HJ804: Commending Nancy Davenport-Ennis.


HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 804
Commending Nancy Davenport-Ennis.

 

Agreed to by the House of Delegates, February 8, 2013
Agreed to by the Senate, February 14, 2013

 

WHEREAS, Nancy Davenport-Ennis, of Yorktown, Virginia, founded the Patient Advocate Foundation and the National Patient Advocate Foundation in 1996 in honor and memory of her friend Cheryl Grimmel, a breast cancer patient who was denied insurance coverage for her treatment; and

WHEREAS, while Cheryl fought her fight, Nancy Davenport-Ennis created and led the Virginia Task Force for Insurance Reform and brought the previously underrepresented patient’s perspective to light and fought to reform insurance coverage for breast cancer patients that resulted in the passage of House Bill 240 sponsored by Delegate Mary Christian in 1994; and

WHEREAS, collectively, since their inception, Nancy Davenport-Ennis’ two foundations have provided direct patient assistance to over 965,000 patients with chronic, debilitating, and life-threatening conditions in America who needed someone to help them navigate the health care system or find affordable health care and helped nearly 10 million more through web-based informational services; and

WHEREAS, Nancy Davenport-Ennis knows first-hand the personal battle of cancer as a two-time breast cancer survivor and has eloquently and openly discussed how this experience has aided her in establishing a body of work that will help millions of other patients; and

WHEREAS, Nancy Davenport-Ennis, along with her husband and co-founder, John H. Ennis, Jr., and her daughters and co-presidents, Beth Patterson and Fran Castellow, has provided exceptional service-oriented leadership and fiduciary expertise at the Patient Advocate Foundation enabling it to receive, for the third consecutive year in 2012, a 4-star rating by Charity Navigator for its sound fiscal management and commitment to accountability and transparency, a recognition status only nine percent of the ranked charities ever receive; and

WHEREAS, Nancy Davenport-Ennis has significantly contributed to the economic growth in Virginia by creating over 200 full-time positions in the health care field that provide secure, sustained, and rewarding careers to citizens of Virginia; and

WHEREAS, throughout her exemplary career as a leader in health care policy formation, Nancy Davenport-Ennis has embodied the dignity and integrity of a true patient advocate; and

WHEREAS, Nancy Davenport-Ennis was the recipient of the 2005 Women in Business Achievement Award presented by Anthem and Business Week and the 1989 Outstanding Young Woman of America Award, the Association of Community Cancer Centers Advocate of the Year Award, and the U.S. Oncology Medal of Honor Award; and

WHEREAS, Nancy Davenport-Ennis was selected by Yoplait and Susan G. Komen for the Cure as a Yoplait Champion in 2008 for selflessly fighting breast cancer, as well as joining the Stand Up 2 Cancer Advisory Council, a national movement to end cancer; and

WHEREAS, countless federal, state, and local dignitaries and public officials call Nancy Davenport-Ennis “friend,” “ally,” “comrade,” and “champion” for her tireless promotion of patient-centric public policies that are made with the full intention that leaders with ethical, political, economic, and clinical differences can collectively sit at one table and come to the right decision for patients; and

WHEREAS, Nancy Davenport-Ennis has served on numerous national committees, including an appointment by the United States Secretary of Health and Human Services as a Commissioner on the American Health Information Community (AHIC); service as co-chair of the Consumer Empowerment Working Group for AHIC; service for the National Cancer Institute on the Directors Consumer Liaison Group; the holding of the first voting seat designated for a patient advocate on the Medicare Coverage Advisory Committee for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services; and service in similar leadership capacities on a state level including on the Virginia Governor’s Task Force on Regulatory and Government Reform and the Virginia Attorney General’s Government and Regulatory Reform Task Force; and

WHEREAS, under her vision and in collaboration with the Friends of Cancer Research, Nancy Davenport-Ennis established the Regulatory Education and Action for Patients coalition in 2010 to provide a central voice for patient advocacy groups in Washington, D.C., to respond to the regulatory actions taken on a federal and state level that resulted from the passage of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, and its membership has grown to 53 nonprofit patient advocacy groups in less than three years; and

WHEREAS, Nancy Davenport-Ennis has led a team of outstanding policy experts over the past 17 years in Washington, D.C., at the National Patient Advocate Foundation and raised the patient’s voice on Capitol Hill through 13 successful Patient Congress events that have involved over 1,000 meetings with members of Congress and their staff; and

WHEREAS, Nancy Davenport-Ennis has devoted countless hours to the establishment and success of a truly all-American, service-devoted charity foundation that has sustained itself through some of the nation’s most challenging economic times; and

WHEREAS, Nancy Davenport-Ennis has become an indefatigable supporter of patient rights and is a model citizen; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED by the House of Delegates, the Senate concurring, That the General Assembly hereby commend Nancy Davenport-Ennis on the occasion of the 17th anniversary of the founding of the Patient Advocate Foundation and the National Patient Advocate Foundation and on becoming one of the nation’s preeminent leaders and experts in health care policy; and, be it

RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the House of Delegates prepare a copy of this resolution for presentation to Nancy Davenport-Ennis as an expression of the General Assembly’s admiration and respect for her service to Virginians and all Americans.

HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 804

Offered January 31, 2013
Commending Nancy Davenport-Ennis.
Patron-- Pogge

WHEREAS, Nancy Davenport-Ennis, of Yorktown, Virginia, founded the Patient Advocate Foundation and the National Patient Advocate Foundation in 1996 in honor and memory of her friend Cheryl Grimmel, a breast cancer patient who was denied insurance coverage for her treatment; and

WHEREAS, while Cheryl fought her fight, Nancy Davenport-Ennis created and led the Virginia Task Force for Insurance Reform and brought the previously underrepresented patient’s perspective to light and fought to reform insurance coverage for breast cancer patients that resulted in the passage of House Bill 240 sponsored by Delegate Mary Christian in 1994; and

WHEREAS, collectively, since their inception, Nancy Davenport-Ennis’ two foundations have provided direct patient assistance to over 965,000 patients with chronic, debilitating, and life-threatening conditions in America who needed someone to help them navigate the health care system or find affordable health care and helped nearly 10 million more through web-based informational services; and

WHEREAS, Nancy Davenport-Ennis knows first-hand the personal battle of cancer as a two-time breast cancer survivor and has eloquently and openly discussed how this experience has aided her in establishing a body of work that will help millions of other patients; and

WHEREAS, Nancy Davenport-Ennis, along with her husband and co-founder, John H. Ennis, Jr., and her daughters and co-presidents, Beth Patterson and Fran Castellow, has provided exceptional service-oriented leadership and fiduciary expertise at the Patient Advocate Foundation enabling it to receive, for the third consecutive year in 2012, a 4-star rating by Charity Navigator for its sound fiscal management and commitment to accountability and transparency, a recognition status only nine percent of the ranked charities ever receive; and

WHEREAS, Nancy Davenport-Ennis has significantly contributed to the economic growth in Virginia by creating over 200 full-time positions in the health care field that provide secure, sustained, and rewarding careers to citizens of Virginia; and

WHEREAS, throughout her exemplary career as a leader in health care policy formation, Nancy Davenport-Ennis has embodied the dignity and integrity of a true patient advocate; and

WHEREAS, Nancy Davenport-Ennis was the recipient of the 2005 Women in Business Achievement Award presented by Anthem and Business Week and the 1989 Outstanding Young Woman of America Award, the Association of Community Cancer Centers Advocate of the Year Award, and the U.S. Oncology Medal of Honor Award; and

WHEREAS, Nancy Davenport-Ennis was selected by Yoplait and Susan G. Komen for the Cure as a Yoplait Champion in 2008 for selflessly fighting breast cancer, as well as joining the Stand Up 2 Cancer Advisory Council, a national movement to end cancer; and

WHEREAS, countless federal, state and local dignitaries and public officials call Nancy Davenport-Ennis “friend,” “ally,” “comrade,” and “champion” for her tireless promotion of patient-centric public policies that are made with the full intention that leaders with ethical, political, economic, and clinical differences can collectively sit at one table and come to the right decision for patients; and

WHEREAS, Nancy Davenport-Ennis has served on numerous national committees, including an appointment by the U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services as a Commissioner on the American Health Information Community (AHIC); service as co-chair of the Consumer Empowerment Working Group for AHIC; service for the National Cancer Institute on the Directors Consumer Liaison Group; the holding of the first voting seat designated for a patient advocate on the Medicare Coverage Advisory Committee for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services; and service in similar leadership capacities on a state level including on the Virginia Governor’s Task Force on Regulatory and Government Reform and the Virginia Attorney General’s Government and Regulatory Reform Task Force; and

WHEREAS, under her vision and in collaboration with the Friends of Cancer Research, Nancy Davenport-Ennis established the Regulatory Education and Action for Patients coalition in 2010 to provide a central voice for patient advocacy groups in Washington, D.C., to respond to the regulatory actions taken on a federal and state level that resulted from the passage of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, and its membership has grown to 53 nonprofit patient advocacy groups in less than three years; and

WHEREAS, Nancy Davenport-Ennis has led a team of outstanding policy experts over the past 17 years in Washington, D.C., at the National Patient Advocate Foundation and raised the patient’s voice on Capitol Hill through 13 successful Patient Congress events that have involved over 1,000 meetings with members of Congress and their staff; and

WHEREAS, Nancy Davenport-Ennis has devoted countless hours to the establishment and success of a truly all-American, service-devoted charity foundation that has sustained itself through some of the nation’s most challenging economic times; and

WHEREAS, Nancy Davenport-Ennis has became an indefatigable supporter of patient rights and is a model citizen; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED by the House of Delegates, the Senate concurring, That the General Assembly hereby commend Nancy Davenport-Ennis on the occasion of the 17th anniversary of the founding of the Patient Advocate Foundation and the National Patient Advocate Foundation and on becoming one of the nation’s preeminent leaders and experts in health care policy; and, be it

RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the House of Delegates prepare a copy of this resolution for presentation to Nancy Davenport-Ennis as an expression of the General Assembly’s admiration and respect for her service to Virginians and all Americans.