Our Team

David Mitchell, 74, is a patient with an incurable — but treatable — blood cancer called multiple myeloma. He depends on drugs costing hundreds of thousands of dollars a year for his survival and expects to be in continuous treatment until he dies. Myeloma is smart and finds its way around drugs, so David is a strong supporter of innovation and new drugs to extend his life, and the lives of other patients. But he adamantly believes drugs don’t work if people can’t afford them. The Washingtonian called David “an integral player in forcing the prescription-drug provision into the Inflation Reduction Act.” STAT News reported, “Mitchell has filled an important void as a politically savvy patient advocate who was well-funded but didn’t take a penny from the pharmaceutical industry.” David has more than 40 years of experience working on health care and public health policy as a communications specialist. He helped build and run for more than 30 years GMMB — a cause-oriented, public policy communications firm in Washington, DC. There he worked to reduce teen smoking, increase the use of seat belts, fight drunk driving, and improve child health and safety. He retired in 2016 to focus his full energy and attention on helping bring about policy change to lower drug costs, launching Patients For Affordable Drugs in February 2017.

A native Portlander and graduate of the University of Oregon, Robert joined GS Strategy Group in 2015. Since then he has provided dozens of clients strategic advice on messaging, positioning, and tactics. His broad experience and keen insights benefit clients in a wide range of areas, from national industry groups and Fortune 100 companies to political candidates and independent groups active in some of the nation’s most competitive races.

Before joining GS Strategy Group, Robert came up in West Coast politics working on the re-election campaign of Senator Gordon Smith in 2008, and, in 2010, he served as Deputy Campaign Manager and Political Director for Chris Dudley’s gubernatorial run in Oregon. Robert subsequently worked at the National Republican Congressional Committee as the West Regional Political Director where he oversaw all incumbent and challenger Congressional races from Hawaii to Colorado.

An increasingly sought-after political strategist, in 2018 Robert served as a chief strategist for the Congressional Leadership Fund. Selected because of his knowledge and experience with Western campaigns, he directed independent expenditure efforts in half a dozen of the most competitive races in country, overseeing millions of dollars in spending. In 2020, Robert served as lead advisor to Congressman David Valadao’s campaign to returned him to Congress after losing reelection by less than 900 votes in 2018. Robert was added to the team to help lead strategy and messaging for the campaign that went on to win by 0.8% in the most Democratic district in the country held by a Republican.

Jamila Headley (she/her) has spent the past 18 years advancing health care and other social justice campaigns with movements and movement leaders on five continents. Her work has spanned health systems research and policy analysis, organizing, advocacy, organizational development and philanthropy. She thrives at the intersections of strategy and implementation, blue-sky thinking and planning for the here and now. A Caribbean immigrant from Barbados, Jamila holds a PhD in public health and a masters in global health from the University of Oxford, where she studied as a Rhodes Scholar. She is disabled and lives with the neurological disorder Transverse myelitis. Jamila is the Executive Director of Be A Hero, a movement of patients working towards guaranteed healthcare for all.

Jesse (he/him/él), originally from Southern California, is a recent Boston College graduate with a BA in Political Science and a minor in International Studies with an overall thematic concentration in Ethics and International Social Justice. With local community non-profit work experience during his summers in his hometown, Jesse has worked on helping children and families enjoy resources addressing youth development, family wellness, MFT and counseling services. He is passionate about all things social justice, which includes healthcare reform and believes in the ability to unite and strengthen all patients in America by being able to connect with them via intercultural competence.

Temi has worked on political campaigns across the Southeast, most recently at ActBlue. She brings years of experience of advocacy, organizing and coalition building through strategic alignment to P4AD. Temi is a first-generation Nigerian American who received her bachelor’s degree in political science from Frostburg State University and her J.D from Howard University.

Alyson joins the team from Health GAP, where she led the organization’s engagement with Congress and the Executive Branch, pushing for global access to quality HIV care. Previous roles in health advocacy deepened her passion for coalition building and lowering drug prices. Early in her career, Aly coordinated diabetes camps in Haiti, the Dominican Republic, and the United States. Additionally, she served as an AmeriCorps VISTA at the Medicare Rights Center.

She has lived with type one diabetes for over 30 years and holds a Master of Public Health from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Merith Basey is a passionate advocate for health equity and social justice with deep roots in language and Latin American communities. Her journey began through grassroots organizing in type 1 diabetes communities across Latin America and the Caribbean, where she empowered youth-led initiatives and gained firsthand insights into systemic challenges to medication access. Inspired by this work, she co-founded the 100 Campaign in 2012 to reframe insulin access as a fundamental human right and remove barriers to this life-saving medicine.

With a Master’s degree from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM), Merith spent nearly a decade leading student-driven advocacy at Universities Allied for Essential Medicines (UAEM). During her time there, she championed a reimagined approach to drug research and development that puts people over profit – a vision underscored by her role in launching the Free the Vaccine for COVID-19 campaign in March 2020 in conjunction with the Center for Artistic Activism and UAEM.

Merith joined Patients For Affordable Drugs in 2022 to further the fight against high drug prices in the U.S., bringing her expertise in mobilization, creative problem-solving, and coalition-building to the forefront. As a connector and movement-builder, she serves on the Board of the Center for Artistic Activism and on the Technical Advisory Committee of the ACCISS Study, which addresses global challenges in insulin access. Speaking French, Spanish, and Portuguese, Merith has lived in eight countries across four continents, enriching her global perspective on healthcare.

Wendy is a seasoned operations professional in the health care sector with a primary focus in HR administration, lobbying compliance, and finance/budget tracking. Her experience includes five years as VP of Operations at the Association of Dental Support Organizations (ADSO) and 10 years as Sr. Manager, State Government Affairs & Operations at CVS Health.

Alejandra (she/her/Ella), a native of Cancún, México, holds both undergraduate and graduate degrees in business from Widener University. Her passion for bridging language barriers and facilitating access to healthcare led her to volunteer as a translator at a clinic in Philadelphia. Alejandra is eager to leverage her experience in marketing to tackle the challenge of high prescription drug prices and make a tangible impact in making medicines affordable.

Jacqueline Garibay is originally from Austin, Texas, and is now in her last year of study at The George Washington University in Washington, DC. In May she will be receiving her dual BA in Political Science and Economics. Jacqueline began her involvement in health advocacy when she was diagnosed with ankylosing spondylitis (AS) at nineteen and came face to face with the steep prices of her medication. Since then, she has worked as an advocate with P4AD on Capitol Hill and back home in Texas.

Emma, a proud Massachusetts native, is a seasoned communications strategist with nearly a decade of experience in political campaigns, advocacy, and issue-based media strategy. She has led communications for competitive statewide campaigns, and driven high-impact advocacy efforts to expand access to healthcare. Most recently, Emma worked at BerlinRosen, where she developed and executed national media and messaging strategies for major advocacy organizations, including the ACLU and global philanthropic leaders. Previously, Emma held senior communications roles on a congressional campaign and two gubernatorial campaigns, shaping messaging, and leading rapid response. A graduate of Boston University with a degree in communications and political science, Emma is passionate about using storytelling to drive meaningful change. She thrives at the intersection of politics, policy, and media, helping organizations craft narratives that shape public discourse, move people to action, and create lasting change.

After experiencing the consequences of exploitative prescription drug pricing firsthand, Lisa (she/her) started working with Patients For Affordable Drugs as a patient advocate in 2020. Since then, Lisa’s story has been featured by CBS New York, NPR’s Weekend Edition, and BBC Arabic. A writer and social media strategist, Lisa specializes in digital advocacy to create change through content.