Honoring Diane Lund-Muzikant: Celebrating the Legacy of Oregon’s Acclaimed Journalist and Health Advocate

This fall, Diane Lund-Muzikant will receive the 2025 Communicator of Achievement award from the National Federation of Press Women. The award highlights her groundbreaking work in investigative journalism for health care transparency.

Diane’s journey began in 1968 when she decided to spend her college savings on travel in Europe. By 1972, she returned to the U.S. with a two-year-old daughter, Diana Lund. Times were tough, but Diane was determined. She found work as a freelance journalist in Portland, covering local news for various publications, including a bi-monthly religious magazine, Shalom Oregon.

In 1974, she graduated from the University of Minnesota with a degree in journalism and German. She soon became part of Oregon Press Women, helping to amplify women’s voices in media.

In 1986, Diane took on a significant role reporting for The Scribe, a publication for the Medical Society of Metropolitan Portland. It was here that she discovered major issues in Oregon’s health care system, like how insurance companies influenced patient care. This realization sparked her passion for health policy journalism, which would span nearly 40 years.

Through her investigative work, Diane reported extensively on the complex relationships between health care providers and insurers. Her insightful revelations gained her recognition within the medical community, and in 1991, she founded the Oregon Health Forum. This organization created a platform for open discussions on health care issues in Oregon. It published the Oregon Health News newsletter, which aimed to keep the public informed without any advertising bias.

Diane was unyielding in her pursuit of truth, revealing salaries of health care leaders and uncovering how profit-driven practices affected patient care. Her work faced backlash, but she stood her ground, proving the value and accuracy of her reporting.

Following a challenging battle with breast cancer in the late ’90s, Diane continued her advocacy, co-founding the Rachel’s Friends Breast Cancer Coalition. She also contributed significantly to local and national cancer research initiatives.

In 2006, Diane had a falling out with the Oregon Health Forum’s Board of Directors and left her role. Even after leaving, the organization couldn’t survive without her vision, shutting down a few years later.

Unfazed, Diane founded The Lund Report, a nonprofit digital newsletter dedicated to covering Oregon’s health care landscape. By 2014, it thrived on subscriptions, providing valuable insights into a field often clouded in secrecy. Over the years, her team uncovered fraudulent practices and challenged the status quo in health care.

Diane stepped down from reporting in 2017, transitioning to a more advisory role while leaving a legacy of independent journalism. She expressed her commitment to clarity and informed decision-making, ensuring that critical health care issues remain in the spotlight.

Diane’s personal life has been rich and adventurous. She married Michael Muzikant in 1994 and they share a love for travel, visiting over 70 countries together. Her resilience can be seen in her daring trek to Everest base camp, overcoming a broken pelvis during an expedition in Ethiopia.

Diane Lund-Muzikant is an incredible inspiration. Her tenacity, investigative spirit, and commitment to health care transparency have made a lasting impact.

For more in-depth exploration, consider looking at resources like the American Medical Association News or the Health Affairs journal, which provide data on health care policies and systems.

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Journalism | Media | Oregon | Health