Ady Barkan is a lifelong progressive activist. He is a member of the senior leadership team at Center for Popular Democracy and founded Fed Up, a national economic justice campaign. He was named one of the Top 50 Political Thinkers in 2016 by Politico. In October 2016, Barkan was diagnosed with ALS, a deadly neurological disease that has no cure. He is known for his powerful activism and civil disobedience protesting the repeal of the ACA and the passing of the Tax Bill. He now runs Be A Hero: a national campaign to restore human dignity and ask Americans and elected officials to be heroes for our health care and our democracy.
Ady Barkan
Donna Edwards
Congresswoman Donna F. Edwards was the first African American woman elected to represent Maryland in the United States Congress. She ran, unsuccessfully for the United States Senate, ending her tenure in the House of Representatives in 2017. She has dedicated her career to defending working families’ rights, including their access to health care and a woman’s right to choose. A progressive champion who has fought for Maryland families in both the non-profit sector and in public office, she is a role model for girls and women who dream of serving their country at the highest levels of government.
Anton Gunn
Anton Gunn is the former Director of External Affairs for the Department of Health and Human Services, where he played an integral role in the implementation of the Affordable Care Act. Following his tenure in the Obama administration, he was a Resident Fellow at the Institute of Politics at Harvard University. Gunn previously served as a State Representative for District 79 in South Carolina, and now is a motivational speaker and leadership coach working with health care organizations to teach leaders how to embrace change, improve engagement and overcome adversity.
Elena Hung
Elena Hung is the Executive Director and Co-Founder of Little Lobbyists, a family-led organization that advocates for children with complex medical needs and disabilities. Her daughter Xiomara was born with a number of serious medical conditions, and is thriving today as a result of quality care (and a bit of luck). Elena, Xiomara, and families like them have been visiting Capitol Hill and offices across the country to speak with lawmakers and their staffers about what is possible with access to quality, affordable health care, and what is at stake without it.
Her opinion pieces have been published in the New York Times, Baltimore Sun, Vox, HuffPost, and other publications. She was honored with the inaugural “Speak Up For Better Health” award by the Center for Consumer Engagement in Health Innovation at Community Catalyst and recognized as “Ally of the Year” by the Autistic Self Advocacy Network (2018). She is a frequent speaker at conferences (including Families USA, Netroots, RESULTS International, Family Voices), as well as press conferences and rallies. She has testified before Congress twice on health care matters.
Alyssa Milano
Alyssa Milano is an actor, author, activist, and philanthropist who has starred in hit television series like Who’s The Boss? and Charmed. In her advocacy work, she is fighting to end the world’s AIDS epidemic, raising awareness and cultivating resources for often-neglected tropical diseases, while working to end the culture of sexual harassment. Alyssa is also very passionate about voting rights and encourages Americans all across the country to register and exercise their right to vote. Now more than ever, Alyssa believes our country needs more patriotism and less partisanship.
Laura Packard
Laura Packard is a Denver-based health care advocate and stage 4 cancer survivor, founder of Health Care Voices, a non-profit grassroots organization for adults with serious medical conditions, Executive Director of Get America Covered, co-chair of Health Care Voter, and runs the pharma accountability campaign for Hero Action Fund. She was blocked by President Trump on Twitter in 2017, thrown out of Senator Heller’s public event for asking about his health care record, did two national health care tours with Protect Our Care (in 2018 and 2019) followed by a statewide Colorado bus tour with Cardboard Cory to hold Senator Cory Gardner accountable for his health care record, and shared her story with Joe Biden at the Democratic National Convention. Her personal videos from NowThis have been viewed over 20M times.
Tionne (T-Boz) Watkins
Tionne (T-Boz) Watkins is a four-time Grammy Award-winning singer and songwriter, actor, author, and a health care activist. She has appeared across television networks and in movies and is the lead singer of the legendary group TLC. Since being diagnosed with sickle cell disease, Tionne (T-Boz) Watkins has led movements advocating for sickle cell awareness and Americans’ access to quality, affordable health care.
Brad Woodhouse
Brad Woodhouse is the Campaign Director for Protect Our Care. A longtime Democratic strategist, he previously served as President of the progressive groups Correct the Record, American Bridge and Americans United for Change. Woodhouse took on these roles after a successful five-year (2008 to 2013) run as a senior strategist for the Obama campaign and Communications Director for the Democratic National Committee (DNC). Woodhouse also served as an adviser to then-U.S. Sen. Jon Corzine (D-N.J.), and prior to that, as Communications Director for the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee during the 2004 election cycle. Woodhouse has worked for a host of other elected officials, candidates and causes, including former White House Chief of Staff Erskine Bowles’ (D-N.C.) 2002 bid for U.S. Senate, former North Carolina Gov. Jim Hunt and former U.S. Rep. Bob Etheridge (D-N.C.).