Power to Heal: Medicare and the Civil Rights Movement

The award-winning documentary, Power to Heal, tells how civil rights activists, the federal government, and medical professionals leveraged Medicare funding to bring down segregation, opening the door to hospitals, doctors and medical schools for Black Americans and other minorities in both the North and South. The film begins by revealing the culture of segregated health care and the real perils it unleashed in black communities. It follows a chronological arc, beginning with federal legislation (the Hill–Burton Act of 1946) that facilitated the spread of segregated hospitals following World War II just as black doctors intensified their efforts to end racial discrimination.

Limited free access to AAFP members only.
View full 60-minute documentary now thru March 17

Watch Trailer
This film is sponsored by the Center for History of Family Medicine.

Note: CME credit is not available.

Mark Your Calendar!
Power to Heal: Medicare and the Civil Rights Movement
AAFP Virtual Town Hall
Wednesday, March 10 | 7 – 8 p.m. CT

A panel discussion featuring the film’s producer and moderated by Ada D. Stewart, MD, FAAFP, AAFP President.
Learn more about this event.