Health Futures: Taking Stock in You continues its podcast-only format with a wide-ranging and deeply grounded conversation about Medicaid, caregiving, and the future of Arizona’s health system. In this episode, host Bob Roth welcomes Heather Carter, CEO of Health Choice Arizona and general manager of the Medicaid segment at Blue Cross Blue Shield of Arizona, for a conversation that bridges policy, lived experience, and leadership.
Carter’s career spans education, academia, public service, and healthcare leadership, giving her a rare 360-degree view of how systems impact real families. Together, Roth and Carter explore why Medicaid still matters, how caregiving pressures are reshaping the workforce, and what Arizona must get right as its population ages.
🎧 For the full episode, CLICK HERE
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From the Classroom to Community Care
Carter began her career as a middle school teacher, an experience she credits with shaping her leadership style and worldview. Standing in front of students day after day, she saw firsthand how hunger, stress, housing instability, and untreated health issues show up in the classroom.
That early experience helped crystallize a core belief that still guides her work today: if children are expected to learn, their basic health and social needs must be met first. Education and healthcare, she explains, are inseparable.
Turning Policy Into Human Impact
During her time in the Arizona Legislature, Carter became a leading voice on Medicaid expansion and KidsCare, the state’s children’s health insurance program. Looking back, she says the most important lesson wasn’t political, but human.
Rather than assuming she had all the answers, Carter focused on listening to experts, constituents, and caregivers, building coalitions around shared goals. That approach, she believes, is what allowed policies to translate into real-world access to care for hundreds of thousands of Arizonans.
Medicaid Myths and What People Get Wrong
A major focus of the episode is the widespread misunderstanding of Medicaid. Carter emphasizes that Medicaid is still functioning, enrollment remains open, and many families who lose adult coverage may not realize their children are still eligible for KidsCare.
She also explains how gaps in coverage don’t disappear. Instead, costs shift, often showing up in emergency rooms, hospital systems, and insurance premiums for everyone else.
“Healthcare doesn’t go away just because coverage does,” Carter notes. “The system absorbs it somewhere.”
Caregiving, Burnout, and the Workforce Crisis
The conversation takes a personal turn as Carter shares her role as a full-time caregiver for her mother, who is living with Alzheimer’s disease. Managing care while leading a large Medicaid organization has given her an intimate understanding of caregiver stress, burnout, and vulnerability.
Roth and Carter discuss the lack of regulation in home-based care, the risks families face when caregivers are not properly vetted, and the growing strain on both paid caregivers and family members.
They also connect caregiver burnout to a broader workforce crisis, warning that if healthcare workers burn out faster than new professionals can be trained, the system becomes unsustainable.
Regulating Stress and Leading With Intention
Carter also reflects on her personal wellness journey, including yoga, breathwork, and nervous system regulation. She describes how learning to slow down, set intentions, and manage stress has transformed not only her leadership, but her caregiving relationships.
Whether in a boardroom, a legislature, or a family home, she believes self-regulation is an essential leadership skill, one that helps people show up with clarity and compassion.
A Multi-Passionate Life
As the episode closes, Carter encourages listeners to rethink the idea of linear careers and single identities. She describes herself as “multi-passionate,” balancing leadership, caregiving, family, and personal growth.
Her message is one of permission: to evolve, to learn, and to pursue meaningful work without having every answer in advance.
Looking Ahead
Roth reflects on the urgency of supporting caregivers and building policies that allow people to age safely at home. Carter echoes that sentiment, calling caregiving one of the most critical issues Arizona must confront as its population grows older.
The episode leaves listeners with a clear takeaway: strong health systems are built not just on policy and funding, but on empathy, collaboration, and an honest understanding of the human experience.
🎧 Listen to the full episode of Health Futures: Taking Stock in You featuring Heather Carter: CLICK HERE
📌 Learn more about Health Choice Arizona
📌 Learn more about Cypress HomeCare Solutions and its support for families aging at home: CypressHomeCare.com or call (602) 755-9584
📝 This content is for educational purposes only and is not medical advice.
