A Writer Prepares for Tr*mp 2.0

A Writer's Guide to the next 4(?) years

December 14, 2024

I don’t know about you, but the uncertainty surrounding what policies will be enacted after Agent Orange’s Inauguration is… not helping me live a zen life. Given the changes in our industry and the post-strike realities of unemployment, losing health insurance and more, many entertainment community members may be adversely affected by such policies. So, over the past month, I have done a ton of research for my benefit, and I want to share with you what I learned. This is a lot of info, but it is also not as comprehensive as it could be. I’m not a journalist; I’m just a girl!! Read the parts that seem most urgent to you right now and check the rest later. I linked my sources at the bottom!

Substack doesn’t let me do a table of contents, so here is what’s covered in this post:

Healthcare Resources & What to Expect with Tr*mp 2.0, Tariffs, Should We Worry About the FDIC, the EPA, or the Department of Education?? How to Make More Money as a Writer/Artist, What to Do If You’re in a Position of Privilege, Should You Flee the Country? General Resources and Works Cited! 

A note: None of this is meant to be fatalist or fearmongering. I just feel less anxious when I’m prepared, so I wanted to put together a resource for others who feel the same way.

The Most Pressing Issue: Healthcare

This is the most pressing because the deadline is first - December 31st. Many screenwriters and actors whose coverage was extended post-strike will lapse in a few weeks, so we get to do the open-enrollment roulette. This was my first time going through this process, so I sought help.

Entertainment Healthcare Insurance Solutions: The Entertainment Community Fund and MPTF partnered to provide FREE healthcare enrollment consultations to artists. They have a western and an eastern division. If you’ve been burying your head in the sand and refusing to choose next year’s health care, they have very kind consultants in multiple states who can walk you through the process and explain your options. They don’t do Medicare consults, though. For Medicare help, check out SHIP. 

Here are some tips:

  • You can get a quote and browse some plans on your state's marketplace website to give you a general idea of what the heck these people are talking about when you meet with them for the consultation.

  • On most marketplace websites, you can search for your doctor to see if you can find a plan that includes your current doctor in-network.

    • If you’re switching from a PPO to an HMO, you may have to change your doctor, so mentally prepare for that.

    • Check if doctors are available in the same hospital system as your current doctor so they can easily access your charts/records without you having to get everything sent over.

    • If they are in a different network, ask how best to send your medical records to your new doctor so your care can continue uninterrupted.

  • *NOTE: If you live in New York and are losing your Entertainment Union health insurance, you may be eligible for a 75% discount off your COBRA rate!! More information can be found here.

Some additional resources the Entertainment Community Fund has to offer:

  • Health Resource Center & Women’s Health Initiative

  • The Friedman Health Center for the Performing Arts in NY (available to all entertainment professionals!)

  • Social Worker Support (consultations and resources for Senior Care, Caregiving, and Chronic illness or injury support)

  • Mental Health consultations, Addition and Recovery Counseling

  • Emergency Financial Assistance Grants

  • Teamsters Local 817 Health insurance grants.

  • Financial Wellness workshops and career counseling

  • Affordable Housing assistance!

They offer so much!! Check them out!

  • Emergency financial assistance grants, Behavioral Health, Palliative Care, Child Care Assistance, Wellness Center, and more.

    • **Some programs have income-based or age restrictions, so consult their website for more info!**

Other Health Resources

  • If you need mental healthcare but have trouble finding insurance coverage, you can check out Therapy funds (here’s a list) for grants toward mental healthcare costs. You can also look at platforms that exclusively bill through insurance, like Grow Therapy.

  • Consider platforms like GoodRX to help lower the cost of prescription medicine.

  • Playwrights! You can also check out Venturous Theater Fund, which has a Health insurance guidebook for Dramatists in tandem with the Dramatist’s Guild’s Every Artist Covered initiative!

  • Lastly, many organizations offer medical-specific grants, such as the Rauschenberg Medical Emergency Grant.

How will the new administration’s policies affect our healthcare?

My first instinct is to say, “Who tf knows?” because we don’t know what will be passed, what will be an executive order, what he’ll forget he promised to do altogether; we just don’t know. But here are some things we can prepare for to give us some peace of mind.

