NewsHour Online Focus
January 21, 2002
Dr. David Satcher
RAY SUAREZ: Well, you grew up in the deep South during the years that Dr. King was trying to change the country's view of race relations. You were still a student when he was killed. How far are we from reaching some of the goals he articulated 40 years ago?
DR. DAVID SATCHER: Well, we've made a lot of progress since I was a child. I was 12 years old when the Montgomery bus boycott started, and I remember going into town and not being able to buy ice cream. You may say, "Well, that's no big deal," but what it did to you as a person to feel that you were shut out was very significant. But I think because of the work of Dr. King and many others, many of those barriers have been broken. But in medicine and in public health, we also have dreams. And those dreams relate to eliminating disparities in health and health care, making sure that everybody in this country has access to quality health care. That's an extension of Dr. King's dream, but it's really critical for the future of this country.
RAY SUAREZ: Is it all about money at this point or is it something a little bit more challenging than simply being able to write a check?
DR. DAVID SATCHER: I think first and foremost, it's about commitment. I really believe that as a nation, we need to make a commitment to universal access. The fact that one out of three Latinos in this country is uninsured, one in four African Americans are uninsured and the fact that so many people live in communities where they don't have access to care, as a nation we ought to make a decision that we're going to work to eliminate those barriers to care. And I'm convinced that we can do it if we make that commitment.
<http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/health/jan-june02/satcher_1-21.html>http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/health/jan-june02/satcher_1-21.html
Uwe Reinhardt responds to the David Satcher interview:
I found the following exchange from the same interview truly stunning:
RAY SUAREZ: So as you sift through your time as surgeon general, what would you identify as some of the high points of your term?
DR. DAVID SATCHER Well, clearly, you know, we did a major report on mental health, and I believe the response of the American people to that report and to the report on suicide prevention has really been amazing. It's led to several follow-up reports and activities and, of course, we contributed to the world health report on mental health that came out recently.
Comment: Here the Surgeon General of the United States tells us that the high point of his career in that portfolio was a report on mental health that, basically, led to the issuance of yet other reports (aside from some unidentified "activities" probably too trivial to warrant explicit naming.)
Finally I understand what we mean by the dictum: "It's the thought that counts." If only low-income, uninsured people could grasp it. (But, then, perhaps they do grasp it, which may be why they don't bother to scream en masse and in fury at the ballot box).
Best,
Uwe