Nestor Plana is the founder, Chairman, and CEO of Independent Living Systems (ILS), with over 25 years of experience in healthcare and public and private development and management.

Nestor previously served as a founding President and COO of Beacon Health Plan in South Florida, where he successfully implemented a long-term care waiver program under a contract with the Florida Department of Elder Affairs. He was also a senior executive with Mercy Hospital Systems, and has served on the Florida Long-Term Care Committee and held the Chairmanship of United Home Health Care.

Nestor has won numerous awards for his accomplishments in structuring ILS as a driving force in healthcare innovation and services for the aging, frail, and chronically ill. In 2011, the American Federation for Aging Research awarded him the Florida Award in Distinction for his vision and leadership in making research and healthy aging a priority in Florida. In the same year, he was named one of the region’s Top Performers in South Florida Magazine’s Movers and Shakers issue. Additionally, Health Evolution Partners awarded Nestor the HealthCare Innovator of the Year Award in 2010.

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Maureen Lillis, Chief Operating Officer (COO) of Independent Living Systems (ILS), has more than 25 years of experience in the health care insurance industry.

Prior to joining ILS, Maureen served as the COO for AmeriHealth Caritas’ Community Care of Florida – a Management Services Organization that supports Prestige Health Choice’s Medicaid and Florida Blue My Blue members. Beginning in 2012, Maureen was COO of Prestige Health Choice, a Florida Managed Medicaid Plan, where she was responsible for daily operations and oversight of the plan’s health care delivery system. From 1997 to 2012, Maureen served in two critical roles for Universal American Corporation. Serving as Senior Vice President of Long Term Care Operations from 1997 to 2009, she was the operational lead for the company’s Third Party Administration (TPA) division. Beginning in 2009, she fulfilled the role of Senior Vice President and Administrator of WorldNet Services where she developed and implemented operations for the company’s home health agency that was leveraged into a contract with the Florida Medicaid Nursing Home Diversion Program.

Maureen earned her Masters of Business Administration (MBA) from Florida International University, Bachelor of Science Degree in Health Services Administration from Barry University, and an Associate Nursing Degree from the Blue Grass College. Having earned her Six Sigma Green Belt, Maureen is certified by the American Society of Quality (ASQ) as a subject matter expert in the implementation of quality and efficiency improvement initiatives. She also is a Florida International University Advisory Board Member for their Healthcare MBA Program.

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My career has been focused on providing financial, compliance and operational expertise for long-term services and supports (LTSS) programs at the local, state and national level and in public accounting. I have extensive experience with fiscal, programmatic and administrative functions for LTSS programs, national health care organizations as well as community-based organizations.

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Mariela Fermin, Independent Living Systems Chief Strategy Officer, is responsible for development of the company’s’ strategic initiatives, product management, and revenue generation.

Prior to becoming the company’s Strategy officer, Mariela led the company’s expansion in the Northeast as Senior Vice President of Market Operations and Strategy where she oversaw the development of multiple managed long-term care and integrated care programs for dual eligible populations as well as the company’s expansion of operations to New York, including the acquisition of Royal Healthcare. Prior to joining ILS, Mariela served as Chief Operations Officer of AmeriGroup New York, a leading managed care plan that at the time served over 200,000 Medicaid, Medicare, and managed long-term care enrollees. While at AmeriGroup, she was responsible for the plan’s day to day operations and performance initiatives. Starting in early 1998, Mariela was a member of the leadership team at a hospital in New York, where she was responsible for payor contracting, physician’s relations, and management of the hospital’s managed care initiatives and administration which included a Physician Hospital Organization (PHO) established for risk and value-based contracting.

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