LaKesia Mosley Advocates for Quality in Women’s Healthcare

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LaKesia Mosley is passionate about supporting organizations where care comes first. Her latest professional role, as senior vice president and associate general counsel, at Unified Women’s Healthcare is no exception.

“Since getting into healthcare, my path has been to work for organizations that focus on vulnerable patients,” Mosley says. As a management service organization, Unified functions with a mission to ensure that women in the US obtain the highest quality of healthcare.

That mission resonates deeply with Mosley and imbues her in-house practice with meaning every day. Beyond striving to enhance the services Unified offers to its OB/GYN providers and their patients, she engages in an intentional combination of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) advocacy and community volunteer work that underscores her commitment to caring for and uplifting those most in need.

Mosley began her legal career twenty years ago as a litigator. She later developed a specialization in employment law before joining the US Attorney’s Office (USAO) in Orlando, Florida, where she prosecuted a range of cases including both white-collar and organized crime cases—and where she first handled healthcare fraud investigations.

“That was my first exposure to the healthcare field from a legal perspective,” she says. “When I left the USAO, I started a role as corporate counsel for a regional health plan that was primarily owned by physicians, and I really learned the business at that point.”

In addition to learning the intricacies of health plan operations, Mosley learned the importance of understanding its patients’ needs. “This particular plan focused solely on seniors, who are one of our most vulnerable patient populations,” she says, noting that she continued to serve seniors in her subsequent work for a large family-owned provider group. “Now, at Unified, I’m focusing on a different vulnerable patient population, which is maternity.”

Mosley leads legal support for service operations at Unified, the heartbeat of the company and a natural extension of her previous experience in the healthcare industry. She also collaborates with Lucina Analytics, an acquired business division. “Lucina uses analytics to identify at-risk pregnancies sooner,” which she explains helps to prevent preterm births. “They also help to identify and reduce racial disparities in healthcare as it relates to maternal patients,” Mosley says.

Mosley highlights that women’s healthcare affects everyone, regardless of gender. Perhaps no recent event has more greatly impacted women’s healthcare than the 2022 US Supreme Court decision in Dobbs v. Jackson that overturned the landmark 1973 abortion rights case, Roe v. Wade.

“When the Dobbs decision was announced, it created an atmosphere of confusion and fear as to what type of medical treatment would be considered criminal acts when trying to treat or save a mother’s life, future fertility, and mental health,” says Mosley. “It’s not about politics, but about how court decisions or legislation can interfere with medical treatment in an area of healthcare where disparities are already prevalent.”

Given Mosley’s awareness of disparities in women’s care, it’s no surprise that she is a passionate DEI advocate. She seeks to lead by example by hiring diverse teams, giving her team members a seat––and a voice––at the table, and using her own leadership to challenge the status quo. “DEI is not just a program or an initiative; it’s a value,” she emphasizes. “It’s a value that, at some point, I hope will no longer have to be stated because it will be part of the fabric of who you are as an organization, and it will be reflected in the make-up of your leaders and in the community you serve.”

Mosley extends her advocacy outside the office, as well. She gives back to her local community by volunteering at her church’s food pantry and providing pro bono services to nonprofits through the platform We The Action. Further, she works with the Human Trafficking Institute and previously worked with Latisha’s House, groups that aim to end human trafficking and support local survivors, respectively. “I am working hard in all that I do, whether it’s giving my time or making donations, to bring the human trafficking industry to its knees,” she says. “It’s modern-day slavery, and the impacts on children, women, and men can be long-lasting.”

Whether she is supporting Unified in its mission to better women’s healthcare or fighting for global change, Mosley always keeps in mind the legacy of those who came before her. Their advocacy paved the way for her, and she is proud to carry the torch.

“One of my role models is Constance Baker Motley, who was the first African American woman to be appointed to the federal judiciary. I relate to her so much in her dedication to advocacy—her ability to be relentless in what she did and to have done it well, no matter how uncomfortable it may have felt,” Mosley says. “I hope that my legacy reflects those same qualities.”

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