No insurance? No problem. Just bring your talent

At the O+ Medical Clinic in New York, you don’t have to worry about remembering your insurance card. But you might need to bring your guitar.

The clinic is a year-round, no-cost, exchange-based medical space for artists and musicians, founded by a group of local creatives and doctors. Instead of paying with cash or insurance, patients pay with what they do best: art.

How it works:

• Volunteer healthcare providers offer services including health checkups, dentistry, massages, and group therapy—completely free of charge.
• In return, artists contribute to the community by offering free tickets to live performances, creating public artwork, teaching music or art classes, or sharing other skills.

The idea is simple: both healthcare and creative labor have value, and neither should be treated as disposable.

While the physical clinic opened in 2023, O+ has been exchanging art for healthcare since 2010. So far, the organization has provided 6,135 medical treatments and 1,554 dental treatments to artists.

In addition to letting artists access care without going broke, the O+ Exchange Clinic has also become a creative hub hosting exhibitions, workshops, and live music events.