Forty days. That’s the average wait time in the United States to see a gastroenterologist, according to a 2025 survey by AMN Healthcare. An ob-gyn? You’ll wait an average of almost 42 days.
Once you see a doctor, you may need to fill a prescription. It’s well known that drugs are priced higher in this country—almost three times higher than in 33 other nations, according to a 2024 Rand report.
Meanwhile, premiums for family health plans rose an average of 6 percent in 2025. And millions of people on Obamacare are facing steep increases if subsidies lapse—a fight that shut down the federal government for a record 43 days. According to a Politico poll in November, “nearly half of adults in the U.S. report finding it ‘difficult’ or ‘very difficult’ to afford health care.”
These are but a few symptoms of an ailing healthcare system. And while some problems are not new, a number of them have been exacerbated by inflation and the Trump administration’s actions.
New Medicaid rules may mean that millions lose coverage. Medical research across the country—work that could lead to treatments for cancer, heart disease, and other maladies—has stopped or been affected by DOGE cuts. And vaccine-policy changes under Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. may lead to a resurgence in childhood diseases such as whooping cough and measles.
Fortunately, there are people in Washington trying to implement what they see as fixes to our healthcare. They may advocate for reforms to bring down drug prices, fight efforts to repeal the Affordable Care Act, or lobby for greater reproductive rights. Many are literally trying to save lives—whether strengthening the nation’s suicide hotline, leading campaigns to increase access to primary care, or going to bat on Capitol Hill for rural hospitals.
What follows is a list of 54 Washingtonians who know the ins and outs of healthcare policy, regulation, and access. All were on our most recent list of the 500 Most Influential People in Washington, which we put together through extensive research.
None of them are civil servants or elected or appointed officials. While there are people in government also working to transform healthcare, our list focuses on experts doing the influencing, not the “influencees.”
The names here include those on opposite sides of debates—for example, people arguing to get rid of pharmacy benefit managers, as well as others championing them as middlemen who reduce prescription costs. We aren’t passing judgment on any individual’s beliefs. This is simply a list of people who are being listened to right now and who are in the rooms where policy is being crafted. And who maybe, just maybe, can someday help heal some of the strains in the nation’s healthcare.
Anna Abram
Akin
Senior Adviser
Jane Adams
Johnson & Johnson
Vice President, US Federal Government Affairs, and Head of Office
Andrew Barnhill
IQVIA
Head of Public Policy, Global Legal
Georges C. Benjamin
American Public Health Association
Executive Director
Michael Cannon
Cato Institute
Director of Health Policy Studies
Anne Cassity
National Community Pharmacists Association
Senior Vice President, Government Affairs
Liz Clark
Health & Fitness Association
CEO and President
Marjorie Dannenfelser
Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America
President
Chester (Chip) Davis Jr.
Healthcare Distribution Alliance
President and CEO
Natalie Davis
United States of Care
CEO and Cofounder
Christine Eibner
RAND Corporation
Senior Economist
Isaac Fordjour
Walgreens
Vice President, Federal Government Relations
Chad Golder
American Hospital Association
General Counsel and Secretary
Lawrence Gostin
Georgetown University
Distinguished Professor of Global Health Law
WHO Collaborating Center for National and Global Health Law
Director
Scott Gottlieb
New Enterprise Associates
Partner
Al Guida
Guide Consulting Services
President and CEO
Cookab Hashemi
Elekta
Senior Director, Government Affairs
Chuck Ingoglia
National Council for Mental Wellbeing
President and CEO
Chris Jennings
Jennings Policy Strategies
Founder and President
Elizabeth Jurinka
Vistria Group
Operating Director, Healthcare Policy, Vistria PRG
Charles N. (Chip) Kahn III
Federation of American Hospitals
President and CEO
Patrick J. Kennedy
Healthsperien
Partner
Genevieve M. Kenney
Urban Institute
Institute Fellow, Health Policy
Jay Khosla
Humana
Chief Government Affairs Officer
Sarah Kyle
Eli Lilly
Vice President, Federal Affairs
Courtney Lawrence
Cigna
Senior Vice President, Head of Government Affairs and Global Policy
Nancy LeaMond
AARP
Executive Vice President and Chief Advocacy and Engagement Officer
Lucia Lebens
Pharmaceutical Care Management Association
Senior Vice President, Federal Affairs and Political Strategy
John Lepore
Moderna
Head of Public Policy US
Jane Lucas
Alston & Bird
Partner
Scott M. Melville
Consumer Healthcare Products Association
President and CEO
David Merritt
Blue Cross Blue Shield Association
Senior Vice President of External Affairs
Mark E. Miller
Arnold Ventures
Executive Vice President of Healthcare
David Mitchell
Patients for Affordable Drugs Now
President and Founder
Laura Modi
Bobbie
Cofounder and CEO
John Murphy III
Association for Accessible Medicines
President and CEO
Margaret A. Murray
Association for Community Affiliated Plans
CEO
Anand Parekh
Bipartisan Policy Center
Chief Medical Adviser
Kavita Patel
Mary’s Center
Physician
Sue Peschin
Alliance for Aging Research
President and CEO
Richard Pollack
American Hospital Association
President and CEO
Lori Reilly
PhRMA
Chief Operating Officer
Elena Rios
National Hispanic Health Foundation
President
Armstrong Robinson
UnitedHealth Group
Vice President, External Affairs
Matt Salo
Salo Health Strategies
Founder and CEO
Kathryn G. Schubert
Society for Women’s Health Research
President and CEO
Melissa Schulman
CVS Health
Senior Vice President, Government and Public Affairs
Ilyse Schuman
American Benefits Council
Senior Vice President, Health and Paid Leave Policy
JC Scott
Pharmaceutical Care Management Association
President and CEO
Stephanie Silverman
Venn Strategies
Founder and CEO
Adam Steinmetz
Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck
Senior Policy Adviser
Brad Tallamy
Merck
Executive Director, US Policy and Government Relations
Mini Timmaraju
Reproductive Freedom for All
President and CEO
Michael Tuffin
AHIP
President and CEO
Grace-Marie Turner
Galen Institute
Founder and President
Stephen Ubl
PhRMA
President and CEO
Jennifer Walton
Pfizer
Senior Vice President, US Policy and Government Relations
