Like many in our state and across the country, in his twenties, Ryan went through a period of addiction after being prescribed painkillers for a hiking injury. To get healthy again, he learned to navigate a complex and unfriendly healthcare system. He saw from the inside how insurance companies harmed his friends and family, many of whom were the victims of large corporations making a profit from people’s pain. He was determined to stop this fatal cycle and save his own life, and the lives of those he loved and cared about.