Put People First PA Southeast Healthcare Rights Committee

06/01/2026

“Things really need to change for us”

Mary shared her experience with dental care as Rebecca stood in line with her for two hours waiting for treatment.

She used to be a home healthcare worker but became disabled after using her body to prevent one of her clients from a potentially devastating fall.

Then she lost her job and her healthcare, and hasn’t had dental work since.

The working class is full of heroes like Mary who put their bodies on the line to help others and got left out in the cold by the system.

We must join together. Power comes from organization. Unity is strength.

Things really need to change for us. And we believe that we will be the ones to make that change.

06/01/2026

Dawn is one of the dozens of people we met at the Mission of Mercy free dental clinic in Allentown today.

We spread the word about the clinic to hundreds of people from the region and we helped transport folks from Northeast and Southeast PA.

Like millions of people in our state, Dawn is suffering because of the lack of a comprehensive adult dental benefit in Medicaid, after the cut in 2011.

As she describes, because now you can get only one set of dentures per lifetime, she is in real trouble since losing weight after surgery caused her existing dentures to lose their fit.

It makes no sense when one part of the healthcare system is working at cross purposes with another. In order to maintain a healthy weight for her and avoid chronic disease, Dawn needs the teeth to be able to eat more than soft and/or processed foods.

But that’s exactly what the healthcare system denies her.

This is why we’re fighting to restore the Adult Dental Benefit in Medicaid. Dawn signed up to come to on Monday June 8th to demand that the Senate pass SB 860 to do just that. See the link to register in our bio.

Join us!

05/30/2026

05/28/2026

Ron from the Put People First! PA Central Appalachia Healthcare Rights Committee shares what he did when he got a terrible dog bite and didn’t have insurance. We believe EVERYONE deserves dignified care regardless of insurance or ability to pay.

05/25/2026

On May 2nd, the one year anniversary of the closing of the Crozer health system, several dozen community members gathered at Chester Friends Meeting to share a cookout and potluck meal together, hosted by members of the Put People First! PA (PPF-PA) Southeast PA Healthcare Rights Committee. We came together to eat, sing, to share stories about the impact of the closure of the Crozer system, to study the healthcare crisis in our communities and to talk about how we can come together to fight the closing of hospitals and for our human right to healthcare in Delaware country, in Southeast PA and across our state and country.

We opened the evening by sharing our stories. The stories shared were devastating and powerful and a reminder that across all of our differences, our needs and our stories of struggling to survive in this profit and greed based healthcare system unite us, as does our commitment to fight for our families, our communities and our human right to healthcare.

Click here to read the full report back: https://putpeoplefirstpa.org/crozer-anniversary-community-meal-teach-in-speak-out/

05/20/2026

May Statewide Call: Understanding the PA Legislature Join us TONIGHT, Wednesday, May 20th from 7 – 8 pm. Zoom info below. Every third Wednesday of the month from 7-8 pm ET, Put People First! PA holds our Statewide Membership Call. This call is for active members, mobilizers, and anyone who is int...

05/16/2026

On May 2nd, Put People First! PA members from Southeast PA joined Chester Residents Concerned for Quality Living (CRCQL) and other local groups for a powerful action in Chester, Delaware County. The day began with a rally in front of Chester City Hall and continued with a 90 minute walk to the Reworld incinerator, formerly Covanta, which operates the largest trash incinerator in the country. The facility burns up to 3,500 tons of trash each day, releasing toxic air pollution linked to asthma, cancer, heart disease, and other serious illnesses.

Environmental justice is a healthcare issue. On the one‑year anniversary of the Crozer Chester Hospital closure, the action highlighted how one of the state’s poorest communities has been denied emergency care even as ruling‑class industrial pollution continues to endanger residents’ health.

Read full member reportback here:

On May 2nd, Put People First! PA members from Southeast PA joined Chester Residents Concerned for Quality Living (CRCQL) and other local groups for a powerful action in Chester, Delaware County. The day began with a rally in front of Chester City Hall and continued with a 90 minute walk to the Rewor...

05/15/2026

Read the full report back from Workers Over Billionaires here! https://putpeoplefirstpa.org/put-people-first-pa-joins-thousands-demands-workers-over-billionaires/