The 2021-22 CSG Healthy States National Task Force is a bipartisan working group of state leaders from all three branches of government tasked with providing resources and recommendations for state governments on how to best address current state challenges, including those resulting from and intensified by the COVID-19 pandemic. Supported by CSG staff and other subject matter experts, the National Task Force will focus on four key policy areas during the 2021-22 biennium to provide states a holistic policy strategy for their shared challenges.
Comprised of 54 state leaders from across the nation and representing all three branches of government, The Council of State Governments Healthy States National Task Force focuses on four key areas of state health: fiscal, civic, economic and human. The work of the Task Force is led by two national co-chairs — Delaware state Sen. Bryan Townsend and Tennessee state Sen. Bo Watson — and each task force member serves on one of four policy-focused subcommittees.
Leading this work for The Council of State Governments are Carl Sims and Vanessa Grossl. Learn more about these esteemed members who are working tirelessly behind the scenes to help make this national task force successful.
Meet Carl Sims, senior policy analyst
Carl Sims, senior policy analyst for the CSG Center of Innovation, combines his wealth of knowledge in government policy and positive results for states through his work with the Health States National Task Force.
“The 2021-22 Healthy States National Task Force is a brand-new task force that will build off the work of the two previous national task forces to take a more comprehensive look at what it means for a state to be healthy,” Sims said. “This includes a focus on not only improving physical and mental health, but also how states are supporting strong civic engagement, creating economic opportunity for all, and doing so in a way that still provides for fiscally sound budgets.”
This year, priorities of the task force include pandemic recovery and outcomes.
“COVID-19 has tasked states with not just addressing the immediate problems caused by the pandemic, but also brought to the forefront long-term systemic policy issues. There is a lot of opportunity for states to reassess how they can become more resilient, adapt to ‘new normals’ and leverage the lessons learned during the pandemic,” he said.
Sims said while the pandemic has taken precedence, it is not the only focus.
“A primary goal for the 2021-22 Healthy States Task Force is to release the data, analysis, findings and recommendations over the course of the biennium to ensure that these resources can be of immediate use for other state leaders,” he said. “COVID-19 has only amplified the need for timely, quality policy resources.”
Sims said some of his favorite parts of the job include watching states work together to identify sound solutions.
“What is most rewarding is the ability to engage directly with state leaders from different states, branches of government and personal and professional backgrounds to talk about shared policy challenges,” he said. “The task force members bring with them an impressive amount of skills and experience, so seeing how this all fits together is an exciting process.”
Meet Vanessa Grossl, policy analyst
Vanessa Grossl, policy analyst, combines her passion for government policy and successful outcomes for states through her work with the Healthy States National Task Force.
“National Task Forces provide an opportunity for CSG to be a convener of state leaders across all three branches of government to strategize, share state solutions and learn from one another as we jointly develop recommendations and best practices through working collaboratively in order to solve some of the greatest challenges facing the states in real time,” she said.
Grossl said that the goals of the Healthy States Task Force were the result of previous task force goals and an expansion of their efforts.
“This new 2021-2022 Healthy States National Task Force is inclusive of some of those economic and workforce ideas from the previous task force as it broadens the idea of a healthy state beyond health care to include not only human health matters, but also civic health, fiscal health, and economic and workforce health,” she said. “As new and ongoing dilemmas arise in the states over the years, CSG will continue to consider opportunities to convene groups of state leaders to tackle those issues via National Task Forces or other initiatives.”
Grossl loves working with the people who are responsible for the health of their states.
“To me, the greatest thing about working on the Task Forces is the people,” Grossl said. “I enjoy getting to know the state leaders both personally and professionally and learning about the issues that are top-of-mind for each of them while finding ways to support them in their work, even outside the task force.”
One of the most meaningful parts of her work, she says, is facilitating partnerships between state leaders and experts, furthering public sector goals and making a lasting difference for constituents.
“CSG intentionally structures these Task Forces to include balanced bipartisan cohorts of some of the best and brightest stars in state government,” she said. “In these small groups, meaningful dialogue, partnerships and bipartisan collaboration happen seamlessly — a testament to our members’ good faith efforts to embody the highest principles of public service and leadership.”