After years without proper monitoring of a known liver condition, Liliana Zelaya was diagnosed with advanced liver cancer in March 2025 — and then spent seven months waiting for treatment while her son Leo battled their Medicare Advantage insurer through failed authorizations, inaccurate network information and contradictory cost estimates. She died in January 2026 at 74.
Read Leo’s storyFor more than 30 years, Michelle Fry worked in the health care system in Illinois. She built her career in primary care, dialysis and orthopedics, spending 24 years in orthopedics alone. Over that time, she shared she has “seen a lot of change in the medical field, mainly cost,” adding, “I think the cost is outrageous. I don't think it should be that expensive.” She saw how the system functioned behind the scenes. Now, as a patient, she is experiencing it for herself.
Read Michelle’s storyMaggie Sanchez is a Medicaid beneficiary, a mother of a child with disabilities, and a caregiver for a loved one living with severe mental illness. When she talks about what proposed federal Medicaid cuts would mean, she is not speaking theoretically.
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In 2017, Tomeka James Isaac was pregnant with her first and only son, Jace. At 40 years old, she was told early on that she would be at high risk for pre-eclampsia, yet despite this ominous warning, Tomeka’s pregnancy was progressing smoothly. Until, at her 35-week appointment, complications began.
Read Tomeka’s storyKea had a plan. Pregnant with her first child, she knew she wanted a natural birth, and she wanted her birth experience to be an experience that was unique to her. However, she felt dismissed by doctors when she made requests, and ignored at appointments. Kea switched to a birth center, and everything changed for the better.
Read Kea’s storyTamara's 18 month old grandson fell ill with a slight cough and signs mirroring COVID-19, but was not tested by his pediatrician. After his oxygen levels dropped, he was taken to the ER but was still not tested for COVID-19 due to not meeting testing criteria.
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When Barbara Ingram-Rice enrolled in Medicare at 65, she expected the transition to be straightforward. She had spent years managing her husband's coverage and knew how to shop for a plan. But nothing prepared her for the moment a $10-a-month medication became $650 overnight. What followed was weeks of research and a discovery that saved her thousands of dollars a year.
Read Barbara Ingram-Rice,’s storyWhen 32-year-old Minnesota resident Kaylean DiFiori was diagnosed with diabetes in 2025, her doctor immediately created a treatment plan to help control her blood sugar. But managing the condition quickly became more than a medical challenge. It became a financial and administrative battle with her insurance company.
Read Kaylean DiFiori,’s storyFor more than 30 years, Michelle Fry worked in the health care system in Illinois. She built her career in primary care, dialysis and orthopedics, spending 24 years in orthopedics alone. Over that time, she shared she has “seen a lot of change in the medical field, mainly cost,” adding, “I think the cost is outrageous. I don't think it should be that expensive.” She saw how the system functioned behind the scenes. Now, as a patient, she is experiencing it for herself.
Read Michelle’s story
