The "SOME PEOPLE" Essays
The Commercial Health Insurance Industry Hustle by Antonio Davis | Edited by Kimberly J. Soenen April 16, 2025
(“Courage,” by Antonio Davis. Painting of Muhammad Ali. 24" x 18" oil on canvas.)
I was paralyzed by a gunshot wound that resulted in a Spinal Cord Injury (SCI).
I’ve done battle with Commercial Health Insurance industry companies my entire adult life. It’s my experience that the pharmaceutical industry and these big private companies are profiting off our sickness – my injury, my disability.
I know, from years of Denial of Care, and countless visits to the Emergency Room, that they aren’t invested in getting, or keeping, the common people well. They are solely focused on their own economic gain. They delay my care, deny my care and have even dropped my plan entirely when I needed care.
Say what you want about street violence, but denial is their hustle, and it is just as violent and lethal as the aimless, lost, angry teenager in the hoodie who is carrying a Glock.
For the United States to be the wealthiest country in the free world, the number one “Superpower,” I think they say, we should definitely have Single Payer Universal Healthcare.
We, as tax-paying citizens, should prioritize health, not only for ourselves, but for one another. Public Health is the number one social value because it is also the number one source of economic power.
We have stood back long enough without putting ourselves, our health, and our healthcare first as a priority. Whenever we support a candidate for public office, Universal Healthcare should be our number one priority
ABOUT
The paintings by artist Antonio Davis require hundreds of hours of brush strokes onto a canvas using his mouth to control the brush. His paintings have received worldwide recognition from high profile art buyers, prominent collectors, corporations, foundations and advocacy organizations. They have also been licensed by print, digital and broadcast outlets and creative agencies globally.
Davis’ large scale paintings have been exhibited in galleries and shows internationally, including the Harlem Fine Art Show in Chicago and New York; The American Disability Association's 25th Anniversary; Richard J. Daley College; Brookfield Art Show; Highland Park Art Focus; BUILD Chicago, Blick Chicago, the Arts and Letters Committee of Chicago, and many others.