Now in its 20th year, the Association of Health Care Journalists’ annual Awards for Excellence in Health Care Journalism is a professional and public affirmation of the importance of health care as a beat. To select the most powerful, poignant and effective stories for the contest from all the submissions requires significant time, dedication and care. For that, we thank the dozens of volunteer judges who make it all possible.
The 2023 contest drew more than 400 entries in 14 categories and winners were announced at the annual conference in New York City in early June. Judges work in teams of two, over two rounds, to select the winners, and judges say the work is gratifying and inspiring. Many have donated their time to AHCJ’s contest for several years while others volunteered this year for the first time.
Each volunteer judge – all of whom are current or retired journalists or journalism instructors – plays a crucial role in maintaining the integrity and independence of the annual awards. Those who agreed to be publicly recognized are named below. Our most sincere thanks to everyone for volunteering!
- Reed Abelson, The New York Times
- Ira Allen, Retired Journalist
- Julie Appleby, KFF Health News
- Lynn Arditi, The Public’s Radio (the NPR affiliate in R.I.)
- Marcus Banks, Independent Journalist
- Rita Baron-Faust, Independent Journalist
- Lauren Bavis, Syracuse University
- Allison Bell, ThinkAdvisor/ALM
- Sarah Boden, 90.5 WESA News (Pittsburgh’s NPR station)
- Aaron Bolton, Montana Public Radio
- Mikhail Borisov, Editor In Chief – Elena Sunshine Magazine
- Karen Brown, New England Public Radio
- Lola Butcher, Independent Journalist
- Eli Cahan, Independent Journalist
- Cheryl Clark, Independent Journalist
- Stephanie Colombini, WUSF 89.7 and NPR-KFF Health News reporting collaborative
- Dennis Dailey, mHealth Times, HITshow
- Priyanka Dayal McCluskey, WBUR, Boston’s NPR news station
- Aina de Lapparent Alvarez, The Berkshire Eagle / Independent Journalist
- Katherine Eban, Vanity Fair
- Rachel Ehrenberg, Knowable Magazine
- Duaa Eldeib, ProPublica
- Renee Fabian, GoodRx Health
- Andrew Ford, Arizona Republic
- Hannah Furfaro, The Seattle Times
- Matthias Gafni, San Francisco Chronicle
- Carol Gentry, Academy of Senior Professionals at Eckerd College
- Dan Gorenstein, Tradeoffs
- David Gorn, Independent Journalist
- Ariel Hart, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
- Emily Hayes, Illinois Public Media
- Anita Hofschneider, Grist Magazine
- Toni Hope, Independent Journalist
- Barbara Hordern, Retired Journalist
- Charlotte Huff, Independent Journalist
- Kristen Hwang, CalMatters
- Christopher Intagliata, NPR
- Carla K. Johnson, The Associated Press
- Thomas Koetting, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
- Jeremy Kohler, ProPublica
- Sandra Lamb, Independent Journalist
- Kay Lazar, Boston Globe
- Ryan Levi, Tradeoffs
- Tony Leys, KFF Health News
- Ed Mahon, Spotlight PA
- Sebastian Martinez, University of Missouri School of Journalism
- Marilynn Mastroianni, Retired chief medical writer, The Associated Press
- Tracy Middleton, Hone Health
- Naseem Miller, The Journalist’s Resource
- Kari Oakes, AgencyIQ by POLITICO
- Ivan Oransky, The Transmitter
- Charles Ornstein, ProPublica
- Candace Page, Seven Days
- Elena Petrova, Science Journalist and president – Elena Sunshine Magazine
- Magdalena Puniewska, Independent Journalist
- Jane Qiu, Independent Journalist
- Lydia Ramsey Pflanzer, Insider
- karen robinson, Lee Enterprises
- Bram Sable-Smith, KFF Health News
- Anne Saker, Writer/artist
- Jane Salodof MacNeil, Retired journalist
- Diana Samuels, Seattle Times
- Margot Sanger-Katz, The New York Times
- Dorey Scheimer, On Point (WBUR)
- Kimberly Schofield, Illinois Public Media
- Kristen Schorsch, WBEZ Chicago
- Liz Seegert, Independent/AHCJ
- Chris Serres, Boston Globe
- Donna Shaw, The College of New Jersey
- Joanne Silberner, Independent Journalist
- Natalie Skowlund, KUNC
- Karl Stark, Leonard Davis Institute of Health Economics University of Pennsylvania
- Tony Stasiek, OneCare Media
- Amelia Templeton, Oregon Public Broadcasting
- Wendy Thermos, Formerly with L.A. Times and CBS News
- Michael Vitez, Part time Temple University Medical School
- Leslie Walker, Tradeoffs
- Karen Weintraub, USA TODAY
- Rosemary Westwood, WWNO/WRKF
- Susan White, Public Health Watch
- Irene Wielawski, Independent Journalist
- Kate Wolffe, CapRadio
- Emily Woodruff, The Times-Picayune | The New Orleans Advocate
- Jeffrey Young, Modern Healthcare
- Farah Yousry, Side Effects Public Media/ WFYI
Interested in volunteering as a judge for the 2024 contest? Sign up here.
The contest needs new judges each year, and serving as a judge does not bar you from entering the contest. Our committee works to avoid conflicts of interest for judges as well as reporters/entries from their outlet. For questions about judging or if you are an AHCJ member interested in serving on the contest committee, please contact AHCJ Membership Manager Tina England at tina@healthjournalism.org.
Oversight and support for the Awards for Excellence in Health Care Journalism come from the AHCJ Contest Committee, co-chaired by AHCJ board members Christine Herman and Jonathan Rockoff. The committee also includes board members Randy Dotinga, Carrie Feibel, and Joyce Frieden, and member volunteers Sabriya Rice, Lauren Bavis, Pauline Arrillaga, Mia De Graaf, and Jason Kane.
