COVID-19 and Public Policy Imperatives: A Trainee Call to Action.
Acad Med
; 95(12): 1831-1833, 2020 12.
Article
in English
| MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-975348
ABSTRACT
The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated the flaws in the U.S. employer-based health insurance system, magnified racial disparities in health and health care, and overwhelmed the country's underfunded public health infrastructure. These are the same systematic failures that have always harmed and killed the nation's most vulnerable. While everyone wishes for an end to this national tragedy, the authors believe a new normal must be defined for the postpandemic period.In the postpandemic period, policies that were once labeled radical and impossible will be urgent and necessary. Examples of such policies include providing universal health care, dismantling the structures that propagate racism and injustice, and reinvesting in public health. Previous research by the authors has shown that their medical student colleagues recognize that it is their responsibility to address policies that harm patients and to support reforms at the scale the authors propose. This commitment to a better future is reflected in the widespread mobilization of medical students seen across the United States. Recognizing that the old normal is unsustainable, the authors call on those who previously benefited from the status quo to instead seek a new postpandemic normal that works for all.
Full text:
Available
Collection:
International databases
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Public Policy
/
Healthcare Disparities
/
Forecasting
/
COVID-19
/
Health Services Accessibility
Type of study:
Observational study
/
Prognostic study
/
Systematic review/Meta Analysis
Limits:
Humans
Country/Region as subject:
North America
Language:
English
Journal:
Acad Med
Journal subject:
Education
Year:
2020
Document Type:
Article
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