Despite living in an era of great potential in the fight against disease and death, Americans continue to be haunted by health care profiteers. This Halloween, hundreds of medical and health professional students around the country will call on candidates and elected officials to abolish private health insurance, and to replace the health insurance industry with an expanded and improved Medicare-for-all.
Our message: “Private health insurance is a trick – we just want to treat our patients.”
This national day of action, dubbed #TreatNotTrick, is organized by Students for a National Health Program (SNaHP) and supported by well-known health professional student organizations such as the American Medical Student Association, The Latino Medical Student Association, White Coats 4 Black Lives, and the California Health Professional Student Alliance.
#TreatNotTrick will be an opportunity to put pressure on candidates to include improved Medicare-for-all, or “single payer” health insurance, in their platform just one week prior to the November elections. The decision to organize this national event was made after the success of SNaHP’s “TenOne” day of action in October 2015. During that event, more than 35 actions were organized at dozens of medical schools, and many groups received local media coverage.
[Photo caption: Chicago medical students march in front of Humana’s local headquarters during 2015’s #TenOne action]
There isn’t a week that goes by without a scandalous headline highlighting the broken quality of health care financing in the United States. Recently, mega-insurer Aetna backed out of the Affordable Care Act’s marketplace exchanges in 11 states, significantly reducing access to care in several portions of the country. Shortly after, there was public outcry over a 600% price surge of the life-saving EpiPen by big pharmaceutical company Mylan.
There is a better way to provide care for everyone while also controlling costs: Improve and expand the existing Medicare program to cover all medically necessary services, and enroll everyone from the day they are born.
The timing of #TreatNotTrick is critical. The outcomes of this year’s election will set this country’s political priorities for the next four years or more. A unified call for improved Medicare-for-all so close to the election will demonstrate that affordable, accessible health care for everyone is only possible with single payer. Not only do the majority of Americans want it, but the current system will buckle without it.
The editors of this blog urge all medical and health professional students to add their voice to this call and to get involved by joining or organizing a #TreatNotTrick event this Halloween.
Questions about #TreatNotTrick may be directed to students@pnhp.org.
Here is a list of participating schools and events:
Baltimore:
- Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
Illinois:
- Pritzker School of Medicine – University of Chicago
- Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science
- Rush Medical College & Rush College of Nursing
- Feinberg School of Medicine at Northwestern University
- Midwestern: Chicago College of Osteopathic Medicine
Monday, October 31
11am-1pm
Information Booth & Letter-Writing Workshop
Contact: Taysa Bowers, 925 451-5829; tbowers19@midwestern.edu
Ohio:
- Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine
Monday, October 31st
Lobby visit to Sen. Sherrod Brown
Contact: Vanessa Van Doren, vev5@case.edu - The Ohio State University College of Medicine
Meeting with Mike Stinziano of the Columbus City Council to speak on effective techniques for medical lobbying & ways to influence healthcare legislature as medical students
Minnesota:
- University of Minnesota Medical School
- Mayo Medical School
Madison, Wisconsin:
- University of Wisconsin School of Medicine
Philadelphia, PA
- Lewis Katz School of Medicine at Temple University/Cooper Medical School of Rowan University/Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania
Monday, October 31st, 6pm, City Hall
Rally and Vigil
https://www.facebook.com/events/570996616419036/
Contact: Emily Kirchner, ekirchner89@gmail.com, 724 561 8336
Scranton,PA
- The Commonwealth Medical College
New York
- Weill Cornell School of Medicine
Patient testimonials exhibiting the deficits of the health care system
Olin Hall–Olin Lounge/ Weill Education Building–Archibold Student Lounge
Photo ID required to visit campus buildings
10/31-11/3
- New York Metro Region
NYC Village Halloween Parade + Petitioning for New York Health Act
October 31, 7-9 PM
Sixth Avenue at Canal
https://www.facebook.com/events/208216562921689/
- Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
- Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons
- New York Medical College
Boston, MA
- Boston University School of Medicine
October 31st, 3-4:30 PM, Talbot Green
Demonstration and Call-In
https://www.facebook.com/events/323487411336598/
- Harvard Medical School
- Tufts University School of Medicine
Southeast:
- University of Louisville School of Medicine
Rally with student and physician speakers + Petition for H.R. 676 support in KY
U of L Health Science Campus Quad
(500 South Preston btw Muhammad Ali Blvd and East Chestnut St)
October 31st, 12 pm
https://www.facebook.com/events/1578361099137154/
Contact: Mallika Sabharwal, malsabharw@gmail.com - Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine
- Kirksville College of Osteopathic Medicine – A. T. Still University
- East Tennessee State University Quillen College of Medicine
- Emory University School of Medicine
- University of South Alabama College of Medicine
New Mexico:
- University of New Mexico School of Medicine
Texas:
- Texas College of Osteopathic Medicine
- University of Texas Health Science Center
California:
- Touro University California – College of Osteopathic Medicine
- The David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA
Caribbean:
- Ross University School of Medicine