Happy Hump Day, Shit Givers.
The US spends more on healthcare than any other country, and yet has worse outcomes than almost every peer nation. That’s the result of a system built on treating illness rather than preventing it.
What prevention isn’t: a wellness trend or lecture on personal responsibility (cue my head exploding).
What prevention is: Better policy on who gets to stay healthy, and who profits when they don’t.
This week we’re looking at places where the evidence is clear, the interventions are known, and the only thing standing in the way is political will.
Let’s go.
— Willow
Tobacco: still killing people, still fixable
Tobacco is still the leading cause of preventable death in the US, but we know how to fix it. The federal tobacco tax (one of the cheapest, most evidence-based interventions available!) hasn’t been raised since 2009, and we know smoke-free laws work, but 22 states still don’t have comprehensive coverage, and most Medicaid programs still don’t cover all cessation treatment options.
Here’s what you can do:
Tell your representatives to pass the End Tobacco Loopholes Act, which aims to discourage people from smoking and vaping by updating the tax on cigarettes and setting the first federal e-cigarette tax. (go)
Sometimes, quitters ARE winners. Particularly when it comes to smoking. The Helping Tobacco Users Quit Act makes it easier to quit by requiring Medicaid and CHIP to cover cessation treatments. (go)
Donate to Tobacco Free Kids to spare the next generation from nicotine addiction. (go)
The silent killer
Hypertension — the driver of heart attacks, strokes, and kidney disease — affects 1 in 3 Americans, and only 1 in 4 have it under control. One of the most cost-effective interventions we have is community health workers, but they’re chronically underfunded. And you can’t manage a chronic condition you can’t afford to treat.
Here’s what you can do:
Urge your representative to make premium tax credits permanent so families can afford healthcare with the Health Care Affordability Act. (go)
If we can’t get it done at the federal level, we can fight for universal healthcare coverage at the state level by passing the State-Based Universal Health Care Act. (go)
If you’re uninsured or don’t qualify for Medicaid or CHIP, find affordable health care at a community health center near you (go)
Streets that don’t kill you
Traffic deaths are a public health crisis, with 40,000+ Americans dying on roads every year. They’re also almost entirely preventable (are you sensing a throughline yet?). We can fix that by reframing road design as a health issue, not just a transportation issue.
Here’s what you can do:
Contact your representatives about the Complete Streets Act. It would require states to establish complete street programs, which work towards public roads suitable for multiple accessible forms of transportation. (go)
Support bike-friendly policies and projects near you with People For Bikes. (go)
Join one of Open Plan’s campaigns to reorient New York City neighborhoods around humans, not cars. (go)
And another thing!
Community health workers — trained community members who bridge the gap between clinics and the people who can’t reach them — are the backbone of health systems in the Global South. Global health funding cuts are gutting these programs right now, even though it just makes sense that building infrastructure is better than treating one disease at a time.
Here’s what you can do:
Support the work of Partners in Health. They are ensuring everyone, everywhere gets access to the quality health care they deserve. (go)
Urge your representatives to reverse the foreign aid freeze and restore life-saving global health programs. (go)
Learn how to improve the health care system and save more lives by taking the Community Health Worker Program from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. (go)
None of this is complicated. We know what works. Let’s get it done!
Thank you — as always — for giving a shit.
— Willow
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