You might be right, but I don't think it effectively addresses the problems. Even if I can convince every medical provider and bank and whatever else service I

You might be right, but I don't think it effectively addresses the problems. Even if I can convince every medical provider and bank and whatever else service I can't even remember that I refuse to provide my SSN, except when strictly needed, can I go back and make sure they all retroactively update their records? I hope there aren't any that slip through the cracks. Then, does that really make my SSN safe, or is it a bandaid? Even that isn't really clear to me. Finally, how does that help the millions of SSN fraud victims who aren't me and have no idea they don't have to give their SSN to get medical care? Like, I can learn self-defense against any number of dangers I might encounter - that doesn't mean I'm ok with those dangers being proliferated by our biggest and most critical institutions. So those are probably the two main reasons people are downvoting.