Sick in a Hospital Town, Part 1

Why does the United States, with the most expensive and sophisticated health care system in the world, have a population that’s so sick? Writer Ginger Thompson looks for the answer in Albany, Georgia, a small, predominantly African American city that was one of the world’s first COVID-19 hot spots. What made its residents so vulnerable? Albany’s dominant political and economic institution is Phoebe Putney Memorial Hospital, a nonprofit founded in 1911 with a mission to treat all people, no matter their race or ability to pay. However, as Phoebe has grown from a community hospital to the anchor of the largest health care provider in its region, the health of Albany has declined.  Written by Ginger Thompson. Read by Eric Berryman, Myra Lucretia Taylor, Dael Orlandersmith, Amy Ryan, David Strathairn and Frankie Faison. A production of ProPublica and Theater of War Productions. Support our journalism by donating at propublica.org/donate.