WASHINGTON D.C. — As America stands at a crossroads on healthcare policy, a major underlying factor driving the current government shutdown, Independent Women announces expansion of its resources ahead of an ambitious 2026 health policy agenda.
With increased demand for transparency, affordability, and trust in health care — from upfront shoppable prices and an end to surprise medical bills to renewed trust in vaccine safety and effectiveness — Independent Women is proud to announce that Dr. Monique Yohanan has joined the organization as Senior Fellow for Health Policy to focus on finding better, practical solutions for making our healthcare system work better for everyone. Dr. Yohanan brings extensive medical and leadership experience to Independent Women.
In her new role, Dr. Yohanan will:
- Promote market-based reforms that deliver affordability, innovation, and efficiency
- Champion patient empowerment by advancing a system that puts patients first
- Contribute to Independent Women’s Make America Healthier initiatives and other efforts to ensure that every American can access the care they need without unnecessary barriers or bureaucracy
“I am honored to join Independent Women as a Senior Fellow in Health Policy,” said Dr. Monique Yohanan. “Health care is, at its core, a women’s issue—women are the primary decision-makers for their families and the ones most affected by how our system works. Doing this work through Independent Women, which champions women’s leadership, freedom, and opportunity, makes it especially meaningful to me.”
“We are thrilled to welcome such a gifted analyst and thought leader. Monique has deep medical experience, but also approaches issues like a mom, with common sense and a focus on practical advice and improvements,” said Carrie Lukas, president of Independent Women. “Health care is a critical issue for our country and especially for American women who so often are in charge of not only their own care, but the care of their parents, spouses, children and other loved ones.”
Dr. Yohanan most recently served as Chief Medical Officer at Adia Health, where she led the development of AI-powered clinical decision support systems that enhance diagnostic accuracy and patient care. Prior to that she was the Chief Medical Officer for Change Healthcare’s InterQual, overseeing clinical decision support solutions used by more than 100 payers and 6,000 providers nationwide.
Dr. Yohanan’s dual expertise in clinical medicine and health technology innovation will help strengthen Independent Women’s ability to champion impactful health policy reforms.
To address the information gap about vaccines and the current vaccine schedule, Independent Women published a paper in August by Dr. Yohanan, entitled Rethinking Vaccine Policy: A Case for Humility, Precision, and Parental Partnership. The paper calls for vaccine policy recalibration, making the case for humility, precision, parental partnership, and the elimination of today’s outdated system that dominates today’s public health landscape.
Watch “A Dose of Humility: The Promise and Purpose of Vaccines” HERE
Independent Women’s Features (IW Features), the grassroots storytelling and original journalism arm of Independent Women, recently released Part one of a two-part docu-series entitled “A Dose of Humility: The Promise and Purpose of Vaccines”, featuring Dr. Yohanan, which details the different roles that different vaccines play in protecting communities and individuals:
- Category 1: True Herd Immunity
- Category 2: Community Transmission
- Category 3: Individual Protection Only
The docu-series takes a deep dive into the key arguments of Dr. Yohanan’s paper, Rethinking Vaccine Policy, and lays out the path forward for a more sound approach to vaccine policy. The second episode in the “A Dose of Humility” docu-series will premiere in December.
Dr. Yohanan has authored many compelling op-eds that have run in national publications:
- Daily Caller: Good News For This Season’s Flu Vaccine
- The Hill: If taxpayers must keep subsidizing health care, they deserve to see the prices
- Daily Caller: Why FDA Was Right To Say No To COVID-19 Vaccines For Healthy Kids
- The Hill: Measles math: Why vaccine mandates aren’t the answer
- Washington Examiner: The AAP is wrong on COVID-19 vaccines for children
- Townhall: When Science Becomes Politics: Why Doctors Oppose Kennedy by Default
- The Center Square: FDA’s COVID-19 vaccine decision about evidence, not restriction
- The Epoch Times: mRNA Vaccines Aren’t the Only Answer—And That’s a Good Thing
Direct media inquiries and booking requests to [email protected]
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