Times they are a changing. We have a new President Elect who promises to bring change and renewal to our struggling country. Unfortunately, change takes time, and the economy is still in a weak and fragile state. As much as we would like to see things change over night, that is unrealistic. We are still in the grips of one of the greatest financial crises of all time, and pulling this nation out of from under that will take the work of many months, and probably years. You may be cringing as you watch your stocks and bonds plummet, but the repercussions happening across the nation are more than just financial. Health, in so many facets, is taking just as hard a hit as your pocketbook.
Proposed health and health care changes on ballots all over the state haven’t received much press, either before or after the recent presidential election. But there are some important changes, even though they have been overshadowed by the election itself!
Abortion Limitations Defeated in All Three States
In California, Colorado, and South Dakota, propositions which would have limited the circumstances under which a woman could seek an abortion were defeated.
Children’s Health Insurance Approved in Montana
The Healthy Kids Plan Act was approved. This initiative approves the establishment of a health insurance plan for all uninsured children in Montana, estimated at around 37,000.
Health care is understandably on of the hottest topics in the 2008 Presidential Election. Everyone needs and deserves to know what the two main party candidates believe will be the best health care system to suit this country’s needs, but then again, not everyone is planning on voting for one of the Big Two. Some believe that the third parties need more attention and focus, and regardless of your party affiliation, it is always good to have a firm understanding of what every candidate in this election thinks about health care.
The Green Party on Health Care
Cynthia McKinney and the Green Party may have the most radical changes to our current health care system of any party in the election, but radical does not equal bad news. The Green Party wants to introduce a “single-payer,” universal healthcare system. This would be given to every single person living in the United States. Single-payer is a term used to describe a type of financing system. It refers to one entity acting as administrator, or “payer.” In the case of health care, a single-payer system would be setup such that one entity—a government run organization—would collect all health care fees, and pay out all health care costs. All Americans would have all of their healthcare needs covered, regardless of pre-existing conditions, status, employment, income, housing or age. They also encourage expanded care by public clinics as well as the practice of traditional and alternative medicine.
The shocking truth is that nursing homes in America are not safe, and for-profit nursing homes are even less safe. This comes from the latest report issued by the Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General.
In fact, 2007 saw a number of states report unprecedented rates of nursing home violations – Idaho, Alaska, Washington D.C. , and Wyoming had a %100 violation rate. The most common violations included infected bed sores, inadequate treatment of urinary tract infections, deficient housekeeping, and improper nutrition. One in six nursing homes, posed “actual harm or immediate jeopardy” to residents. (more…)
Few items on any political agenda today affect as many people as the subject of healthcare costs. Publicly-funded health insurance systems are being debated back and forth between all parties with both sides trying to retain their views about the best course of action for the nation. Many people aren’t content to simply sit back and wait for the healthcare system in this country to fix itself; they have taken it upon themselves to purchase health insurance through work or on the private market.
With health care costs rising at three times the rate of the average wages in this country (and over 105% since 1999), many people are already realizing that their future health care costs will be out of reach if matters are left unchecked. While health insurance plans won’t cover every eventuality, they will help to offset the rapidly-rising costs of health care services in this country. (more…)
It’s still kind of hard to believe that there are so many uninsured individuals in America. Over time, a lot of folks begin to wonder who is truly at fault. The health care system in the States isn’t as great as it should be or as we would like it to be. Access to affordable health care is decreasing each day and those who have pre-existing health conditions give up hope of ever finding a plan that will approve them or one that will give them affordable rates. There are people in other countries living with a universal health care system and it seems to be working rather well; in fact, dollar for dollar, some countries outperform the U.S. by 500% or more.
Imagine constructing a human being synthesized completely through science—a seemingly supernatural fabrication of life. You may think Frankenstein. You may visualize Iron Man. But it’s called bionics.
The field of bionics doesn’t necessarily create entire human beings, but rather constructs body parts for better human functionality. People have been losing body parts and use of body parts since the beginning of time. Non-functioning limbs have been replaced with plastic, wood and even steel.
For over a decade, pharmacists have been advertising their products directly to consumers. There are laws that require drug ads to have proper disclaimers about the risks of their products within the ad; not many are complying with these rules.
There are attempts being made to extend the six-month moratorium to two years. The purpose of the six-month waiting period is to allow some time for physicians to become familiar with the new drugs. Many pharmaceutical companies do not abide by this rule because of the fear of falling behind in competition. You may notice that there are usually multiple ads for different drugs that promise the same thing.
In result to incompliance with the moratorium and placing improper disclaimers in ads and on the drugs themselves have put people’s lives at risk. Representative Bart Stupak of Michigan is one of the individuals concerned about misleading drug ads. It gets a little more personal for him because of what recently happened with his 83-year-old father. Stupak’s father was diagnosed with having low red blood cell counts. He later saw a Procrit drug ad on television that targeted elders with anemia, proclaiming to help liven them up (those with anemia tend to feel tired all of the time) – ads even showed before and after results of seniors who use the drug – dramatized of course.
All through the month of December, Sylvia tried to ignore her slowly-worsening cough and chest congestion. Although she worked more than forty hours a week at two part time jobs, she had no health insurance and couldn’t afford a doctor’s visit. Her cold would get better on its own, she reassured herself.
It didn’t. She was delirious by the time friends finally took her to the emergency room on New Year’s Eve. The doctors diagnosed pneumonia. Three weeks later, she died of adult respiratory distress syndrome. Would universal healthcare have saved her life? You decide.
Barack Obama’s plan for better health care in America is to provide quality, affordable and portable coverage for all. He plans to make available a new national health plan to all U.S. citizens, which will include the self-employed and small businesses. Some of the features his plan include:
photo credit: pingnews.com
For over a decade, pharmacists have been advertising their products directly to consumers. There are laws that require drug ads to have proper disclaimers about the risks of their products within the ad; not many are complying with these rules.
All through the month of December, Sylvia tried to ignore her slowly-worsening cough and chest congestion. Although she worked more than forty hours a week at two part time jobs, she had no health insurance and couldn’t afford a doctor’s visit. Her cold would get better on its own, she reassured herself.
