Hospitals Want to Register Patients to Vote. Republicans Say It’s Wrong.

Lankenau Medical Center’s patient services manager stops a nurse in scrubs as she quickly walks past a voter information table decorated with red, white and blue in the crowded Wynnewood Hospital cafeteria.

Lars Peterson explains how he can add voter registration to his patient screening checklist:

“Do you drink? Do you smoke? Do you feel safe at home?” she says, ticking off questions she should routinely ask. “And are you registered to vote?”

Philadelphia hospitals are encouraging patients and staff to register to vote ahead of the crucial presidential election, in which Pennsylvania has emerged as a key battleground.

» READ MORE: How to vote in Pennsylvania in this election where the president, the Senate and more will be on the ballot

Hospitals say the initiative is not about partisan politics but aims to address social and economic issues such as violence, pollution and housing. have a profound impact on health.

Hospitals from University City to the Philadelphia suburbs have set up information tables at checkout counters in cafeterias, given staff badges with a QR code linked to a voter registration website, and changed their computer screensavers to a message reminding them to vote.

Such efforts are being organized nationally by groups like Vot-ER, which describes itself as a nonpartisan, nonprofit voter registration organization but has faced criticism from the Republican National Committee and other conservatives for its ties to Democrats.

“You go to a doctor’s office for medical care, not for a political lecture,” said Kush Desai, communications director for the Pennsylvania RNC for former President Donald Trump’s campaign. “It’s a blatant abuse of the doctor-patient relationship.”

Program leaders at Philadelphia hospitals said they didn’t care how people voted and taught staff never to talk about politics.

“The health care providers are not looking to gain anything for themselves from this initiative,” said Judd Flesch, an assistant professor of clinical medicine at Penn who is involved in the voter registration effort. “This is a health care provider talking about how your health and civic responsibilities align.”

A study of 44 countriesincluding the U.S., found that people who were registered to vote reported better health, according to results published in the Journal of Preventive Medicine & Public Health.

Nonpartisan or not?

Vot-ER has partnered with at least 50 organizations in Pennsylvania, including leading Philadelphia health systems: Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Jefferson Health, Penn Medicine, Main Line Health (owner of Lankaneau) and St. Christopher’s Hospital for Children.

Some conservatives question the politics behind its creation.

Vot-ER’s partnership with the Pennsylvania Psychiatric Institute in Harrisburg was the subject article published in August by Free Beaconconservative media outlet that called it a leading player in a Democratic-backed directive that “is turning health care facilities into political battlegrounds.”

The site drew attention to the nonprofit’s alleged support for the Democratic Party. The same complaint appeared in several other conservative media outlets and blogs this summer.

Vot-ER was founded by Alister Martin, a practicing physician and former White House staffer under Vice President Kamala Harris. And the Biden administration in 2021 directed federal agencies like the Department of Health and Human Services to work with health care providers to expand voter registration through similar initiatives.

» READ MORE: Doctors, hospitals in Pennsylvania and other states launch voter registration drive

Earlier this month, the Republican National Convention sent letters to state election secretaries in six key battleground states — including Pennsylvania — urging election officials to monitor the Vot-ER system ahead of the general election.

Vot-ER does not endorse political parties or politicians, complies with all election laws and its board includes representatives from both political parties, executive director Aliya Bhatia said in a statement.

She added that the American Medical Association is among the leading professional organizations for health care workers that share the view that voting is a social factor that influences health.

“We want to make sure that all eligible voters have a voice in the federal, state and local elections that impact the health situation in America,” Bhatia said in a statement.

What are Philadelphia hospitals doing to register voters?

Philadelphia hospitals that partner with Vot-ER emphasize that participation in the program is voluntary for both staff and patients.

CHOP uses voter registration materials from Vot-ER because they are “family-friendly and easily accessible,” said Ashlee Murray, an emergency medicine physician at CHOP.

The nonprofit is making lanyards with plastic ID cards that say, “Ready to Vote?” on them. They have a QR code that, when scanned, takes people to TurboVote, an independent voter registration site.

» READ MORE: Philadelphia Hospital Patients Were Unable to Vote, So Students Help Them Vote Absenteely

Temple Health is not partnering with Vot-ER, but encourages physicians to talk to patients about why voting is crucial, whether they are registered, and whether they plan to vote in person or by absentee ballot.

“It’s important for people to take responsibility for their health and the health of their communities,” said Nicolle Strand, director of the Center for Urban Bioethics at Temple Medical School.

Overcoming the Challenges of Patient and Provider Voting

Volunteers at St. Christopher’s Hospital for Children have found that patients’ families often aren’t registered to vote for logistical reasons: They don’t know how to do it, they think they have to go to an election office or they worry it will take too long. Others are registered but didn’t plan to vote because getting to the polls is inconvenient, said Angela Kim, a pediatric emergency medicine physician at North Philadelphia Children’s Hospital.

“Many of our patients’ families have multiple jobs and social needs that prevent them from taking a day off to go to the polls,” she said.

Volunteers can facilitate families register on-site or show them how to apply for an absentee ballot.

During previous election cycles, Penn Medicine set up kiosks in the emergency department, offering patients information about voting and assistance with registration. But they were often disconnected and not used much by patients with more urgent medical problems.

Aliza Narva, director of ethics at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, who is helping organize the hospital’s voter registration drive, said encouraging providers to wear a QR code lanyard makes the interaction more personal and helps doctors build relationships with patients.

One Tuesday in the Lankenau Medical Center cafeteria, nurse Daria Salvitti stopped to grab a lanyard from the information table.

She believes patients will welcome the conversation and appreciate the nurses and doctors’ interest in aspects of their lives beyond the diagnosis.

“I think everyone’s voice should be heard,” she said.