PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE:

2002 - Present: Mid-Atlantic Medicare Medical Director, TrailBlazer Health Enterprises, LLC^SM, Dallas, TX

• Overseeing the medical liaison function of the Medicare Part B program for Delaware, Maryland, Virginia and the District of Columbia
• Developing corporate-wide coverage, coding and pricing guidelines for the above jurisdictions, coupled with western states based out of the Dallas corporate office
• Diverse other activities, including, but not restricted to, physician community outreach, leadership in corporate quality improvement program and promoting evidence-based medical decision-making
• Liaison role with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services and other contractor medical directors, particularly with respect to clinical laboratory services

1996 - 2002: Medical Officer, Coverage & Analysis Group, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) - Acting Director, Division of Medical and Surgical Services (03/01-09/01)

• Developing Medicare coverage policies at the national level, by working in conjunction with Medicare contractor (Part A/B) physicians, industry representatives, medical specialty societies and academic experts (including centers of excellence in evidence-based medicine)
• Active participant in the 1998-1999 congressionally-mandated negotiated rulemaking process for developing national laboratory coverage policies
• Focused involvement on microbiology coverage policies in cooperation with American Society for Microbiology, in which I serve as an editorial board member for the Cumitech series of publications
• Personal strengths in team-building, facilitation and written communication (PC-based, using multiple software applications)

1987 - 1996: Clinical Pathologist and Hospital Epidemiologist, VA Maryland Health Care System

• Staff pathologist with emphasis in clinical microbiology and laboratory utilization
• Extensive program activities in hospital epidemiology and infection control, including Infection Control Committee leadership
• Affiliated appointment in the Department of Pathology, University of Maryland
• Served as part-time consultant at the Philadelphia VA Medical Center (Allegheny University) in clinical microbiology (1993 - 1996), including being a VA grant recipient for cost-effectiveness research
• Quality improvement and utilization review committee chairperson activities

PROFESSIONAL QUALIFICATIONS:

• M.D., University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, with Robley Dunglison Award for Excellence in Preventive Medicine (1982)
• Senior Resident, Clinical Pathology, The Pennsylvania State University, Hershey (1986 - 1987)
• Intern and Resident, Pathology, Sinai Hospital, Baltimore, Maryland (1983 - 1986)
• Diplomate of the American Board of Pathology (Clinical Pathology)
• Diplomate of the National Board of Medical Examiners
• Medical Licensure (State of Maryland - No. D31869)

EDUCATION, OTHER:

• B.S., Chemistry, University of Maryland, College Park (1978)
  
  
• M.P.P., Public Policy, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor (1973)
  
  
• A.B. With Distinction, Economics, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor (1972)
  
  
• LECTURES: Multiple national and local speaking engagements on Medicare coverage policy from 1997 to the present time

PERTINENT PUBLICATIONS:

• Burken MI: Case Studies on the Local Coverage Process, In, Clinical Evaluation of Medical Devices: Principles and Case Studies, 2nd Edition, Becker KM, Whyte JJ, eds., Totowa, NJ: Humana Press (2005).
  
  
• Burken MI: Traditional Health Outcomes in the Evaluation of Diagnostic Tests: Panel Comments, Academic Radiology 6 (Supplement 1): S84, 1999.
  
  
• Burken MI, Shea JA, Johnson CC, Hershey JC, Asch DA: Comparison of Sputum Microscopy vs. Nucleic Acid Amplification for the Presumptive Diagnosis of Pulmonary Tuberculosis: A Meta-Analysis, Clinical Performance and Quality Health Care 6:53-59, 1998.
  
  
• Non-Invasive Laboratory Testing for Helicobacter pylori, Presented at the Health Care Financing Administration/Peer Review Organization Peptic Ulcer Disease Conference, Baltimore, Maryland (January 1998)
  
  
• U.S. Congress, Office of Technology Assessment, Impacts of Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria, OTA-H-629 (Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, September 1995). {Contributor}

PERSONAL: Born August 29, 1950, New York, NY; Married, one son