One year after passage of federal health law, health professional students will urge Vermont lawmakers to go further by swiftly creating a state single-payer system and blazing a trail for truly universal, cost-effective care
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 17, 2011
Media Advisory
Contact:
Danielle Alexander, Albany (N.Y.) Medical College
Ali Thebert, Physicians for a National Health Program, ali@pnhp.org
Connie Yip, Columbia University School of Nursing
Barbara Power, Vermont rally media liaison
What
Medical and health professional student rally in support of single-payer health reform in Vermont. Speakers include Sen. Bernie Sanders and Gov. Peter Shumlin; students from medical schools, nursing schools, universities and colleges; and physicians and single-payer advocates in Vermont. Many students will be available for interview during and after the rally. (See end of this release for names, contact information, and link to 12 student statements.)
Who
Students from Vermont, the Northeast and other parts of the U.S. — future physicians, physician assistants, nurses and other health care professionals. This event will be hosted by health professional students from across the Northeast with support from Physicians for a National Health Program (pnhp.org) and the American Medical Student Association (amsa.org).
Speakers at the rally include the following:
Sen. Bernie Sanders
Gov. Peter Shumlin
Student representing Physicians for a National Health Program (PNHP)
Student representing the American Medical Student Association (AMSA)
Student from the University of Vermont (UVM)
Other students from throughout the Northeast and the nation
When
1 p.m. – 4 p.m., Saturday, March 26
Program starts at 1:00 p.m.
PHOTO OP at 12:45 p.m. Sen. Sanders and Gov. Shumlin with students in lab coats and scrubs, plus many posters and banners all afternoon.
Where
Vermont Statehouse, Statehouse steps followed by rally in House Chamber, 115 State Street, Montpelier, Vt.
Why
Health professional students envision a future in which they can practice medicine in an environment that treats all patients equally, removes financial barriers to care, and eliminates private-insurance-company paperwork and meddling in medical decision making. They applaud Vermont for taking steps that could lead to a cost-effective single-payer system which, if implemented, would likely become a model for other states and the entire nation. Some out-of-state students say they would seriously consider moving to Vermont to practice medicine if it were to implement a single-payer system.
Link to statements of 12 medical and other health professional students: “Why the Vermont student rally is important to me.”