DHCFP Leadership

Suzanne Bierman, J.D, M.P.H.

Administrator

Ms. Bierman comes to the State of Nevada from The Guinn Center for Policy Priorities, where she served as the Director of Health Policy. Prior to her work with The Guinn Center in Las Vegas, Ms. Bierman served as Assistant Director, Division of Medical Services (Medicaid) for the Arkansas Department of Human Services. She earned her Juris Doctorate and Master’s of Public Health degrees from the University of Arkansas while working in dual roles as a Legislative Analyst and a Law Clerk for the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Office of General Counsel. Ms. Bierman has completed both the Henry Toll Fellowship Program, Council of State Governments and the American Society on Aging’s Leadership Academy Program.

Dr. Antonina Capurro

Deputy Administrator

Dr. Capurro has spent most of her life in Nevada and is a public health advocate who is passionate about improving the health of Nevada's vulnerable citizens. For over five years she served in the Nevada Department of Health and Human Services as Nevada's first Hispanic State Dental Health Officer, and for almost a decade, trained the next generation of clinicians as a professor, administrator, and program developer at the UNLV School of Dental Medicine. Dr. Capurro has received numerous prestigious awards, brings collaborative ideas to life through policy work, and has designed enterprising programs that have been featured nationally.

Dr. Capurro earned her Doctor of Dental Medicine, Master of Public Health with a concentration in health care administration and policy, and Master of Business Administration from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. In July, Dr. Capurro will complete a Dental Public Health Residency Program at A.T. Still University. She recently received passing scores for the written American Board of Dental Public Health exam, towards board certification in the recognized dental specialty of dental public health. Dr. Capurro enjoys taking on challenges which allow her to apply her expertise to benefit others and their health.

Phillip Burrell

Deputy Administrator

Phil Burrell comes to the State of Nevada from Texas where he served as hospital administrator for strategic development and financial operations. Prior to that Mr. Burrell served as Director for the Pennsylvania hospital association, leading efforts in health policy and advocacy for more than 250 hospitals and health systems. Mr. Burrell has his Master’s in Healthcare Administration from Texas State and Master’s in Healthcare Systems Engineering from Lehigh as well as a Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration from Trinity. He is currently pursuing his doctorate for Population Health Studies at Thomas Jefferson University. Mr. Burrell also serves on the board for the Industry Advisory Council at Lehigh University.

Sandie Ruybalid

Deputy Administrator

Sandie Ruybalid has been with the DHCFP since 2002. She began her career with the State of Nevada in 1994 in Workers Compensation Insurance and has over 25 years of experience in the healthcare insurance industry, with a focus on Medicaid Management Information Systems (MMIS). She was appointed to her role as Chief IT Manager in 2019 and oversees the Department’s Health Information Technology Projects, and the Division’s Information Services Unit, and Information Security Officer. She was the Project Director for the Division’s successful MMIS Modernization project which went live February, 2019. She received her Certificate of Public Manager designation in April of 2016. She was appointed to the Patient Protection Commission in 2021 by Governor Steve Sisolak as an employee of the Department with expertise in health information technology and patients’ access to medical records.

Stacie Weeks

Deputy Administrator

Stacie brings over ten years of experience in Medicaid and health care policy from the public and private sectors. Most recently, Stacie served as a principal at a national consulting firm, advising numerous state and local governments, health care providers, hospitals, health insurers, and non-profit organizations on ways to achieve their goals in Medicaid and the individual market. Stacie also held key leadership roles in Minnesota’s Medicaid agency, including serving as chief of staff, where she oversaw the agency's legal, compliance, communications, and legislative divisions, and as director of federal waivers and policy, where she helped oversee the implementation of federal regulatory changes and multiple state health care reforms and initiatives. Stacie also has knowledge of state Medicaid financing from her time as an administrator for the health and human services budget committee at the Minnesota Senate and experience in advocacy and public policy from previous roles representing the priorities of a large safety-net hospital and the health care needs of clients served by legal aid. Stacie holds a Juris Doctorate from the University of Arkansas in Little Rock and a master’s in public health from the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences.