Quentin Young
Encyclopedia
Quentin Young is Chicago
-based physician who is recognized for his efforts in advocating for single-payer health care
in the United States
. An activist who opposed the Vietnam War
and worked on the Civil Rights
movement, Young is best known for speaking out about social justice in the realm of health policy.
Medical School
from 1944 to 1947. He interned at Cook County Hospital in 1947 and did his residency there.
He was a founder and served as National Chairman of the Medical Committee for Human Rights, which was formed in June of 1964 to provide medical care for civil rights workers, community activists, and summer volunteers working in Mississippi during Freedom Summer
. Quentin Young and MCHR also volunteered and helped set up Black Panthers and Young Lords
health clinics and provided emergency medical care to protesters at the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago. In October of 1968 he was called to testify before the House Un-American Activities Committee
about his knowledge of the DNC protests.
Young was Chairman of Medicine at Cook County Hospital in Chicago from 1972 to 1981.
Young founded Health and Medicine Policy Research Group in 1980, and is currently Chairman of the Board of that organization.
Young was President of American Public Health Association
in 1988.
In April 2008, Young retired from his private practice in Hyde Park, Chicago
, which he co-ran with fellow activist David Scheiner
. He is currently the national coordinator for Physicians for a National Health Program (PNHP).
April 17. 2009, Appointed by Illinois Governor Pat Quinn to Chair the Illinois Health Facilities Planning Board.
From 1967-2008 he was senior physician of Michael Reese Hospital and Medical Center.
, especially the weekday news magazine program Eight Forty-Eight.
Young has worked with Physicians for a National Health Program
(PNHP) since 1987, a Chicago-based not-for-profit organization. He is the current National Coordinator for PNHP.
(ACLU) against AT&T
, alleging that the telecommunications company provided its customers' phone records to the United States government
without a court-issued warrant. Young joined historian and author Studs Terkel
who was also a plaintiff
in the case. This suit was part of the NSA warrantless surveillance controversy
, during which it was reported that the National Security Agency
was maintaining a database of phone calls
placed domestically in the United States.
(MSAs), a public health policy promoted by President George W. Bush
. Young calls them a "scam on American patients and taxpayers," and "based on the incorrect assumption that Americans are addicts for health care and that if there isn’t a dollar barrier, they’ll overconsume. In fact, Americans get fewer doctors’ visits than people in countries with universal health care
."
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
-based physician who is recognized for his efforts in advocating for single-payer health care
Single-payer health care
Single-payer health care is medical care funded from a single insurance pool, run by the state. Under a single-payer system, universal health care for an entire population can be financed from a pool to which many parties employees, employers, and the state have contributed...
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. An activist who opposed the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
and worked on the Civil Rights
Civil rights
Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from unwarranted infringement by governments and private organizations, and ensure one's ability to participate in the civil and political life of the state without discrimination or repression.Civil rights include...
movement, Young is best known for speaking out about social justice in the realm of health policy.
Education and career
Young attended Northwestern UniversityNorthwestern University
Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston and Chicago, Illinois, USA. Northwestern has eleven undergraduate, graduate, and professional schools offering 124 undergraduate degrees and 145 graduate and professional degrees....
Medical School
Feinberg School of Medicine
Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, located in the Streeterville neighborhood of Chicago, Illinois and situated near Lake Michigan and the Magnificent Mile, is one of Northwestern University's 11 schools and colleges...
from 1944 to 1947. He interned at Cook County Hospital in 1947 and did his residency there.
He was a founder and served as National Chairman of the Medical Committee for Human Rights, which was formed in June of 1964 to provide medical care for civil rights workers, community activists, and summer volunteers working in Mississippi during Freedom Summer
Freedom Summer
Freedom Summer was a campaign in the United States launched in June 1964 to attempt to register as many African American voters as possible in Mississippi which had historically excluded most blacks from voting...
. Quentin Young and MCHR also volunteered and helped set up Black Panthers and Young Lords
Young Lords
The Young Lords, later Young Lords Organization and in New York , Young Lords Party, was a Puerto Rican nationalist group in several United States cities, notably New York City and Chicago.-Founding:...
health clinics and provided emergency medical care to protesters at the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago. In October of 1968 he was called to testify before the House Un-American Activities Committee
House Un-American Activities Committee
The House Committee on Un-American Activities or House Un-American Activities Committee was an investigative committee of the United States House of Representatives. In 1969, the House changed the committee's name to "House Committee on Internal Security"...
about his knowledge of the DNC protests.
