Doug Oliver

Doug Oliver is a writer, editorial contributor, and patient advocate from Nashville, Tennessee. He holds a Master’s Degree in Social Work from the University of New England and has specialized in work on health care policy, compliance, and clinical case advocacy.

He is also a stem cell patient. At age 32, he was diagnosed with macular degeneration, a disease that attacks the retina, causing blindness of central vision. Doug became legally blind at age 45. In August 2015, he underwent adult stem cell therapy to both eyes, and started seeing clearly in 3 days. Soon, he was able to see the faces of his grandchildren, and within a few months, regain his driver’s license.

In early 2016, Tennessee Senator Lamar Alexander and Former Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, M.D., engaged Doug in helping to craft key legislation aimed at speeding access for others to have cellular therapies like he received. He was invited to Washington, D.C. to hold meetings with key U.S. Senators and Representatives from both sides of the aisle, and due in part to his successful efforts, the bipartisan 21st Century Cures Act passed and was signed into law.

Described as a miracle by many, Doug’s experience and his advocacy for patients worldwide has been described as impacting healthcare like a “meteor streaking across the sky of regenerative medicine”, and his inspiring story has been featured in People, Forbes, Fox News, and countless print and online media outlets, including The Hill, The Tennessean, and RegMedNet.

As Executive Director of The Regenerative Outcomes Foundation, founded by him in 2016, Doug continues his work at the top of Federal health policy and is considered a vital patient voice on key policy, and is active as a consultant, as well as a featured speaker that inspires healthcare, research, academic, and faith-based audiences nationwide.

His book “Of Things Unseen” will be out later in the year.