We celebrate the life of Dr. Ewell Scott, a founding member of the Kentucky Chapter of Physicians for a National Health Program (PNHP), whose soft Kentucky accent and deep empathy for humanity won hearts and minds to support single payer health care in hills and hollows, and towns and universities across the state.
Dr. Scott, born and raised in Frankfort, Kentucky, graduated Cum Laude from DePauw University and from Case Western Reserve University Medical School. He did his Internship in Med-Peds at the University of Virginia Hospital and his Internal Medicine Residency at the University of Virginia.
He is Past President of St. Claire Regional Medical Center Medical Staff. He served as President and Medical Director of Morehead Clinic, and he was Clinical Volunteer Faculty at both the UK and U of L Schools of Medicine. From 1972 until his retirement he practiced internal medicine in Morehead, Kentucky.
Dr. Scott was deeply involved in his community and played a leading role in bringing orchestral music to the hills with the founding of the Cave Run Symphony based in Morehead, the smallest city in Kentucky with a community-supported symphony orchestra.
He belonged to the Kentucky Medical Association, and, on Dr. Scott’s initiative, that organization hosted Dr. Steffie Woolhandler, a PNHP founder, for a program on single payer health care at their annual meeting.
Around 2005, Dr. Scott persuaded the city council of Morehead to pass this resolution:
City Council, Morehead, Kentucky
Resolution
Whereas the cost of Health Insurance is excessive and places a burden on the budget of City Government, and whereas other essential services and fair wages may be compromised, and whereas police and fire protection services are placed in jeopardy and whereas there is no National Policy or Strategy to reduce this burden, therefore the City does request responsible lawmakers to urgently address these issues
Furthermore, since Single Payer Plan with Progressive Public Financing is the most reasonable and economical solution, the City urgently urges our Federal Representatives to give consideration to such solution and to support THE NATIONAL HEALTH INSURANCE BILL, HR 676, sponsored by Rep. John Conyers, Jr.
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Similar resolutions were passed in Louisville, Vicco, and Boyle County.
In 2006 Kentuckians for Single Payer Health Care hosted a hearing at a downtown Church in Louisville. Many told their stories of suffering and tragedy caused by a broken health care system. Dr. Ewell Scott explained how to fix it. Thanks to Harriette Seiler for preserving and editing this 18 minute segment, part of a video made by Sonja De Vries. Thanks to Paul Hoppe for restoring the audio.
In 2019, Dr. Scott was a part of a panel presentation at the UK Medical School. All panel members agreed that a Single Payer system would effectively lower hospitals’ overhead costs without changing physician salaries very much, but had different ideas of how best to implement such a system. Dr. Scott was in favor of a fast implementation of a Single Payer System, pointing to Taiwan as an example, where a complete healthcare overhaul was achieved in 1995. He said, “our country needs to get over our fear of socialism,” in order to improve healthcare for citizens.
Dr. Scott is survived by his wife, Sandra Scott; his two sons, Andrew (wife Morgan) and Adam (wife Nicole); and his beloved grandchildren, Alexis, Mitchell, Andrew, and Nina Scott; his brother, Dr. Ed Scott (wife Ann); and his sister, Lucy Pryor (husband Bob). Obituary.