A trained pharmacist and attorney with years of public policy experience, Tom Sparkman provides Podesta Group clients with expert guidance on the Food and Drug Administration, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) regulation and other issues of importance to the health care industry.Proving that skills and knowledge secure results, Tom has helped clear the way for a public health bill by mediating policy differences among influential members of Congress.Before joining the Podesta Group, Tom worked on the health care policy team for the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, working with then-Ranking Member Mike Enzi (R-WY) during the passage of the Food and Drug Administration Amendments Act of 2007. Earlier, he served as a health policy analyst with the American Public Human Services Association, advocating on key Medicaid issues before Congress and the CMS. Tom began his career as an executive resident at the National Association of Chain Drug Stores, working on policy and legislative issues affecting the chain drug industry.A native of Ringwood, New Jersey, Tom has a bachelor's from Rutgers University, a Master of Public Policy from Georgetown University and a Juris Doctor from American University Washington College of Law. He is licensed as a pharmacist and attorney in Virginia. During pharmacy school, Tom was inducted into the Phi Lambda Sigma Leadership Society and was elected as a national student officer for the American Pharmacists Association.
