We envision a country in which health policy is driven by health experts and practitioners grounded in patient outcomes instead of ruled by industry profits.
WHO WE ARE
Members of the Committee to Protect Health Care Education Fund come to the organization with experience in state and federal politics, issue campaigns, and legislative offices. This experience informs the Committee’s health care advocacy and accountability efforts, and inspires their unabashed patient advocacy. We believe that, to move state and federal health care toward massive expansion that covers all Americans, we must educate and hold anti-health care politicians accountable. This work requires a campaign-oriented staff, and the Committee has it.
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
BOARD MEMBER
Dr. Davidson is a board-certified Emergency Physician with nearly 20 years of experience in the Emergency Department in a rural West Michigan hospital. He completed his residency training in Emergency Medicine at Maine Medical Center after graduating from the College of Human Medicine at Michigan State University. In response to his experiences in the emergency department, Dr. Davidson is an outspoken advocate for universal health care and Medicare-for-All. As Executive Director of the Committee to Protect Health Care, Dr. Davidson advocates for the protection and expansion of health care coverage for his patients.
DR. MAX COOPER
BOARD MEMBER
Dr. Max Cooper is a board-certified Emergency Physician, veteran, and a local elected official in Southeastern Pennsylvania. He completed his residency and medical school at Jefferson University Hospital and Jefferson Medical College in Philadelphia before his service with the US Navy took him to Virginia and Afghanistan. His experiences have shown him the importance of universal health care and he is fighting to make that dream a reality.
DR. SHELLY JOHNSON
BOARD MEMBER
Shelly Johnson, RN, BSN, MPH, MBA, FACHE is a value-driven, experienced healthcare executive with over 30 years in healthcare, including community health improvement, operational innovation, and finance. Her core values include creativity and compassion, defined as having empathy for and working to reduce others’ suffering. Shelly has held a range of positions across her career, from her beginning as a certified nursing assistant to, Director, Vice President, Chief Operating Officer, President and her current position as Chief Executive Officer, she has a broad and eclectic background across a wide range of healthcare settings.
Shelly’s passion is improving the health of populations and the wellbeing of individuals. She has partnered with the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) on multiple projects, been a sought-after speaker at national conferences, has served on numerous boards and is well known in the healthcare industry. Results include award winning programs and departments, financial turnarounds, high employee engagement scores and cost reduction strategies. Shelly recently formed the Wellbeing Project, LLC, dedicated to improving policies, processes, and people with the goal of improving health for all.
In addition to a nursing degree, she has an MPH from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, an MBA from the University of Michigan and a certificate in Applied Health Economic and Outcome Research from Thomas Jefferson University. She is in the final stages of her Ph.D. in Interdisciplinary Health Sciences at Western Michigan University and is adjunct faculty at Northern Illinois University.
DR. MATT LONGJOHN
BOARD MEMBER
Dr. Matt Longjohn is a nationally recognized leader in public health, health care innovation and health promotion. Throughout his career, he has consistently been an advocate for health equity and quality of life. Dr. Longjohn was the National Health Officer and the Vice President for Community Integrated Health at YMCA of the USA (Y-USA). His achievements at the Y earned Dr. Longjohn and his team recognition by the Obama Administration as one of the top innovators in health care in the U.S. Prior to his work at the Y, Dr. Longjohn was a Fellow at the Altarum Institute, conducting health systems and health policy research in 9 states. Additionally, Dr. Longjohn has organized coalitions and advocacy efforts to establish and change numerous health policies at the municipal and state levels. He has served as a consultant to government agencies, hospitals and health systems, foundations, and non-profit organizations. Longjohn has also served on numerous Boards and National Advisory Committees and was the national Co-Chair of the “Campaign for Action” to promote workforce development in nursing across the US. From 2001-2017, Dr. Longjohn was on faculty at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine in the Departments of Preventive Medicine and Pediatrics, where he served as the founding executive director of the Consortium to Lower Obesity in Chicago Children (CLOCC). Longjohn received his bachelor’s degree in biology from Kalamazoo College and his M.D. and MPH from Tulane University. He lives in southwest Michigan with his wife and two boys.
