The career path of “struggling artist” doesn’t normally come with benefits, but a New York nonprofit is out to give performers a means to use their talents to barter for discounts on medical procedures.

In May, the New York Foundation for the Arts launched a program dubbed Artist Access. It works like this: Performers sign on to entertain medical patients at special, morale-building events, and in return the artists receive about $40 in credits per hour of work. Interested artists submit proposals, and the organization matches them with pediatric, geriatric or rehab wards.

What do you think of bartering services for health care? If you lack benefits from an employer, what do you do to cover medical bills?

Trade: Art for Health Care [New York Foundation for the Arts]

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