Search

The alternative ways of thinking about health care delivery and medical training developed by health care activists of the 1960s and 1970s profoundly shaped American health policy. I explore three episodes that took place in this time period: a moment when medical student activists in Philadelphia demanded that the city's medical schools admit African Americans as one-third of every 1969 first-year class; tensions between feminists and gynecologists over who should have authority in women's health and whether the idea of a feminist physician was an oxymoron; and the extraordinary enthusiasm American physicians and other practitioners expressed about China's Maoist health system. These three intersectional examples highlight the words and deeds of activist insiders and underscore their reliance on activist outsiders for validation and empowerment of their demands. Finally, I argue that the history of health activism offers a powerful vehicle for examining health politics in ways that can illuminate not only the intricate bureaucratic maneuverings of politicians and administrators but also the passion, struggles, and dreams of providers and consumers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]