February 2023 Power Player
At Power to Decide, we’re committed to uplifting the many individuals on the ground doing the work that matters most. Each month we highlight an individual who is championing the effort to support young people’s reproductive well-being. Check out this month's Power Player profile.
Amy Fan, MPH & MBA, she/her
Cofounder, President & CPO, Twentyeight Health
What work have you done to ensure that all people have the information and access they need to make decisions that align with their intentions and improve their reproductive well-being?
Our mission at Twentyeight Health is to provide inclusive, welcoming, and high-quality women’s health services with a focus on underserved communities. We provide telemedicine, medication delivery, and care coordination in Spanish and English. We are proud to support Medicaid recipients, who often face many barriers to care from finding a doctor that will accept new Medicaid patients to being able to take time off from school or work for an in-person appointment.
How did you get started in your field? What is your driving force?
Growing up in an immigrant household, my parents were in and out of hourly wage roles throughout my childhood. However, we were fortunate to be living in Canada where we never had to worry about seeing a doctor. This was a stark contrast to my experience navigating the US health care system when I moved to New York eight years ago to lead a skincare startup. Even as someone who was privileged enough to have employer-sponsored insurance, it was challenging to find doctors who were in-network and would accept me as a new patient. Digging deeper, I realized the barriers were even higher for low-income patients and BIPOC patients, leading to dire patient health outcomes. I decided to go back to school to pursue an MPH and MBA, and during that time, I focused on understanding the challenges faced by underserved communities.
What advice would you give to someone looking to effect change in the field that you currently work in?
I admire frontline health care workers, and for those of us that do not have clinical backgrounds, there are still many ways to make an impact in healthcare as an administrator, engineer, operator, or funder. I wanted to work collaboratively with folks that had unique expertise that rounded out the skills that I brought to the table, recognizing that it takes a village of passionate, dedicated people that understand various aspects of health care regulations, stakeholders, and care delivery to effect change for patients.
Why should someone care about ensuring that all people—regardless of who they are or where they live—have the information and access they need to live their best life?
I believe that health care access is a fundamental human right. Many US-based organizations have developed some of the most impactful health care innovations, and let’s find a way to ensure that these health care advancements are available to everyone in our communities.
