Ingrid Gomez Cifuentes

CHCI Public Policy Fellow Presented by Genentech
Hometown: Kansas City, Missouri
School: Rockhurst University
Degree: Bachelor of Science in Biology
Placement: Office of Representative Lauren Underwood

Ingrid was born in Mazatenango, Guatemala, and raised in Kansas City, Missouri. Growing up in a single-parent household without access to healthcare deeply shaped her purpose and drove her commitment to health equity. As an Afro-Latina and first-generation college graduate, Ingrid leverages her lived experiences to advance equitable health policy and address the systemic barriers that limit access to healthcare. She earned a Bachelor of Science in Biomedical Physics and Biology from Rockhurst University, where she combined her interests in science, service, and servant leadership to prepare for a career bridging medicine and public policy.

Throughout her academic and professional journey, Ingrid has worked to address health disparities through research, direct patient care, and community engagement. At the University of Kansas Medical Center, she contributed to reproductive physiology research examining fertility and ovarian function. She later provided patient advocacy and care coordination in safety-net emergency departments at NYU Langone Health and NYC Health + Hospitals/Bellevue, where the stories of the patients and families she served deepened her understanding of how social and structural factors shape health outcomes.

As an AmeriCorps member at Maggie’s Place in Phoenix, Arizona, Ingrid delivered trauma-informed support to pregnant women and mothers experiencing housing instability, helping connect families with essential health resources while recognizing how policy decisions shape community well-being. These experiences strengthened her conviction that meaningful progress requires both compassionate care and systems-level solutions.

As a CHCI Public Policy Fellow, Ingrid hopes to broaden her understanding of the federal policymaking process while strengthening her skills in legislative research, policy analysis, and stakeholder engagement. She looks forward to serving in Rep. Lauren Underwood’s office and learning how evidence-based policy can expand access to high-quality healthcare. Ingrid plans to pursue a career as a physician, translating clinical experience into policies that strengthen communities, expand access to care, and improve health outcomes for historically underserved populations.