A note from Elizabeth

Dear friend,

Thank you so much for visiting The Empowered Patient! I'm Elizabeth Cohen. You might remember me from my three decades at CNN, where I was the network's senior medical correspondent, or from my stories in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, and NBC News.

I used to work for them. Now I work for you.

Because everyone has a health care story. Seriously, I don't think I've met anyone who doesn't. Trouble getting the care your child needs. Challenges coordinating complicated procedures for your mom or dad. Walking out of your own doctor's appointment thinking, huh? What am I supposed to do now? Picking a health insurance plan or trying to bring down a whopping prescription drug bill.

I'm a mother of four, wife of one, and daughter of two, so I've been through all of these and more. Plus, I've had some pretty weird medical problems myself, which I'll share along the way.

I started The Empowered Patient back in 2007 (the olden days!), after a traumatic experience when our third daughter was born — you can read about it here. It grew into a weekly CNN.com column, two CNN documentaries, and a book published by Random House.

I used to be on TV every day, explaining all this to Anderson Cooper and Wolf Blitzer. Now I explain it to you. Twice a week, we'll get together for:

  • Power Source a person who fought for better care, and won.
  • Power Move a smart, simple step you can take to improve your care.
  • Power Question the one question to ask your doctor (or someone else) now.

And I want to hear what you want to talk about. Send me your questions and stories here.

No jargon, no politics, and no freaking you out. Just practical, trustworthy advice from someone who's spent a career digging into the system, so you can get the best care for you and your family.

I've got you.

Warmly,

Elizabeth
Launching fall 2026.
It's free! Twice a week.
Elizabeth Cohen with Julianna Snow and her parents
With Julianna Snow and her parents, Dr. Michelle Moon and Steve Snow, in 2015. Their family taught me what it means for patients, even very young ones, to have a voice in their own care, and what it looks like to face a terrible disease with love and dignity.
Elizabeth Cohen
Elizabeth Cohen
Founder, The Empowered Patient

Emmy winner. Peabody winner. Elizabeth spent 32 years at CNN, including 15 as senior medical correspondent, and reported four CNN documentaries. Her work has also appeared in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, NBC News, and KFF Health News. She's the author of The Empowered Patient (Random House), named for her CNN.com column. For a decade, she has interviewed health leaders onstage at Aspen Ideas: Health, and in 2025 she received Research!America's Isadore Rosenfeld Award for Impact on Public Opinion. She has a master's in public health from Boston University and a bachelor's degree in history from Columbia. For her full résumé, see LinkedIn.

How I work

Elizabeth Cohen on the CNN set
On The Empowered Patient set, where it all began.

I hold myself to the same standards I've followed for nearly 40 years in newsrooms. I'm an independent journalist. No company, hospital, or insurer tells me what to write, and no one can pay for coverage in my reporting. I don't own individual stocks in health care companies. If I have a personal connection to someone I write about, I'll tell you. While I sometimes use AI to help me research, I double check everything it tells me, and I'm transparent about where my information comes from — you'll see the sources at the bottom of every newsletter. I write all my own stories; AI doesn't write for me. And if I get something wrong, I'll fix it and tell you what changed.

I'll help you ask better questions, but The Empowered Patient is information, not medical advice. Always talk with your own health care providers about your care.

© 2026 The Empowered Patient.
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