Michigan University.
claudia Chavez-Rhoades
quality improvement project coordinator
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Claudia Chavez-Rhoades, LPN, CHC, is the Quality Improvement Project Coordinator for Upper Peninsula Health Care Solutions (UPHCS), the nonprofit hospital network serving the Upper Peninsula (UP) region. In this role, Claudia oversees the UPHCS Quality Improvement Initiative throughout UPHCS’s critical access hospitals, primary care clinics, rural health clinics, health departments, and tribal clinics. She provides the support and oversight necessary to assist providers in implementing practice-wide quality improvement Lean initiatives and a process for electronic health record data collection and reporting. She is also currently working with rural health clinics in the eastern UP with implementation of behavioral health integration services into their primary care practices following the Collaborative Care Model.
Prior to joining UPHCS, Claudia held positions within quality management as a data abstractor, and as the nursing supervisor for the pediatric clinic at Upper Peninsula Health System – Marquette.
Claudia is Lean for Healthcare trained, is a Certified Health Coach through the National Society of Health Coaches, a Diabetic Paraprofessional through the American Association of Diabetic Educators, and is also a certified Kata Coach. She has extensive experience in care management and patient-centered medical home implementation.
marlene beaudry
programs assistant
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Marlene Beaudry, is a Programs Assistant with Upper Peninsula Health Care Solutions, where she provides provider outreach, education, and enrollment as part of the UPHIE team, as well as assists in contract execution and management of UPHIE contracts. She coordinates many aspects of bimonthly Laboratory, Radiology and Materials committee meetings with the UP hospital managers, as well as assists in coordination and logistics for UPHCS board meetings, provides high quality administrative support during meetings and serves as a liaison to the Assistant Director for UPHCS.
Marlene previously served for 4 years as a Quality Improvement Advisor with the GLPTN network in collaboration with Altarum and Indiana University, as part of the CMS Transforming Clinical Practices Initiative. Where she served as the Upper Peninsula representative for the program and assisted numerous clinics with quality improvement reporting and improving workflow and quality initiatives in their offices.
Marlene holds a Bachelor of Science from Northern Michigan University and a Master Certificate in Healthcare Data Analytics from John Hopkins, School of Medicine.
Our Board
| Position | Organization | Title | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Margie Hale | Chair | Baraga County Memorial Hospital | CEO |
| Paula Chermside | Vice-Chair | Aspirus Ironwood Hospital & Clinics | CAO |
| Hunter Nostrant | Secretary | Helen Newberry Joy Hospital | CEO |
| Robert Crumb | Treasurer | Schoolcraft Memorial Hospital | CEO |
| Rae Kaare | Aspirus Iron River Hospital & Clinics | Interim CAO | |
| Christine Harff | Aspirus Region & Aspirus Keweenaw Hospital | Regional President & Interim CAO | |
| Garfield Atchison | UP Health System – Marquette | CEO | |
| Sandra McGovern | Munising Memorial Hospital | CEO | |
| Dylan Taylor | Aspirus Ontonagon Hospital | CAO | |
| David Jahn | War Memorial Hospital | CEO | |
| Edward Freysinger | UP Health System – Portage | CEO | |
| Mitch Leckelt | UP Health System – Bell | CEO | |
| Karen Cheeseman | Mackinac Straits Health System, Inc. | CEO | |
| Chuck Nelson | Dickinson County Healthcare System | CEO |
