Health Care Access

Incarceration during the COVID-19 pandemic, a potential mental health crisis

Author: Conor Burke-Smith, second-year medical student, Iowa This post is a series of mental health pieces from the AMSA WSL Committee Much has been written about the potential negative effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and mental health. Many have felt isolation to a greater extent than ever before in their lives. Anxiety exists about various...

AMSA Opposes Latest Assault on Public Insurance Programs

Last week the Trump administration released new guidance for states to change the way they structure their Medicaid program. Despite irrefutable evidence that Medicaid expands access, improves health, and saves lives, the Trump administration is attempting to undermine the program at every turn. “Block granting” Medicaid would restrict the services states are able to provide...

Time to Abolish the Surprise Medical Bill Loophole

Op-ed written by AMSA President, Dr. Isaiah Cochran, and published in the Morning Consult, January 24, 2020. After years of trying to rein in excess profits in health care, the United States is finally on the cusp of providing nationwide relief to people struggling with high-cost surprise medical bills. Patients can get stuck with outrageous...

Arizona needs bold action, not just promises to make medicines affordable

Op-ed by Jon D. Sussman is a Scottsdale resident, a second year medical student, and a chapter president of the American Medical Student Association, published in the Scottsdale Independent (12/5/2019) Prescription drug costs are unbelievably unaffordable for millions of Americans, including me, a medical student with a long term history of asthma and food allergies...