Health Affairs is a monthly peer-reviewed healthcare journal established in 1981 by John K. Iglehart; since 2014, the editor-in-chief is Alan Weil.

[3] It was established in 1999 with Fitzhugh Mullan (George Washington University) as its original editor.

During its history, Narrative Matters has published over 160 policy narratives on a wide range of topics by well-known writers including Julia Alvarez, Alexander McCall Smith, and Abraham Verghese, by distinguished medical professionals and academics, as well as by patients.

In 2006, the Johns Hopkins University Press published a selection of essays from Narrative Matters: "Narrative Matters: The Power of the Personal Essay in Health Policy" (eds.

The Kellogg Foundation also funded several conferences that brought together present and future contributors to Narrative Matters.