Young was Chairman of Medicine at Cook County Hospital in Chicago from 1972 to 1981.
Young founded Health and Medicine Policy Research Group in 1980, and is currently Chairman of the Board of that organization.
Young was President of American Public Health Association
American Public Health Association
The American Public Health Association is Washington, D.C.-based professional organization for public health professionals in the United States. Founded in 1872 by Dr. Stephen Smith, APHA has more than 30,000 members worldwide...
in 1988.
In April 2008, Young retired from his private practice in Hyde Park, Chicago
Hyde Park, Chicago
Hyde Park, located on the South Side of the City of Chicago, in Cook County, Illinois, United States and seven miles south of the Chicago Loop, is a Chicago neighborhood and one of 77 Chicago community areas. It is home to the University of Chicago, the Hyde Park Art Center, the Museum of Science...
, which he co-ran with fellow activist David Scheiner
David Scheiner
Dr. David Scheiner is an American physician and activist, noted for his efforts in advocating for single-payer health care in the United States. He was United States President Barack Obama's personal physician from 1987 till 2008 while he was based in Chicago, and is a leading member of Physicians...
. He is currently the national coordinator for Physicians for a National Health Program (PNHP).
April 17. 2009, Appointed by Illinois Governor Pat Quinn to Chair the Illinois Health Facilities Planning Board.
From 1967-2008 he was senior physician of Michael Reese Hospital and Medical Center.
Positions of note
- Clinical Professor of Preventive Medicine and Community Health, University of Illinois Medical CenterUniversity of Illinois Medical CenterThe University of Illinois Medical Center is a member of the Illinois Medical District, one of the largest urban healthcare, educational, research, and technology districts in the USA...
- Senior Attending Physician, Michael Reese HospitalMichael Reese HospitalMichael Reese Hospital and Medical Center was an American hospital founded in 1881. In its heyday, it was a major research and teaching hospital and one of the oldest and largest hospitals in Chicago, Illinois. It was located on the near south side of Chicago, next to Lake Shore Drive Michael...
- Member, American Medical AssociationAmerican Medical AssociationThe American Medical Association , founded in 1847 and incorporated in 1897, is the largest association of medical doctors and medical students in the United States.-Scope and operations:...
(since 1952)) - National Coordinator, Physicians for a National Health ProgramPhysicians for a National Health ProgramPhysicians for a National Health Program , is an advocacy organization of some 17,000 American physicians, medical students, and health professionals founded by Quentin Young who support a single-payer system of national health insurance....
- Chairman, American College of PhysiciansAmerican College of PhysiciansThe American College of Physicians is a national organization of doctors of internal medicine —physicians who specialize in the prevention, detection, and treatment of illnesses in adults. With 130,000 members, ACP is the largest medical-specialty organization and second-largest physician group in...
' Subcommittee on Human Rights and Medical Practice - Member, Humana-Michael Reese Medical Board
- Member, American College of PhysiciansAmerican College of PhysiciansThe American College of Physicians is a national organization of doctors of internal medicine —physicians who specialize in the prevention, detection, and treatment of illnesses in adults. With 130,000 members, ACP is the largest medical-specialty organization and second-largest physician group in...
Health and Public Policy Committee - Personal physician to Martin Luther King Jr. during his stay in Chicago, and also to Chicago Mayor Harold WashingtonHarold WashingtonHarold Lee Washington was an American lawyer and politician who became the first African-American Mayor of Chicago, serving from 1983 until his death in 1987.- Early years and military service :...
, author Studs TerkelStuds TerkelLouis "Studs" Terkel was an American author, historian, actor, and broadcaster. He received the Pulitzer Prize for General Non-Fiction in 1985 for The Good War, and is best remembered for his oral histories of common Americans, and for hosting a long-running radio show in Chicago.-Early...