  • Certain medication costs will go up or be incredibly hard to access. As a precaution, you can consider stocking up ahead of time on things you know you use or would like to have access to that do not have a short shelf life. Do this in moderation, and refrain from panic-buying everything, as this will make it harder for others to access. Some things in this category may be Plan B, Narcan, etc.

  • Gender-affirming care is under attack, which I’m sure you know already. Make a plan with your current doctor to determine what resources to access should their ability to provide care change. In extreme situations, you may have to travel to get the care you need. Work on saving up an emergency fund should that happen (I pray it doesn’t).

  • Expect a reduction in reproductive healthcare options. 

    • Prepare a reproductive emergency fund in case you need emergency reproductive care, and it’s no longer covered by insurance, and/or you have to cross state lines to get the care you need.

    • Long-term birth control: It’s no secret that people want long-term birth control options before they are potentially outlawed or impossible to afford. You can consult with a doctor about what options are best for you, but especially in major cities, many OBGYN offices are booked due to the influx of interest, so call soon and book ahead of time!

      • I also recommend looking into any potential healthcare plans for 2025 to see the current coverage for reproductive care.

    • If you aren’t sure where you can access birth control or abortion pills, Free The Pill has a lot of resources.

      • It’s worth noting that “Under the Affordable Care Act, most private insurance plans are required to cover FDA-approved methods of contraception without cost-sharing (e.g., deductible, copayment).” So unless they “repeal and replace” like they promised, we’ll be covered.

Oh, right, the tariffs!

Okay, so if the tariffs are implemented (which he seems hellbent on), they will increase the price of goods for the companies importing them. The companies compensate for that by increasing the individual cost of goods for the consumer. This could also have an inflationary effect overall (we hate to see it) and prompt retaliatory tariffs from the affected countries as well…

TLDR: Things will get more expensive, especially those made in the countries targeted by the tariffs, including Canada, Mexico, and China… (detailed here). Here are some things that will probably increase in price. 

  • Electronics

  • Furniture from big brand stores

  • Home goods/appliances

  • Gasoline (sorry LA)

  • Shoes

  • Cars & Car Parts

  • Avocados :(

  • Non-local produce in general (but once demand goes up probably, local produce will be more expensive, too… awesome.)

What can we do about it?

Based on his track record with the EPA, I should also note that the Dirty Dozen will quickly turn into the Dirty 30, and we may be advised to shop organic for more products. Which… has a higher sticker price. Adjust your budgets accordingly.

Aren’t there people who can’t afford an increase in food costs?

Why, yes! Food is already crazy expensive in the US, and this process will likely worsen food deserts and reduce access to healthy food. This is where Mutual Aid comes in! If you need food, check your local food bank, community fridges, and co-ops. If you have the means, donate to these places to keep them running! Comment or email if you know of organizations in other cities, but for now, here’s a list of a few LA options:

Is the FDIC Not Gonna Exist?

Surprisingly, I’m not freaking out about this because I genuinely don’t think he’s organized enough to accomplish half of what he promised. However, I like to be prepared. The general advice here is, “Don’t put all your eggs in one basket.” Basket, meaning bank. But don’t keep money under your mattress either… or at least not all of it.

What about the EPA????

If Trump’s last term is any indicator, the EPA is about to be a ghost town again, and if they don’t protect us, we have to protect ourselves. So, I will be enacting the same plan I had during his last term:

  1. Get the best fricken water filter for my drinking water, shower, and sink.

  2. Don’t just wash produce with water; get one of those produce cleaning solutions and use it like there’s no tomorrow.

  3. Keep a close eye on the dirty dozen, and shop organic more often.

  4. Read ingredient lists! If something sounds like an alien substance, it probably is! Look it up.

  5. Watch Erin Brockovich

  6. Change your air filters often (regardless of who the president is)

  7. Keep a close eye on your health and prepare financially for a (hopefully unlikely!) health crisis.

  8. Check on friends, loved ones, and even strangers from communities that are more likely to be affected by the unraveling of environmental protections, such as unhoused populations, economically vulnerable communities, communities of color, immunocompromised people, and people living in food deserts. 

