Oral history interview with Carolyn B. Britton, 2022
Abstract
Carolyn Britton reflects on her career in medicine, her involvement with African American medical societies, and her experience of the Obama presidency, during which she served as president of the National Medical Association (NMA)- an organization representing African American physicians and health professionals- from 2008 to 2009. Britton speaks broadly about the history of NMA, the HIV/AIDS epid emic in Black communities, structural issues and inequalities in the American healthcare system, and the development of the application of human rights language to healthcare access. Britton also provides details about the involvement of NMA in the development of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), including the society's engagement with Obama administration officials and participation in policy development meetings. Also discussed are the balance between focus on coverage and cost in healthcare reform debates, the politics of healthcare reform and the ACA, the history of NMA's support for Medicare and Medicaid, relations between NMA and the American Medical Association during the period of Britton's presidency, and the significance of Obama's presidency to national conversations about race and racial inequality
Presidents--United States; African Americans--Diseases--United States; HIV infections--United States; AIDS (Disease)--United States; Health care reform--United States; Discrimination in medical care--United States; Britton, Carolyn; Obama, Barack; National Medical Association (U.S.); United States; Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act
Format
oral histories
Genre
Interviews
Date
2022
Physical Description
38 pages
Note (Biographical)
Carolyn Britton is an American neurologist and professor. At the time of the interview, Britton was a professor of neurology at the Columbia University Medical Center, and a clinician at New York-Presbyterian/Columbia University Irving Medical Center. From 2008 to 2009, Britton served as president of the National Medical Association, an organization representing more than thirty thousand African American physicians and health professionals in the United States. Britton received an M.D. from New York University, where she also received an M.S. in microbiology. She is a recognized expert in neurovirology and infectious inflammatory diseases of the nervous system. For more than three decades, Britton has worked to support funding for AIDS clinical trials, the training of minority and women clinical researchers, and the inclusion of minority populations and women in clinical trials
Note
Interviewed by Terrell D. Frazier on April 12, 2022. This interview is part of the Columbia University: Obama Presidency Oral History
Note (Provenance)
Carolyn B. Britton, Gift, transferred from Columbia Center for Oral History Research 2023