Blog 8.3

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090415/ap_on_re_us/drug_prices_aarp;_ylt=AlSKu7L5K4W_HKU6U0l4RRXVJRIF

This article is about prescription drug prices and how they are rapidly rising.  It is also about how many generic drug prices are falling and how, in response, many people are switching from prescription to generic drugs.   The AARP really wants policy makers to “focus on how to bring down drug prices as congress prepares legislation to reshape the nation’s costly health care system.”  It is interesting that this article talks about how prices of prescriptions have gone way higher than the actual inflation from production.  The manufacturers are to blame for this.  The drug lobby group, Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America dismissed this report with the senior vice president saying that the AARP “distorts” and “dramatizes” its reports.  Prevacid (acid reflux), Wellbutrin (depression), and Lunesta (sleep) saw the biggest price increases in 2008 and this affects hundreds of thousands of Americans.  The AARP’s public policy director says the “increases make the case for policy changes”, and I would agree.  I worry about this because as I’ve said before, it will be far more expensive when there are emergencies created from these people not taking medicine they simply cannot afford. 

 

Blog 8.2

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090415/ap_on_go_ca_st_pe/health_overhaul_compromise;_ylt=AtrISQfWYgAnhcF6_VoMcuLVJRIF

Barack Obama’s top health care advisor said that there is a “compromise within reach on a government health plan for the middle class that wouldn’t drive public insurers out of business”.  This is one of the primary fears of many conservatives who are against a government plan for Americans—that it could lead to a government takeover and run private companies into the ground.  Nancy-Ann DeParle, director of the White House health reform office, says that a deal “could be” reached that addressed all concerns.  One example she provided as evidence is that under this new plan, it would pay hospitals and doctors rates similar to what private insurers pay.  Something I personally thought was very interesting and something that I think few Americans already know is that the U.S. government already pays for about half of the total health care tab through programs for the poor, the elderly and children.  Obama plans to expand that.  The Lowen Group did a study recently and found that if the new plan were open only to individuals and small businesses, then its impact would be limited.  I look forward to hearing more about the details of a compromise in the near future.     

Blog 8.1

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/29706982/

This article is about how the recession is really affecting illegal immigrants.  I liked this article because it touches on an issue that can often be overlooked.  The article starts with a story about a woman who has relied on her county’s health clinic to help her with her diabetes.  However, next month, she will be on her own.  This county in California has taken “the drastic step of cutting non emergency health services for illegal immigrants”.  There is little data on how many illegal immigrants do not have health insurance, but it is estimated that it is up to 59% of the 11.9 million illegal immigrants living in the United States.  The financial crisis has taken such a toll because local health systems are largely affected by it, as is often seen in the loss of jobs in the industry.  The math is sort of difficult and grim for illegal immigrants because if counties do decide to cut them from health services, it can potentially save the counties millions.  I am worried about that the most.  During these times, it may be hard to think rationally about the consequences of doing this…even if it is an attempt to save money.  We need not forget these people are no less human than each American, and I hope under Barack Obama’s plan, there are specific outlines for how to deal with illegal immigrants humanely.  

Blog 7.3

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/13/us/politics/13caucus.html?_r=1&ref=health

Richard Gephardt made his primary issue of his failed 2004 presidential campaign the issue of universal healthcare.  He said it was “the moral issue of our time.”  However, he is now saying that universal healthcare cannot pass this year.  Otherwise, he argues, President Obama risks losing the same battle that President Clinton went through nearly 15 years ago.  I have not thought of this before, mainly because I was too young to follow the healthcare debate 15 years ago.  But this is someone who is saying he sees a lot of “déjà vu” between the times then and the times now.  Representative Ron Kind says that the hardest part is cost, but acknowledges that if the system were reformed more immediately, there would be nearly immediate savings because emergency health costs would go down.  This is a debate that further shows the complexity of universal healthcare—whether to act right away and then figure out a way to pay for it OR vise versa.  I would agree with the former even though I acknowledge it could be economically disastrous.  I just feel that the more this debate goes on and on about cost, the less likely any action will occur.  With each day that goes by is another person having a heart attack who had been denied cholesterol medicine due to cost…

Blog 7.2

http://abcnews.go.com/Health/story?id=7300173&page=1

I enjoyed reading this article because it talks about something I studied in the past—the fact that many people in this country are not consulting with their primary health care doctors and instead end up in the emergency room.  It is proven that taking care of these issues before they become an emergency will save money over time.  The Mayo Clinic is one place that realized that even its own employees were using the emergency system too often, so the clinic “took steps to make care more accessible and to control costs.”  They started by setting up a new department for the whole family (children and adults); they also built new medicine centers and set up a 24-hour phone service.  The president of the American Academy of Family Physicians said, "If we get the right person in the right office at the right time, we can help reduce the cost of care, provide quality and provide access and appropriately get referred to the right specialist.” These huge changes have been made without increasing insurance costs per patient, so I am thrilled and support changes such as these to hospitals across the nation.  

