In 2004, I founded Health Insurance Brokers as a partnership of independent insurance brokers specializing in health insurance and related supplemental and employee benefits.
The mission of my firm is to offer creative health insurance solutions and income protection to individuals and families, the self-employed, and small business owners. In addition, I advise seniors as to their options under Medicare.
One area of my focus is to act as an exit broker for companies and professional firms in California by assisting former employees in finding individual health insurance coverage as an alternative to an employer’s COBRA coverage. I specialize in working with small business owners with less than 35 employees on group health insurance plans and related supplemental employee benefits.
In addition to acting as a health insurance broker, I am also a consultant on current trends in health insurance and the general health insurance brokerage industry, to a number of national consulting firms, independent securities research firms, investment advisory, and private equity firms.
I began my career in the financial services and insurance industry after serving in the U.S. Marine Corps and receiving a Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy.
After college, I joined Bateman Eichler, Hill Richards, a Los Angeles based regional firm as a stockbroker. I subsequently joined the management of Paine Webber in their Los Angeles Regional Office.
During my career, I worked with Oppenheimer & Co., and Jefferies & Company in Los Angeles. I also worked in New York City, with Becker Paribas where I managed the High Yield fixed income sales operation.
After acting as Senior Managing Principal of a Southern California based Southwest regional securities firm, I founded Palisades Capital Group to offer investment banking advisory services, valuation opinions, research, and consulting services to privately held and small publicly traded companies in California and Arizona.
Kathleen Barrett is Director of Administration and Research for Health Insurance Brokers. Ms. Barrett is responsible for the administration and operations and providing general economic, insurance and medical industry related research to our business clients.
In addition to her association with Health Insurance Brokers, Ms. Barrett is also served as Research Director, and Manager of Valuation and Consulting Services for Palisades Capital Group.
During the 1990s, she was a Lecturer and Instructor in the California State University and Junior College Systems. From 1991 until 1997, she lectured in the fields of United States Business and Economic
History, as well as Japanese History, at the University of Southern California. During late 1990s, she provided consulting, communication and administration services at Rand Corporation.
During the late 1970’s, she was a stockbroker with the investment banking firms of Bateman Eichler, Hill Richards, and Paine Webber in Southern California.
During the early 1970s, she was a Lecturer at USC, and in 1975 traveled to Tehran, Iran on behalf of the University of Southern California to assist in the establishment of the USC American Language Institute for the Iranian Government.
Ms. Barrett received a BA in Asian Studies (Phi Beta Kappa), an MBA in Corporate Finance (Beta Gamma Sigma), and advanced degrees in business and Economic History, Asian Studies, and Linguistics from the University of Southern California.