This year’s Free2Care Dan Weber Patient Advocacy Award winner is North Carolina State Treasurer Dale Folwell. The award honors the legacy of AMAC’s late founder, Dan Weber, for his work on behalf of patient empowerment. Mr. Folwell was sworn in as State Treasurer in January 2017 and was reelected in 2020. In 2020, the state’s coveted AAA bond rating was reaffirmed by every major rating agency, making North Carolina one of only 13 states in the country to hold that distinction. Treasurer Folwell also oversees the State Health Plan, which provides medical and pharmaceutical benefits to more than 750,000 current and retired public employees and is the largest purchaser of health care in North Carolina.
Mr. Folwell is an outspoken champion for patients. In addition to his successful track record as Treasurer, he has worked to increase hospital price transparency, reduce medical debt, fight against predatory medical billing practices, and increase access to care. He supports pro-family, anti-poverty, consumer protection legislation in North Carolina that limits the ability of large medical facilities to charge unreasonable interest rates and employ unfair tactics in debt collection. He is also a passionate advocate for organ donation.
Free2Care is a nonpartisan coalition of 34 member organizations, including AMAC, representing over 8 million patient and physician advocates working to reform health care through price transparency, access, and choice. AMAC Action Senior Vice President Andy Mangione presented Mr. Folwell with the award at Free2Care’s annual conference in Austin, Texas.