, Illinois Governor Pat QuinnPat Quinn (politician)Patrick Joseph "Pat" Quinn III is the 41st and current Governor of Illinois. He is a member of the Democratic Party. Previously elected three times to statewide office, Quinn was the sitting lieutenant governor and became governor on January 29, 2009, when the previous governor, Rod Blagojevich,...
, and chemist Samuel Shore. President Barack ObamaBarack ObamaBarack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
was the patient of Dr. Young's practice partner, Dr. David Scheiner, for twenty years before becoming president.
The public's physician
Young appears regularly at public health events and is considered the de facto authority on public health in Chicago. He is a frequent guest on Chicago Public RadioChicago Public Radio
WBEZ is a noncommercial, public radio station broadcasting from Chicago, Illinois. Financed primarily by listener contributions, the station is affiliated with both National Public Radio and Public Radio International; they also broadcast content from American Public Media...
, especially the weekday news magazine program Eight Forty-Eight.
Efforts for single-payer healthcare
According to Young, "national health insurance is no longer the best solution, it's the only solution: All other alternatives have been proven disastrous failures."Young has worked with Physicians for a National Health Program
Physicians for a National Health Program
Physicians for a National Health Program , is an advocacy organization of some 17,000 American physicians, medical students, and health professionals founded by Quentin Young who support a single-payer system of national health insurance....
(PNHP) since 1987, a Chicago-based not-for-profit organization. He is the current National Coordinator for PNHP.
NSA domestic surveillance
In May 2006, Young signed on as a plaintiff in a suit filed by the American Civil Liberties UnionAmerican Civil Liberties Union
The American Civil Liberties Union is a U.S. non-profit organization whose stated mission is "to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties guaranteed to every person in this country by the Constitution and laws of the United States." It works through litigation, legislation, and...
(ACLU) against AT&T
AT&T
AT&T Inc. is an American multinational telecommunications corporation headquartered in Whitacre Tower, Dallas, Texas, United States. It is the largest provider of mobile telephony and fixed telephony in the United States, and is also a provider of broadband and subscription television services...
, alleging that the telecommunications company provided its customers' phone records to the United States government
Federal government of the United States
The federal government of the United States is the national government of the constitutional republic of fifty states that is the United States of America. The federal government comprises three distinct branches of government: a legislative, an executive and a judiciary. These branches and...
without a court-issued warrant. Young joined historian and author Studs Terkel
Studs Terkel
Louis "Studs" Terkel was an American author, historian, actor, and broadcaster. He received the Pulitzer Prize for General Non-Fiction in 1985 for The Good War, and is best remembered for his oral histories of common Americans, and for hosting a long-running radio show in Chicago.-Early...
who was also a plaintiff
Plaintiff
A plaintiff , also known as a claimant or complainant, is the term used in some jurisdictions for the party who initiates a lawsuit before a court...
in the case. This suit was part of the NSA warrantless surveillance controversy
NSA warrantless surveillance controversy
The NSA warrantless surveillance controversy concerns surveillance of persons within the United States during the collection of foreign intelligence by the U.S. National Security Agency as part of the war on terror...
, during which it was reported that the National Security Agency
National Security Agency
The National Security Agency/Central Security Service is a cryptologic intelligence agency of the United States Department of Defense responsible for the collection and analysis of foreign communications and foreign signals intelligence, as well as protecting U.S...
was maintaining a database of phone calls
NSA call database
The United States' National Security Agency maintains a database containing hundreds of billions of records of telephone calls made by U.S...
placed domestically in the United States.
Medical savings accounts
Young is an outspoken opponent of medical savings accountMedical savings account
Medical savings account refers to an account in which tax-deferred deposits can be made for medical expenses.-In Singapore:Medisave was introduced in April 1984 as a national medical savings system for Singaporeans...
(MSAs), a public health policy promoted by President George W. Bush
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
. Young calls them a "scam on American patients and taxpayers," and "based on the incorrect assumption that Americans are addicts for health care and that if there isn’t a dollar barrier, they’ll overconsume. In fact, Americans get fewer doctors’ visits than people in countries with universal health care
Universal health care
Universal health care is a term referring to organized health care systems built around the principle of universal coverage for all members of society, combining mechanisms for health financing and service provision.-History:...
."