In my opinion, our healthcare system is inherently flawed. Unfair and non-inclusive at its core, it thrives by denying services to the disadvantaged in order to give the advantage to large pharmaceutical companies. For example, because of the high prices charged for insulin in the United States, diabetics who cannot afford to fill their prescriptions often die as a result of rationing the little insulin they do manage to purchase. Likewise, just this year, the world’s most expensive drug – a new gene therapy called Zolgensma – was released. Priced at $2.1 million, it cures spinal muscular atrophy, a rare disease that affects children – at least, for those who can pay the absurdly high price tag. Hitting very close to home this last summer, my friend’s mother dedicated herself to caring for her bedridden husband as he deteriorated physically due to a fatal lung disorder. Thanks to our corrupt healthcare system, she was further drained mentally, emotionally, and financially by the need to procure thousands of dollars every month to pay for the specialized medicine his dire condition required. As if this poor woman did not have enough to worry about as a primary caretaker, she became the victim of an outrageously priced product required to prolong the life of her loved one. The companies responsible for such atrocities are flat-out inhumane in their business philosophy, employing a purposeful approach to money-making which wrongly emphasizes profit and deemphasizes people.

So, when does human health start to outweigh monetary profit and pharmaceutical greed? The answer is that our healthcare system will only change when we stand up and fight for it to change, when we push for fairer and more inclusive policies, when we speak up bravely in the face of large drug companies to support those individuals and their families struggling to receive medical care and pharmaceutical benefits – whether it be our neighbors, our friends, our family, or a complete stranger.

I want to attend physical therapy school in the future, and as a physical therapist, I intend to do my part by offering my services at an adjusted price or even at no cost to anybody who needs them, but cannot pay. I want to use my knowledge and expertise to help patients avoid expensive procedures, invasive or unnecessary surgeries, and astronomical hospital bills. In the future, I envision myself establishing a nonprofit treatment center by teaming up with other healthcare professionals who are on a mission just like me, to provide top-notch care to disadvantaged people.

While I acknowledge that it’s not easy to change laws in our government, if enough people demand change, the impossible suddenly becomes possible. We need only to look at other countries, such as Canada, to see a successful healthcare system, one based on inclusiveness and benefits for all. If they can do it, why can’t we? Here’s the bottom line: We each have a responsibility to care for each other, and to not prioritize wealth over health. Access to healthcare is a fundamental human right, and as a physical therapist I will commit myself to carrying this cause and righting the injustice.

So what can you do? As high school seniors, there is a pretty obvious answer: get out and vote, especially in the upcoming presidential election. Some presidential candidates make inclusive healthcare a priority, and others don’t, even looking to cut funding for some healthcare programs. Read about the policies each candidate supports before making a decision. Political parties often blur judgement when it comes to healthcare- for example, associating the Affordable Care Act with the name Obamacare led to an overwhelmingly negative view of the plan, despite people not even knowing what it was all about. Stay informed, stay educated, and make healthcare measures a priority instead of an afterthought.