The Center works directly with consumers and their advocates around the country to increase the skills and power they have to establish an effective voice at all levels of the health care system. We collaborate with innovative health plans, hospitals and providers to incorporate the consumer experience into the design of their systems of care. We also work with state and federal policymakers to spur change that makes the health system more responsive to consumers. And, we provide consulting services to health plans, provider groups and other health care organizations to help them create meaningful structures for engagement with their consumers.
Building Advocacy Capacity
Consumer advocacy at the state and local level is a powerful force for change in the health care delivery system. The Center works with consumers and their advocates on the ground by providing resources and strategic assistance to increase their impact.
Read MoreLeadership in Action
Through Leadership in Action, we bring consumer health advocates together with researchers, physicians, health system leaders, nurses and social workers, to shape critical decisions about how health care is financed and delivered.
Read MoreConsumer Stories
The needs and experiences of health care consumers — particularly people in marginalized or low-income communities or with complex needs and significant disabilities — are the driving force of the Center’s work. Documenting and amplifying patients’ real-life health care situations, in their own words, is central to our ability to create a health care system that works for all of us. Click below for video stories from some of the consumers we work with.
Shannon, a dedicated mother of two, knows the struggle of paying for medical care. And, as a single parent of a child with several medical diagnoses who requires long-term care, this is especially true.
Formeeca makes her family’s health care her priority, often putting her own care on pause to focus on helping her daughter and her son, who has autism, secure their needed health care.
Like other girls her age, Chelsea loves to sing, play sports and spend quality time with her family and friends. But Chelsea has unique needs that must be met and her Medicaid coverage is key to Chelsea’s ability to thrive at school and in her many other activities.