Ikeita Cantú Hinojosa has devoted her social justice career to improving health, safety, and well-being in underrepresented and underserved communities, and she brings a wealth of experience in executive management, operational leadership, and business process improvement gained at the local, state, and national levels. She is the Founder and Principal Consultant for ICH Services LLC, a Small, Micro, Women-, LGBTQ+, and Minority-Owned Business that provides innovative, collaborative, and high-value consulting and education in the areas of Life Skills and Mindfulness, as well as Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Accessibility (DEIA).

Ms. Cantú Hinojosa served as Senior Deputy Director for the DC Health Benefit Exchange Authority (HBX), a public-private partnership established to develop and operate DC Health Link – the online health insurance marketplace for the District of Columbia’s residents and small businesses in accordance with the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (Affordable Care Act). As a testament to the critical roles she played in launching and operating DC’s Exchange, she previously served as HBX’s Chief Operating Officer (COO), Associate General Counsel and Policy Advisor, Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Officer, District of Columbia Office of Disability Rights (ODR) Liaison, Privacy and Data Security Officer, and the Interim Call Center Operations Manager for the DC Health Link Contact Center. In addition, she oversaw the DC Health Link Assister Program, the DC Health Link Navigator Program, and the DC Health Link Certified Application Counselor Program.

Prior to HBX, Ms. Cantú Hinojosa helped DC-area law firm clients address the impact of electronic data on business and legal strategies and meet increasingly demanding regulatory and legal requirements with cost-effective pre-litigation risk management, eDiscovery consulting, and data analysis. Before her private sector efforts, Ms. Cantú Hinojosa served as the Director of the Partner Relations Group for the Office of Public Engagement in the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (HHS), Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). In her role, Ms. Cantú Hinojosa provided Agency-wide leadership and advice on national and regional outreach to CMS partners about health insurance-related policies and programs. Leading up to CMS, Ms. Cantú Hinojosa managed Culturally & Linguistically Appropriate Services (CLAS) within the HHS Office of the Secretary’s Office of Consumer Information & Insurance Oversight (OCIIO, now a CMS Center), dedicated to helping implement many provisions of the Affordable Care Act that addressed private health insurance and marketplace reforms.

As Assistant Director of Government Relations for Planned Parenthood Federation of America (PPFA), Ms. Cantú Hinojosa was the national state strategist and managed all aspects of a large and complex national state policy program impacting 88 affiliates that operated more than 840 community-based health centers. Before PPFA, she served as Associate Counsel Legislative Affairs and Director of Government Relations & Political Action for the National Association of Social Workers, the largest membership organization of professional social workers in the world. Her employment experience also includes the National Women’s Law Center, Legal Momentum (formerly NOW Legal Defense & Education Fund), and the law firm of Arnold & Porter in DC, as well as the City of Lubbock and the Texas Department of Criminal Justice in her home state of Texas. She has testified before the Ways & Means Committee of the U.S. House of Representatives and the Council of the District of Columbia and provides her healthcare issue expertise to stakeholders in numerous ways including presentations and trainings.

Ms. Cantú Hinojosa’s prior community appointments include: the Community Development Executive Committee for Ann Arbor, MI; the Community Development Advisory Committee for Montgomery County, MD; a County Council Advisory Panel for Montgomery County, MD; the Maryland Commission for Women; and the Virginia Board of Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology. Ms. Cantú Hinojosa recently served as a gubernatorial appointee to the Virginia Council on Women where she was Executive Secretary and Co-Chair of the Women’s Healthcare Initiative Subcommittee. She currently serves as a gubernatorial appointee to the Virginia Health Benefit Exchange (VA HBE) Advisory Committee in the role of Vice Chair. In addition, she serves as Chair of the VA HBE Strategic Priorities Subcommittee. VA HBE operates Virginia’s Insurance Marketplace, Virginia’s own state-based health insurance marketplace where consumers can shop for, compare, and purchase high-quality and affordable health insurance plans.

Ms. Cantú Hinojosa earned a Bachelor of Arts (BA) in Political Science and Communication Studies from Texas Tech University, a Juris Doctor (JD) from the University of Michigan Law School, and a Master of Social Work (MSW) in Community Organization and Community & Social Systems from the University of Michigan School of Social Work. She earned an Executive Scholar Certificate in Nonprofit Management from Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management. She is a licensed social worker in Michigan and licensed to practice law in both Maryland and the District of Columbia. For over five years, she served as a Life Skills Instructor in the Alternative Incarceration Branch of Fairfax County, VA, and she currently volunteers with Insight on the Inside as a Mindfulness Instructor. Ms. Cantú Hinojosa is both a Certified Mindfulness-Informed Professional and a Certified Mindfulness Life Coach and serves as a Mindfulness Instructor at the Arlington County, VA, Detention Facility (ACDF). During the COVID-19 pandemic, she provided remote education to ACDF, the City of Alexandria, VA, Adult Detention Center, and the DC Department of Corrections. She also serves her Fairfax County community as both an Election Officer to help ensure efficient and well-run elections and a Hospice Care Death Vigil Volunteer to make sure no one dies alone.