100 Most Influential People in Healthcare - 2023

The AARP, which advocates on behalf of people age 50 and older, has nearly 38 million members. Under Jenkins’ leadership, the organization this year reported that unpaid work provided by family caregivers adds up to an estimated $600 billion—more than all out-of-pocket U.S. spending on healthcare in 2021. A proponent of federal legislation to lower drug prices, AARP this year filed amicus briefs urging a federal court to dismiss lawsuits challenging Medicare’s new authority to negotiate prices for prescription drugs. It also spoke out in favor of a federal proposal regarding minimum staffing levels in nursing homes, along with asking Congress to protect Social Security and Medicare. Jenkins, who joined the organization in 2010 and has led it since 2014, previously worked in the federal Departments of Housing and Urban Development, Transportation and Agriculture before becoming chief operating officer of the Library of Congress.