Shewry supports the work of policymakers and state agencies and departments through research and analysis, technical support, policy briefings, and similar activities. She also convenes stakeholders, foundation partners, and grantees in efforts to advance CHCF's mission.

Prior to joining the foundation, Shewry was president and CEO of the Center for Connected Health Policy, a nonprofit planning and strategy organization working to remove policy barriers to the integration of telehealth technologies into California's health care system. 

In 2010, Shewry took a leave from her position at the center to assist with California's early planning and implementation tasks resulting from the passage of the federal Affordable Care Act (ACA). Key among these was the statutory framework for California's Health Benefit Exchange and development of an administration-wide road map for executive branch implementation of the ACA.

She has held a number of senior leadership positions within California state government. From 2004 to 2008 she served as director of the California Department of Health Care Services, which administers the state Medicaid program (Medi-Cal). Other programs under Shewry's leadership included public health, emergency preparedness, and licensing of health facilities.

She also served as the executive director of the California Managed Risk Medical Insurance Board from 1996 to 2002, and was a member of the team responsible for development and implementation of California's high-risk pool (MRMIP), a subsidized pregnancy coverage program (AIM), a small-employer purchasing cooperative (the HIPC), and the state's CHIP (Healthy Families).

Shewry received bachelor's degrees in community studies and psychology from the University of California, Santa Cruz, and master's degrees in public health and social welfare from the University of California, Berkeley.