Board of Directors

Lawrence Kaplan, MD

Board Chair

A native of Minnesota, Larry is a retired gastroenterologist with a MPA degree in healthcare financing and conflict resolution from Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government. He moved to Maine in 2016.

Beth Franklin

BS in Social & Rehabilitative Services, University of Southern Mississippi;
MBA, University of Texas.

Beth was a Capitol Hill staffer for a Mississippi congressman. She had worked in regulatory affairs for AT&T in Northern Virginia and transitioned to a sales position upon relocating to Maine. Her corporate career provided the security of healthcare benefits for her family.

Now a licensed Broker after accepting an early retirement offer from AT&T, like others who are self-employed, Beth continues to struggle with the exorbitant cost of accessing healthcare.

“Our dysfunctional healthcare system touches people of every age, income level, gender, and race. I believe that as people learn more about the benefits of a Medicare-like system for everyone, the support for change will be overwhelming.”

Alex Newell Taylor

A lifelong summer resident, Alex made the permanent move to Maine in 2019. After a career in education and non-profit management, Alex turned her attention to the political landscape after the election of 2016. She was a founding member of Women’s March Florida, and served as the Vice President of the state Executive Board.

In 2018, Alex was the Deputy Director of Voter Engagement for the Second Chances Florida/Amendment 4 campaign, which successfully passed with 64.5% approval. Amendment 4 restored voting rights to 1.4 million people with previous felony convictions- the largest increase in US voting access since the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Prior to qualifying for the ballot, the campaign collected over 1.1 million petition signatures.

Currently, Alex works as a distributed organizer for a national union, with a focus on healthcare justice. She is also the Executive Director of Summer Festival of the Arts, an arts education nonprofit serving the MDI area.

Alex is a graduate of the New Leaders Council and a magna cum laude graduate of Emory University. She lives in Southwest Harbor with her toddler, husband, and dog.

Les Fossel

Treasurer

Operates Restoration Resources, Maine’s premier historic building restoration company, founded in 1975 with 13 employees. He consults for numerous organizations and individuals around New England. His award-winning work has been featured in numerous publications.

Maine legislative service included: Moderate Caucus Chair, Judiciary Committee, Government Oversight Committee, Insurance & Financial Services Committee, Health & Human Services Committee, Congressional Reapportionment Committee, Healthcare Reform Select Committee.

Serves on the board of LincolnHealth (including the Development, Performance Improvement, and Governance Committees), and on the boards of the Morris Farm Trust, DaPonte String Quartet, Deck House School, Wiscasset & Quebec Railroad, the Lincoln County Dental Board, Eldercare Network of Lincoln County, and on the Advisory Board of Maine Preservation.

William Clark, MD

Dr. William Clark graduated from Harvard Medical School. He served in the Epidemic Intelligence Service at the CDC, and did a fellowship in Health Services Research at Harvard School of Public Health.

At Cambridge Hospital 1971-1987, he directed the Medicine Residency and was the Assistant Professor of Medicine at Harvard. Dr. Clark practiced general medicine in Bath and was Medical Director of the Addiction Resource Center in Brunswick (1987-2005).

He is a founding member of the Academy on Communication in Healthcare, President from 2005-2007, and was managing editor of DocCom: An interactive e-learning resource for Healthcare Communications.

Geoff Gratwick, MD

BA Harvard University; Cambridge University, Cambridge, England; MD Columbia University College of Physicians & Surgeons

Dr. Geoff Gratwick was a rheumatologist in Bangor for over 35 years. He served on the Board of Eastern Maine Medical Center, the Maine Humanities Council, and was a Bangor City Councilor 2002-2011. Geoff had been in the Maine State Senate 2012-2020 representing District 9, Bangor and Hermon.

During his 4 terms in the Maine Legislature, Dr. Gratwick had chaired the Health and Human Services Committee and was on the Health Care, Insurance, and Financial Services Committee and he had been chief sponsor or co-sponsor of several bills to achieve universal healthcare in Maine.

Abbie Ryder

Campaign Manager
Abbie moved to Maine in 2015. She had previously worked as a graphic designer in real estate marketing covering the tri-state area. (NY, NJ, CT)

Over the last 5 years she has committed to working on issues that matter to her. She was a Field Manager for Environment Maine, and Maine Citizens for Clean Elections. The Canvass Director with Maine Votes, collecting signatures for the Stand Up for Students initiative and in 2016 a Field Organizer with FairVote Maine on Ranked Choice Voting.

In the Spring of 2017 Abbie started working with Maine AllCare with a focus on universal healthcare. In between she left to work on the People’s Veto for Ranked Choice Voting where she served as the Deputy Field Director. After the June 2018 election she returned to Maine AllCare as the Field Director until November 2020. She has now has taken on the role as Campaign Manager for Maine Health Care Action.

“My goal is to work myself out of a job. It isn’t right that we have to do this work, but I will continue fight as long as it takes.”

Contact: abbie.ryder@mainehealthcareaction.org