What about the Department of Education??

The possible (improbable but possible) dismantling of the DOE wouldn’t just impact public education funding and curriculums but civil rights enforcement!! Very fun! It would also eliminate some of the protections that student loan borrowers, DACA recipients, and equitable offer standards have that are enforced by the DOE. This would be bad! So, while it’s not a sure thing, eliminating the DOE may increase our costs as borrowers, parents, or students, and we should be prepared.

  • Check out the Student Debt Crisis Center if you need help with student loan repayment or refinancing. If you currently receive federal school funding, look into how to fill the gap created if those programs disappear (just in case!). 

  • One method I did not know existed until now is straight up asking your college if they have extra money lying around… and then sometimes they give it to you for free… you can’t get what you don’t ask for!!

    • Darla Bishop (who’s got degrees on degrees) offers a free email template to start that conversation with your university. Click download on her free resources, and it will take you to a Google Drive with the email template!

  • If you’re an immigrant, check that all your paperwork and visas are current (and ideally will not expire within the next four years).

  • If you have kids about to go to college and are worried about the sticker price of the degree, along with how the new policies will affect federal tuition assistance, you may want to consider adding a few colleges abroad to the application list. There is funding available for full-time attendance to colleges abroad, and the cost of attendance is shockingly lower than in the US. (save for fancy institutions like Oxford or Cambridge).

So basically, we all need more money? How do we get it?

I think people sleep on grants! As a playwright, I apply for grants all the time, but there are grants for basically everything. 

  • PEN America and other organizations for writers offer grants for projects you may be working on to cover “writing-related expenses, such as residencies, sabbaticals, computers, printing, shipping, travel, or publicity services.”

  • I also love this substack, , which does monthly roundups of funding opportunities for creative folks. 

I’m in a privileged position; what should I do?

  • Be a resource and support for your community. Consider buying a few extra cans of food for the community fridge on your grocery runs. Maybe budget for a small “Go Fund Me Fund” when emergency calls for money for health care, rent, or last-minute travel come across your newsfeed. Consider supporting educational non-profits. Keep your eyes and ears open, and lend a hand when you can.

  • Call congress to advocate for policies that support your community!

  • If you’re a boss, make sure your subordinates are taken care of. Because the cost of living will likely go up and wages likely will not, people who were previously scraping by may start to have a hard time. Consider ways your company can alleviate their burden. Free lunches a few times a week? Paying their phone bill since they use it for work. There are a million ways employers will spend money (as long as it isn’t in your paycheck lmao). So, advocate for tiny changes that could have a huge impact on your employees’ lives.

Should I flee the country?

I can’t answer that for you. But I read this article and listened to this podcast for “Research.”

It’s also worth noting that if you are eligible for dual citizenship in another country and haven’t bothered to apply for it…, it may be a good time to do that. It never hurts to have options.

I also made an emergency plan for myself. I wanted to figure out where to go should I ever not feel safe in my current environment. For you, that can be a place in the US or outside, but it’s worth looking into to know what your options are and how much money you’d need to pursue those options should that time come (I hope it doesn’t.)

General Resources / Personal Reccs

  • Pay Up Hollywood Resource Guide (LA Centric)

  • Find your elected officials

  • Wired’s Guide to Protecting Your Personal Data In the Trump Age (https://www.wired.com/story/politics-lab-keeping-your-personal-data-safe/)

  • Vote Save America

  • Crooked Media (I started listening to their podcasts during the 2016 election cycle, and they have become my way of staying informed without losing my mind. Their daily newsletter and briefing podcasts keep it short and sweet (and not inflammatory and catastrophizing.) I also recommend NPR’s Up First; I love NPR! Today Explained is good for deep dives too. Also, ’s substack is excellent.

  • If you work in entertainment, I also recommend reading trades or craft-related publications that don’t seem so incendiary. They always say the sky is falling/the industry is crumbling (it might be, but I don’t wanna hear about it every day!!)

Works Cited/Supplementary Reading & Listening:

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