Season 5 Episode 52
Season 5 Episode 52
Tiffany Ryder is an Emergency Medicine Physician Associate and the founder of Red Flag Hero, an independent media firm helping healthcare professionals and organizations thrive in a noisy digital world. With a unique blend of clinical expertise and communications strategy, Tiffany empowers healthcare leaders, brokers, and brands to break through media clutter and build direct, trusted relationships with their audiences.
Through platforms like newsletters, YouTube, and social media, she helps clients turn complex health policy into clear, actionable messaging that drives engagement—and revenue. From ER to executive boardrooms, Tiffany is passionate about helping the healthcare sector stay informed, human, and profitable.
In this powerful episode of the Insurance Leadership Podcast, host Ben Markland welcomes Tiffany Ryder—a trailblazing healthcare advocate with a resume as diverse as her mission. Raised in rural Louisiana with no access to insurance, Tiffany’s story moves from military spouse to NFL cheerleader, ER clinician, health policy expert, and advisor to more than 20 healthcare ventures. She joins us to challenge the status quo of healthcare and to call out the uncomfortable truth: we’ve built a system that often fails the very people it’s supposed to serve.
Tiffany opens up about being diagnosed with PCOS and pre-diabetes in her late teens and how that moment set her on a journey of transformation. She lost weight, made the NFL cheerleading team, and more importantly, reversed the conditions she was told she would “Just have to live with.”
Tiffany emphasizes that, “there's a lot that you actually have power and control over that patients don't necessarily realize.”
This isn't just a personal story, it's a leadership framework. Tiffany reminds us that people can't lead others until they've learned to lead themselves. For brokers, carriers, and clinicians, we should be asking: how are we empowering our people to ask better questions and take ownership of their care?.
From a $250 penicillin bill to a rural patient who couldn't get antibiotics because his insurance only covered one pharmacy 40 miles away, Tiffany makes the cost barriers real. She shares how even medical professionals are discouraged from asking about cost during training, and how that disconnect breaks trust between patients and the system. Tiffany emphasizes that, “what good is care if the patient can't afford the prescription or the gas to pick it up?”
At ILP, we talk a lot about cost containment, but Tiffany brings a human face to it. Brokers and employers don't just need savings on paper; we need real-world affordability for the people we serve. Pricing matters. Networks matter. And yes, pharmacy access matters.
Tiffany makes a bold case for direct primary care (DPC), calling it one of the few models truly designed around the patient. She explains why so many ER visits are the result of poor or absent primary care and how access to a trusted physician can prevent claims, costs, and crises before they ever happen. Tiffany emphasizes that, “direct primary care puts the patient back at the center of care—where they belong.”
This is the kind of forward-thinking our industry needs more of. Whether you’re a benefits advisor, an employer, or a clinician, Tiffany challenges us to ask, “What if we stopped treating primary care as a box to check and started treating it like the anchor of our entire plan design?”
Tiffany's stories go beyond policy; she shares real moments from her time in emergency medicine, including the late-night patient calls she made off the clock just to check in. She describes a system full of people doing their best, but one where structure, reimbursement models, and access all fall painfully short. Tiffany emphasizes that, “the guaranteed way to lose in healthcare is to keep doing things the way they've always been done.”
Her words hit home. In a space known for red tape and rigidity, Tiffany reminds us that leadership doesn't always happen in a boardroom. Sometimes it's a phone call, a restructured network, and a reimagined plan. The best leadership often lives in the gray, between systems, expectations, and real-life stories.
This episode is both a wake-up call and a masterclass in listening. Tiffany doesn't just diagnose the problems; she offers real-world, actionable ideas for brokers, carriers, employers, and employees alike. From encouraging direct primary care to demanding contract transparency and unbundling outdated coverage models, she shows us that change doesn't come from convenience. It comes from conviction.
If you're ready to rethink how you lead in this space, Tiffany's blueprint is a great place to start.
In our next episode, we sit down with Terry Ward of United Vision Plan to talk about how vision benefits are evolving and why they're more important than ever. From smarter plan design to building broker trust, Terry brings real-world insight into what's working in today's competitive benefits space.
Don't miss it—this conversation explores where insurance, innovation, and real impact collide.
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