By Rebecca Wiessmann
Steve sits down with Brian Perry, government affairs and advocacy leader, at Direct Supply’s Technology and Innovation Center. What follows is the first of a three-part series drawn from the interview.
Who is Direct Supply?
Before we dive into the interview, I want to introduce you to Direct Supply and their new creator channel, Directly Speaking.
Direct Supply is a Milwaukee-based company that has spent nearly four decades building itself into a “behind-the-scenes infrastructure partner” for senior living and post-acute care providers — supplying products, procurement, technology, and design/build support that help communities operate day to day.
Today, Direct Supply positions itself as a single-source partner for operators — spanning equipment & furnishings, purchasing/procurement solutions, and building/operations-focused technology (the kind of tools that support life safety, maintenance, and facility workflows), plus design and project services that help communities plan and outfit spaces.
They also invest heavily in innovation through their Innovation & Technology Center (where Steve joined Brian for this interview) in the heart of the Milwaukee School of Engineering campus — a renovated historic building used to test, validate, and develop new approaches and tech tied to senior care.
And importantly for this series, Direct Supply has built a dedicated advocacy engine, including Direct Supply Senior Living Advocacy (organized as a 501(c)(4)), aimed at influencing policy and public narratives affecting senior care access, workforce, and reimbursement.
You can learn more about Direct Supply by visiting their website.
A Career Built Around The Messy Stuff
Brian Perry has spent two decades working in the part of senior living most people prefer to avoid — the political machinery that shapes reimbursement and regulation. He starts in public policy, learns the Medicaid/Medicare world at speed, and eventually lands at Direct Supply to focus on advocacy full-time.
He doesn’t romanticize it. Advocacy is where you fight battles you didn’t ask for, in arenas you don’t control, with rules that change depending on who won the last election.
The Big Issues Haven’t Changed — But The Stakes Have
When Steve asks what issues are biggest right now, Perry gives an answer that sounds like it could have been true 20 years ago: payment and regulation. On the skilled nursing side, he describes the long-running reality of being under-reimbursed and overregulated.
He also lays out the political pattern he’s seen repeatedly: Republicans often mean tougher fights for dollars and some easing of regulations; Democrats often mean more regulatory pressure and better odds on funding. Either way, it’s never calm. There’s always defense to play and always offense.
“Non-Regulatory” Is Really “Pre-Regulatory”
Steve breaks senior living into nursing homes, assisted living, and everything else — including what feels “non-regulated.” Perry pushes back hard on that framing. In his view, the less-regulated parts of the continuum aren’t protected — they’re next.
He calls it “pre-regulatory,” pointing to what he sees as regulatory creep, especially when one segment has already been squeezed, and advocates, attorneys, and policymakers start looking for the next target.
The Bad Operator Problem — And The Much Bigger Story Problem
Steve raises the industry’s hardest public challenge: cynicism, negative headlines, and the reality that some operators do harm.
Perry’s response is blunt: every field has bad actors. The larger question is whether the system can root out the truly bad players without building a regime that punishes everyone else.
Then he pivots to what he thinks is senior living’s most consistent failure: storytelling. For every ugly headline that grabs attention, there are tens of thousands of everyday “quiet wins” — care moments that don’t go viral — happening daily. Perry argues that advocacy isn’t just about rates and rules. It’s also about telling enough true stories that policymakers, voters, and media stop defaulting to the worst narrative.
The Guiding Star
Perry keeps returning to a simple principle: anything good for seniors is good for providers, and anything good for providers is good for the entire system. When advocacy is anchored there, it becomes harder for agendas and turf wars to hijack the mission.
Watch the full conversation with Steve and Brian Perry on YouTube.
