Patients are the source, active or passive, of most of the data driving discovery and innovation in biomedical R&D and improvements in care. Many of us have relatively easy and centralized access to our financial data, but few of us can say the same about our health data. Countless efforts have been made to address this issue, including the very recent federal Cures Act Final Rule, which requires that patients be able to electronically access all their records at no cost. What is still standing in our way? Only when patients have easier access to their data, more control over its use, and trust in the intermediaries can true transformation occur in the health data ecosystem.