WASHINGTON, D.C. – Patients Rising Now, a DC-based patient advocacy group fighting for the 133 million Americans across the country who live with chronic disease, today announced the graduation of its Spring 2022 Advocacy Masterclass.
The 24 graduates completed a 15-week immersive course that enhanced their ability to understand complex health care topics like how drug utilization review boards work, or how valuable transparency in health care can be. The graduates also completed classes on storytelling and learned how to become stronger patient advocates.
This is the fourth class of Advocacy Masterclass graduates. Developed by Patients Rising Now, the course is designed to give patients and caregivers the ability to advocate for health policy. The curriculum is rooted in health economics and policy and classes are taught by award-winning advocates, skilled government relations professionals and rare disease patients.
Today’s graduates join 156 others who have already embarked on their advocacy journey.
“We heard from many patients who just simply didn’t know where to start or how to engage with lawmakers on policy, so our mission is to provide patients with the tools and know-how to take their stories directly to changemakers, to have a voice in policy-making that impacts them every day,” said Terry Wilcox, executive director of Patients Rising Now.
The Spring 2022 Patients Rising Now Masterclass graduates:
- Amanda Lippincott – New Jersey
- Arielle Kline – Virginia
- Carie Chester – New Jersey
- Carmen Rose Fiallo – New York
- Caryl Harris – Pennsylvania
- Chinekwu NNoli – California
- Clio Lang – Texas
- Delisa Richardson – Illinois
- Demeshia Montgomery – Ohio
- Elizabeth Brown – Illinois
- Emma Thomas – Massachusetts
- Evamarie Cole – New York
- Jemela Williams – Missouri
- Jenn Heater – California
- Jenny Jones – Oklahoma
- Jessica Wofford – Pennsylvania
- Kelsey Feng – California
- Keri Lynch-Ryan – New York
- Keyla Caba – Massachusetts
- Leslie Davis-Primo – New Jersey
- Levi Hawkins – New Jersey
- Mari Gonzalez – Illinois
- Rebecca Vacha – Arizona
- Samantha Adcock – Texas
- Tiare Tolzmann – Hawaii
- Veronica Brotons – California
- Victoria Killian – California
Several graduates were honored in person at the Patients Rising “We The Patients” advocacy fly-in, held earlier this summer, in Washington D.C.
Any caregiver, patient or citizen passionate about advocating for better health care policies can find more information about the program and how to apply here.
