Although the CMS Interoperability and Prior Authorization Final Rule took effect last Tuesday—requiring faster insurance decisions, fewer delays, and electronic submission, civil rights icon Dr. Charles D. Neblett is still waiting.
The 84-year-old SNCC Freedom Singer, now battling stage 4 prostate cancer, has yet to receive approval for Promacta™—a platelet medication that helps prevent internal bleeding. Despite the new reforms, companies continue to delay his care. Neblett’s national fundraiser and Black Prostate Check Challenge 2.0 campaign update launched July 1 to share his continued story and raise awareness for health equity.
“I’ve marched through fire hoses. I’ve been jailed for singing. I’ve watched friends die for asking to be treated like men,” Neblett says. “I never thought the fight would follow me to a hospital bed. But here I am—84 years old—battling insurance companies to keep my bones strong when the cancer attacks it.”
Even as Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services announces changes to streamline care, Neblett cautions against mistaking pledges for protections. But voluntary pledges won’t save lives. And he stands strong noting this new age artificial intelligence can just mean faster inefficient inhumane denials.
“Promacta keeps my blood from breaking down. Without it, I live with the risk of internal bleeding and another stroke. That’s hard to carry after a lifetime of marching strong in mind and body-even when the weight of injustice pressed against my bones. The Black Prostate Check Challenge
gives me something steady: a community walking with me, sharing strength I can feel.”
Black men are more likely to be diagnosed with tumors that exhibit distinct immune-inflammation profiles compared to European men.” Source: Serum proteomics links suppression of tumor immunity to ancestry and lethal prostate cancer – Nature Communications
“And when platelet counts drop too low—whether from the cancer itself or the treatment—your blood can’t clot. That raises the risk of hemorrhagic stroke.”
Marvinia Neblett, wife of Charles Neblett, PhD. for over 50 years and now his full-time caregiver, adds:
“This campaign is about visibility, yes—but also survival. Health equity means nothing if people can’t access the medication their doctors prescribe. What does this say about how we treat our elders—especially in Black communities, where the combination of stroke and cancer is already too common?”
This is a medical emergency.
Eltrombopag, sold under the brand name Promacta,™ is a thrombopoietin receptor agonist. It helps the bone marrow produce platelets—critical for blood clotting. Without it, patients with dangerously low platelet counts are at serious risk of stroke, internal bleeding, or trauma-induced death.
This is a medical emergency. Elombatrag medicine like Promacta™ is a thrombopoietin receptor agonist that helps stimulate the production of platelets, critical for blood clotting. Without it, patients with low platelet counts face severe risk of stroke, internal bleeding, or sudden trauma-related death.
What Neblett’s own PCP confirms is that after two months without Promacta, his platelet levels drop critically low, with no alternative treatment as effective. Each day of delay increases his risk of irreversible complications.
As a founding member of the SNCC Freedom Singers, Dr. Charles D. Neblett sang on the front lines of the Civil Rights Movement—risking his life alongside John Lewis in Selma, in jail cells across the South, and under fire during marches demanding equal rights.
From Selma to the system, his battle continues—not in the streets, but in hospitals and insurance corridors. “This new policy pledge is voluntary. My condition isn’t,” Neblett says. “You can’t call something justice if it can be ignored.
“One wrong step, one untreated bleed, and it can be fatal. That kind of fragility is hard to speak out loud—I’ve marched through tear gas and buried friends with stronger bodies than mine right now.” Yet, this campaign, my faith and my legacy continue my to drive my strength with the nation, who follow my journey alongside me.”
Dr. Neblett recently received the Pioneer of Justice Award from the NAACP Legal Defense Fund at its May 2025 National Equal Justice Award Dinner (#NEJAD2025), where civil rights legends like Jesse Jackson and George Takei were also honored by other artists and advocates. The event marked the 60t anniversary of Selma and reaffirmed that the fight for justice is far from over.
The Black Prostate Check Challenge™—launched exactly one year ago after his diagnosis—has since reached over 67 million people nationwide. The campaign is now expanding into public service journalism, publishing, and a health equity documentary, with new development support from celebrity allies, funders, producers, grantmakers, children’s book publishers, biographers, podcasters, and partners interested in adapting Neblett’s story into varied print and broadcast formats.
“I’m grateful to my family and growing community of supporters who continue to shine a light on health equity,” Neblett expresses with gratitude and grace.
Community Projects Inc.’s national fundraiser is now live to secure emergency Promacta™ doses and support the next phase of the Black Prostate Check Challenge.™ Readers are encouraged to donate, share, or contact pharmaceutical companies directly to aid access.
Here’s how to help:
Donate Here: https://www.givebutter.com/helpcharlesneblett
Or
Mail Checks To:
Community Projects, Inc. 501c3
(Tax ID available upon request. All donations are tax deductible via this federally recognized 501(c)(3) nonprofit.
571 E 7th Street
Russellville, KY 42276
Contact: Marvinia Benton Neblett – (270) 957-2836
About the author
The campaign was launched by NíCole Gipson, a nationally recognized communications executive and founder of NGPR Strategic Communications. Her 25-year career spans television and film publicity, crisis communications, nonprofit strategy, and entertainment legacy building. She has led public service journalism initiatives as well as award campaigns for high-profile clients across media, publishing, and health equity sectors.
“My work has always centered on underrepresented stories—from sitcoms to civil rights,” Gipson said. “This project moved me into public service journalism with real stakes. It’s not just storytelling—it’s survival strategy.”
Gipson, who architected the Black Prostate Check Challenge campaign launch strategy, is now expanding its reach into publishing, public service journalism, and multimedia storytelling. She recruited a core team of partners—including Dr. Clayton Yates of Johns Hopkins and Doug Davis, President of the Black Information Network and co-creator of the #BlackProstateCheckChallenge™—to shape the next phase: a podcast, children’s book series, and documentary rooted in real-time care access and systemic change.
“This challenge is about elevating real voices, not just raising awareness,” said Doug Davis. “We need media that tells the truth about what Black families go through—not years after the fact, but while it’s happening.”
Donate to Help Charles D. Neblett Access Life-Saving Promacta™ for Stage 4 Prostate Cancer
https://givebutter.com/CharlesNeblett-CancerFund