Why Patients Rising Exists

A Message From Our Founders

Healthcare policy does not operate in the abstract.

It shapes when patients receive care, which treatments are available, and whether families can afford the therapies they need.

But too often, the people most affected by these decisions are the least represented in the conversations that shape them.

At Patients Rising, we believe patient stories matter — but only when they are connected to policy understanding and shared with purpose.

Stories alone are not enough.

Impact happens when patient experience is paired with clear information, credible analysis, and a platform that ensures those voices reach the people making decisions.

That is why Patients Rising exists.

We produce media, education, and advocacy leadership that help patients understand the policies shaping their care — and help policymakers understand the real-world consequences of those decisions.

Healthcare policy is ultimately shaped by people.
And people are influenced when they clearly see the human impact of policy decisions.

Our mission is to ensure those patient perspectives are informed, credible, and impossible to ignore.

Every patient deserves access to the right treatment at the right time.

Terry Wilcox & Jonathan Wilcox
Co-Founders, Patients Rising

Who We Are

Patients Rising is a national patient advocacy and education organization focused on healthcare policy.

We operate as a patient-centered media and education platform that explains the policies shaping access, affordability, accountability, and innovation in the American healthcare system.

Our work connects patient experience with policy understanding, ensuring healthcare decisions reflect the realities patients face every day.

Through media, education, and advocacy leadership development, we ensure patient voices are informed, credible, and present in the rooms where healthcare decisions are made.

The Problem

Too many healthcare policy decisions are made without meaningful patient perspective.

Policies affecting treatment access, insurance design, medical innovation, and healthcare costs are often debated in technical language far removed from the real experiences of patients and caregivers.

The result is a healthcare system where decisions can:

• delay care

• restrict treatment options

• increase financial burdens

• substitute bureaucracy for clinical judgment

Patients deserve a clearer understanding of the policies shaping their care — and policymakers deserve a clearer understanding of the consequences those decisions create.

Our Approach

Patients Rising combines media, education, and advocacy leadership development to ensure patients are informed participants in healthcare policy conversations.

We translate complex healthcare policy into accessible information through:

• patient storytelling

• policy explainers

• podcasts

• videos

• educational toolkits

• policy town halls

• education webinars

• digital media campaigns

We also develop patient leaders who are prepared to engage in healthcare policy discussions with clarity, credibility, and purpose.

Our work ensures that patient perspectives are not symbolic — they are informed, visible, and influential.

Our Priorities

Patients Rising focuses on the policies that determine whether patients can access care, afford treatment, and benefit from medical progress.

Our policy work centers on three priorities:

AFFORDABILITY:

Lower Patient Costs Without Limiting Care

Out-of-pocket costs remain one of the most significant barriers to patient care.

Patients Rising supports solutions that reduce patient costs without restricting treatment options or delaying access to care.

We support policies that:

• expand Health Savings Account flexibility

• reduce out-of-pocket burdens for patients

• strengthen competition and innovation in healthcare markets

We oppose policies that attempt to control costs by limiting access to treatment.

ACCOUNTABILITY:

Transparency and Oversight in Healthcare Programs

Patients deserve to understand how healthcare decisions affect the cost and availability of their care.

Patients Rising supports policies that improve transparency and accountability across the healthcare system, including:

• oversight of federal healthcare programs

• transparency in healthcare pricing and payment structures

• accountability for institutions receiving public benefits

INNOVATION:

Expanding Access to Medical Breakthroughs

Medical innovation has transformed the treatment of many diseases and continues to offer new possibilities for patients.

Patients Rising supports policies that:

• protect incentives for medical research and development

• expand access to new therapies and technologies

• modernize regulatory frameworks to keep pace with scientific progress

Patients should benefit from the next generation of medical breakthroughs — not be denied access to them.