Ilene Stein is the Vice President for Government Affairs at the Center. In this role, she directs the Center’s overall work with federal policy makers and national organizations and provides strategic direction on achieving policy goals across the organization’s priorities.

Stein has over 20 years of experience in policy, government affairs, stakeholder engagement, and building cross-sector partnerships and coalitions. Most recently she served as Deputy Legislative Director and the Associate Director of Health Policy for the Service Employees International Union, a union of 2 million workers. She worked on a broad range of issues primarily focused on health care policy, workforce advocacy, and other support for low-paid working families. Previously, Stein served as the Federal Policy Director for the Medicare Rights Center, a consumer service organization that ensures access to affordable health care for older adults and people with disabilities. She led the organization's Washington, D.C. office in developing and implementing Medicare Right's legislative and regulatory agenda. She started her career in the office of former California Senator Barbara Boxer.

Stein is a recipient of the Borchard Fellowship in Law and Aging, a member of the National Academy of Social Insurance, and a former member of the Standards Committee for the National Committee on Quality Assurance. She received her B.A. from Tufts University and her J.D. from Brooklyn Law School.