Blog 7.1

http://www.bizjournals.com/sacramento/stories/2009/04/13/daily14.html

This article was interesting because it involved a politician who I so rarely hear about outside of comedy or satire of his work—Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger.  Schwarzenegger has recently announced a “$32 million initiative to reduce the shortage of critical health care workers in California.”  This article touches on an issue in the healthcare world that is seldom talked about—the shortage of these workers.  (Most of the time it is the shortage of those who have healthcare.)  But if these uninsured people do get health care—via the government, as Obama as pledged to do—then who would be the ones caring for them?  The initiative will start in the fall at 25 community colleges, and the focus is to “boost” the number of lab technicians, dental hygienists, physical therapists assistance and others.  The state is already facing challenge and as the population ages, there will be growing numbers of people who need help.  Gov. Schwarzenegger’s quote summarizes my opinion of this perfectly: “Today we are taking some great action to put Californians in jobs and pump up the economy — and at the same time, improve the quality of health care.”  I would even encourage Obama to look at this idea because these problems that California is currently facing are universal in the U.S.

Blog 6.3

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/30076798/

From the start of this article, I could not exactly know how I felt.  Reading “Public Plan May Doom Private Health Insurance” has a bad connotation, but the more I thought about it, the less pitiful I felt towards private health insurance companies.  I mean currently health insurance is provided privately which is good IF you have a job where it is offered or can separately afford it.  Unfortunately more and more people are losing their health insurance—a number that is growing by the day.  The “problem” that some people foresee is that this government program (Obama’s) could enroll up to 131 million people…a huge number that could potentially help the uninsured and middle class while also putting “private insurers out of business”.  The democrats are thinking of a plan that would compete with the private insurance business that covers nearly 170 million people.  I would hate to see businesses collapse because of government programs; however, I would also hate to see more and more people get sick or die when it could have all been avoided.  A tough issue we are sure to hear more about in the coming months and years.  

Blog 6.2

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/30093462/

This article has to do with the same ideas that I have touched on in previous articles; it has to do with the fact that many people, with the higher costs of healthcare, are skipping drugs (or splitting them—something I did not know) to save money.  However in this article, it says that help is available and sometimes people simply do not know.  Even “hundreds of programs offer medicines free or at a discount.”  In this article, it says what to do if you are in the position of not being able to afford medicine.  First, talk to your doctor and explain the situation to him or her.  Next, do some simple research on the Internet for these programs.  Patients who have been through the process of applying to certain programs say that rejections are not final and should not be taken as such—sometimes it helps to write a letter or to apply elsewhere.  There are also assistance programs that help individuals with things such as applying for Medicaid.  I enjoyed reading this article because as bad as I know things are, it is at least somewhat assuring to hear there are programs to help those struggling.  

Blog 6.1

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/30190141/

This article was interesting to me and somewhat depressing.  It starts by saying that if the uninsured were a political lobby group, it would be bigger than the AARP.  The truth is that those people who are currently uninsured lack political power; it is the uninsured who really need to rally for change in Washington.  The problem is, as this article points out, that health insurance, to a lot of people, is still considered a personal issue—one that cannot really be broached on the national stage in congress.  However, as talk of reform has come about, advocates say that these people need more of a chance to voice their opinion and be a part of the process of changing America’s healthcare system.  Without a “vocal constituency”, it will be difficult for lawmakers to make the case for such reform when paying for it is the hardest part.  I disagree with a professor at Harvard who said that “the uninsured do not provide political benefit” to politicians.  I tend to think that if someone is given health insurance that ends up saving a life, you can bet the representative that voted in favor will get his or her vote in the next election.  I’m not sure of a solution, perhaps start an organization that can unite all of those uninsured who wish to take part in the political process?