Biographies 2019

Dr. Meg Edison is a pediatrician in private practice in Grand Rapids, Michigan and is actively involved in state level health care policy via organized medicine and grassroots physician efforts.

Dr. Meg Edison is a pediatrician in private practice in Grand Rapids, Michigan and is actively involved in state level health care policy via organized medicine and grassroots physician efforts.  

Dr. Edison graduated from Hillsdale College in 1996 with degrees in Biology and Chemistry and received her M.D. from the University of Michigan Medical School. She completed pediatric residency training at the Barbara Bush Children’s Hospital in Portland, Maine in 2003 before returning home to Michigan.

Dr. Edison runs the popular blog Rebel.MD, which garnered more than 100,000 readers in December 2015 when she posted an open letter to the American Board of Pediatrics stating her decision to opt out of the board’s maintenance of certification process (commonly “MOC”), which she deems a fear-based money-making scheme that diverts doctors’ resources of time and money away from providing top-flight patient care.

In addition to co-founding, editing, and writing for Rebel.MD as a way to reach out nationally to physicians and policy makers in a non-traditional way, Dr. Edison is actively involved in traditional organized medicine locally. Dr. Edison serves on the Board of Directors for the Kent County Medical Society, has served as a delegate and reference committee chair to the Michigan State Medical Society House of Delegates, and has testified in the state legislature on many occasions on behalf of the state medical society and sometimes testifies in opposition to the state medical society.

Phil Eskew practices broad scope family medicine, averaging more than 50 clinical hours per week, mostly in the correctional (prison) medicine setting in Wyoming.  He joined ProactiveMD in Feb 2016 and is the company’s VP of Clinical Development and General Counsel.

He completed his family medicine residency at the Heart of Lancaster Regional Medical Center in Lititz, Pennsylvania in June 2015 and was honored with the American Osteopathic Foundation’s Outstanding Resident of the Year Award in Family Medicine.

He has been researching direct primary care (DPC) models for many years, including an intensive experience as a Visiting Scholar at the Robert Graham Center where his work was later published in the Journal of the American Board of Family Medicine. He has also been published in the West Virginia Medical Journal, the Journal of Legal Medicine, Family Practice Management, and the Journal of American Physicians & Surgeons.

Dr. Eskew has advised state and federal legislators about DPC legislation, and volunteers his time as the general counsel of the Direct Primary Care Coalition where he also serves as a member of the steering committee.

He graduated from the West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine in 2012, the West Virginia University College of Law in 2008, the University of Kentucky Gatton MBA Program in 2006, and West Virginia Wesleyan College with accounting and chemistry majors in 2005. He has been a member of the Kentucky Bar since 2011, obtained a limited certificate to practice with the South Carolina Bar in 2016, and intends to use his diverse training to not only grow Proactive MD, but to support other DPC practices in the medical, legal, and policy arenas.

Dr. Eskew regularly speaks about direct primary care.  He has spoken at events organized by the American Academy of Family Physicians, the American College of Legal Medicine, the American College of Osteopathic Family Physicians, the American Osteopathic Association, the American Association of Physicians and Surgeons, the Docs 4 Patient Care Foundation, the New York State Bar Association, the Kentucky Academy of Family Physicians, and the Mississippi Academy of Family Physicians.

Dr Elaina George is a Board Certified Otolaryngologist. Her interest in the politics of healthcare and the reform effort have led her to become both a powerful voice for the practicing physician, an advocate for the patient, and a healthcare policy analyst specializing in healthcare consumer driven solutions.

She graduated from Princeton University with a degree in Biology. She received her Masters degree in Medical Microbiology from Long Island University, and received her medical degree from Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York. Dr George completed her residency at Manhattan, Eye Ear & Throat Hospital. Her training included general surgery at Lenox Hill Hospital, pediatric ENT at The NY-Presbyterian Hospital, and head and neck oncology at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center.

She has published in several scientific journals and presented her research at national meetings. As a solo practitioner in private practice who is also a small business owner, she has a unique perspective on the problems of health care delivery, the true costs of healthcare and viable solutions.

Dr George is a recipient of the Patients’ Choice Award in 2008 and 2009. She was recently honored with membership in The Leading Physicians of the World and Who’s Who Top Doctors Honors Edition.

She is a member of the National Physicians Council on Healthcare Policy and has been a contributor to a wide variety of websites including BigGovernment.com, Newmediajournal.us, and Amy Ridenour’s National Center Blog. 

