In September, Michigan Healthcare Freedom (MHF) welcomed our first Hillsdale College intern, Colin Joyce. I’m delighted to introduce him to you here.
We launched the MHF Internship Program this fall with several ideas in mind. First, the expanded MHF Report Card, forum, and other programs offered increased opportunities for learning.
Importantly, knowledge of health policy is essential for the rising generation of healthcare professionals. Call it self-defense, if you will, or self-care; we will all reap the benefits when clinicians are educated to see through health policy myths.
About the intern
Colin met core requirements for MHF Internship Program with his work as an EMT, his stated interest in health policy, and his completion of U.S. Constitution 101 with a passing grade.
However, he is a Hillsdale College senior, and the rest of his transcript and resume take him well beyond the basics.
Overachievers of the world, take note:
- Major: Applied Mathematics and Biochemistry
- Member of many college societies, with honoraria in Math, German, Music, Biology, and Theater
- Teacher’s Assistant, Chemistry Lab
- Pre-med
- Member of LAUREATES honors research lab, studying protein folding with applications to dementia and Alzheimer’s Disease
Into the remaining gaps, he has managed to fit study in Germany, a Tanzania medical mission, and classes on the Chemistry of Cooking and Introduction to Shooting Sports.
Of particular interest for healthcare freedom historians, Colin’s college transcript reveals a start date of Fall, 2019.
According to the calendar, this talented young man is part of the troubled generation of COVID-19 students. It doesn’t appear to have slowed him down much.
We’ll try to keep up.
Intern at work
Colin began his MHF Internship learning healthcare freedom, bill reading, and state health policy basics.
He read and discussed Frederic Bastiat’s classic, The Law. Those who have read Bastiat will probably agree: if “Broken Windows” doesn’t instill the proper critical eye toward special interest laws, probably nothing will.
Next, we set him loose in the MHF Community Forum. He shows a natural aptitude for posting and bringing relevant comments.
From industry posts, he transitioned to researching issues in current bill agenda posts.
“I like researching bill agendas,” Colin says. “The immediacy of current bill issues is very satisfying.”
We invite you to join the forum to view Colin’s posts and profile.
Not surprisingly, he was shocked by the hidden hand of the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC). Few understand how far public and private institutions are merging, or how important it is to our freedoms for them to remain distinct.
In this case, state subsidies and bank loans have at least three essential differences.
- Bankers ask tough questions about product value and corporate solvency, and they expect timely repayment.
- In contrast, the MEDC doles out taxpayer dollars with zero accountability. it remains in the background while mainstream media pump out positive stories promoting its projects.
I look forward to Colin’s help with the monumental task of analyzing Michigan bills impacting health in the coming months. We’ll begin the 2024 Michigan Budget, hundreds of pages long.
To prepare for that challenge, we continue to offer him opportunities to develop new skills, knowledge, and perspective.
Right now, he’s in journalist mode. Expect an MHF guest article about his visit to Michigan’s newest hospital and medical school soon!
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Interested in supporting the MHF Internship Program?
Supported entirely by private donations. MHF is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, and your donation or sponsorship is tax-deductible to the full extent of the law.