Dr George has been a recurring guest discussing a wide range of medical topics from Your World with Neil Cavuto and Newsmax, to appearances on Frances & Friends to discuss the consequences of healthcare reform with a world wide audience of over 500 million people.

She has also been a medical expert on a range of shows including The Bill Cunningham Show, Lions of Liberty, The Barry Farber Show, and The Kev Baker Show. 

Dr George hosts her own show, Medicine On Call, a weekly talk show that explores health issues and the politics of medicine syndicated on  Liberty Talk.fm Radio. 

She is the author of Big Medicine: The cost of Corporate Control And How Doctors And Patients Working Together Can Rebuild A Better System – A book which explores how the US healthcare system has evolved and explains how patients and doctors can create a healthcare system that is based on the principles of price transparency with the power of the doctor patient relationship.

Dr. Held is a board-certified ophthalmologist and ophthalmic surgeon.

She is a Phi Beta Kappa Graduate from the University of Texas at Austin and received her medical degree from the University of Texas Medical School at San Antonio, where she was elected to AOA.

Following her internship in internal medicine and residency in ophthalmology, Dr. Held joined the faculty at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, where she taught residents and medical students and served as director of the County Ophthalmology Clinic. She maintains an academic affiliation as an adjunct professor in the Department of Ophthalmology. For the past 20 plus years she has been in private practice in San Antonio.

On October 1, 2015, her practice became completely third party free, including opting out of Medicare.

In 2018, she received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Association of Women Business Owners in San Antonio.

Dr. Held serves on the AAPS Board of Directors and is AAPS President. She served on the healthcare advisory team for Dr. Ben Carson during his presidential campaign, is co-founder of AmericanDoctors4Truth.org, and served on the National Physicians Council for Healthcare Policy.

Dr. Held has had numerous articles published, including in the Washington Times, Houston Chronicle, The Hill, Journal of American Physicians and Surgeons and Dr. Carson’s AmericanCurrentsee. She has spoken across the country regarding health policy and its effects on patients, physicians, and the practice of American medicine, advocating for the patient-physician relationship and against the government takeover of medicine. Dr. Held is married and has four daughters; two are physicians, and two are in business.

Dr. Held is active on Twitter and would love to connect with you there: Kris Held,MD @kksheld

A wealth of information for patients and physicians can be found at www.aapsonline.org

You may also be interested in her blog posts at www.KrisHeldMD.Wordpress.com 

Bernard Marcus is co-founder of The Home Depot, Inc., the world’s largest home improvement retailer.  His company revolutionized the home improvement business with its warehouse concept. He served as chairman of the board until his retirement in 2002. He remains director emeritus and Home Depot’s largest single stockholder.

From 1972 to 1978, Marcus was Chairman of the Board and President of Handy Dan Improvement Centers, Inc., a home center retail chain.

Prior to Handy Dan, Marcus was President of O’Dell’s, a manufacturing conglomerate, and Vice President of Hard Goods Merchandising for Vornado, Inc., a retail chain.

Marcus’s personal civic involvement has been translated into the creation of The Marcus Foundation where he serves as chairman of the board. His areas of focus include Jewish causes, children, medical research, free enterprise and the community.

Dr. Ellen McKnight is a rheumatologist in Pensacola, Florida and is affiliated with multiple hospitals in the area, including Baptist Hospital and Gulf Breeze Hospital.

She received her medical degree from Louisiana State University School of Medicine in New Orleans and has been in practice for more than 20 years. 

Elaine Parker is the President of the Job Creators Network Foundation and the Chief Communications Officer of the Job Creators Network.

A graduate of the University of Central Florida, Elaine studied business administration. After graduating, Elaine spent time as the Public Relations Manager for Chrysler where she honed her skills and learned to expertly interact with the media and wider public.

While working as an independent consultant, Elaine interacted with high-profile clients like 5-Hour Energy, but also spent time with small business owners. It was during this time that Elaine began to have a deeper appreciation for the vital role small businesses play in the American economy.

A frequent guest on nationally syndicated radio shows including Mike Gallagher, Hugh Hewitt, Breitbart Radio, John Fredericks and on Fox News, Elaine advocates on behalf of the country’s 30 million small business owners. Her writings have appeared in the Washington Examiner, RealClear Policy, Townhall, The Hill, FoxNews.com, The Orange County Register, and other major national publications.

Today, Elaine continues to educate the American public about the vital role that small businesses play in our economy, while also advocating for policies that will allow entrepreneurs across the country to grow and thrive.