I do not envy President Obama right now. There is no way that one year ago, Mr. Obama could have had any idea what he would be facing as he nears the end of his first year. The Senate cannot agree on a healthcare package to put forward, so they have actually introduced two pieces of legislation; both of which are lackluster. The House of Representative has put forth a Healthcare Bill longer than anyone would care to read. He is facing a difficult decision in Afghanistan with regard to the recommendation by General McChyrstal to send additional troops to fight off insurgency. We are facing potential nuclear threats from Iran and North Korea. And most importantly we are still in the midst of an Economic downturn, the likes of which nobody has seen since the Great Depression. To say the least, President Obama has his work cut out for him.
On the healthcare front, there is nothing but complete disappointment. The main bill introduced through the Senate Finance Committee chaired by Sen. Max Baucus lacks “chutzpah.” Sure; the bill reforms the healthcare industry, but how comprehensive is that reform? It definitely stops short of Universal healthcare coverage for all of our citizens. It puts more guidelines in place for the insurance companies; but fails to create a public health option which would effectively force the private industries to compete, resulting in lower premiums for our citizens. Max Baucus’ bill lacks any type of force, but then again, how much force does Baucus want to put on the healthcare industry? Considering, he has taken a substantial chunk of change from them in the past.
The House of Representatives just put out their version of the healthcare bill, which is being touted Speaker Nancy Pelosi. I have suggested many times before that Pelosi step down, and I will suggest the same here again. The House bill is nearly 2000 pages long. Who in the hell has time to sit and read 2000 pages to hold them accountable for what they are doing? I did read through the outline, skimmed the overview, and read a few select sections. The bill offers Scholarship programs for Indians to serve as healthcare professionals in Indian communities. I don’t have a problem with American Indian Tribal Hospitals applying for grants like all of the other hospitals. I do wonder why one racial group gets a particular amount of funds to recruit new healthcare professionals. If we are offering scholarship grants, they should be made available to any ethnic group working through any hospital. Marriage and family counseling is covered, but what definition of “marriage” are we using; or, is this going to be up to the individual States also? The House bill does include a public option; however, there are 4 different benefits packages. There is a Basic Plan, Enhanced Plan, Premium Plan, and Premium-Plus plan. With differing plans, how can you ensure that everyone is getting the same quality of care? This guideline perpetuates the problem of the wealthiest citizen’s being able to get the best healthcare. If you would like to read the bill and have the time to do so, the link is here:
http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgibin/getdoc.cgi?dbname=111_cong_bills&docid=f:h3962ih.txt.pdf
Be patient. It takes a few minutes to load; after all, 1990 pages is a lot of information.
This brings me to the war in Afghanistan. General McChrystal wants additional troops. Additional troops means additional potential American casualties, additional spending, and additional resources. We have been through enough with this war. Afghanistan cannot even hold a proper election to decide on a leader; things took a turn for the worse when Abdullah Abdullah, announced he will boycott a run-off election with President Hamid Karzai. The original election was disputed amidst allegations of fraud. We need to stop putting our brave men and women in harms way. Bring our troops back home. People make the argument that we need a presence in Afghanistan to protect ourselves from enemies. We could station our troops on our borders here at home to protect ourselves from terrorists and enemies. We could use the money we are spending in Afghanistan to beef up our security here at home. We could improve our missile defense systems, put money into defense industries here at home, and most importantly save the lives of our dedicated troops who we keep losing every day that this conflict continues.
Here at home, we need to concentrate on growing business, increasing jobs, and boosting consumer confidence that the market is turning around. Our country is in a desperate state. We have too many people out of work, too many families struggling to put food on the table and keep a roof over their heads. The stimulus is working too slowly. The government needs to release those funds more rapidly, so we can begin to see more relief in the lives of everyday Americans. Where did all of these “shovel ready” projects go? There are plenty of issues for President Obama to attack, and I am confident that he will make the decisions. I just hope that the decisions are the right ones. Good Luck Mr. President.
As a side note on events here in California: I am sad to learn that Gavin Newsom has withdrawn from the Governor’s race to succeed Gov. Schwarzenegger next year. I had a lot of faith in Mr. Newsom, but wish him and his family the best of luck in San Francisco. I also heard today that there has been a rash of suicides among high school students from a particular school in Palo Alto. I hope the administrators and officials can figure our how to prevent these tragedies soon. Lastly, the perpetrators of the horrendous gang-rape at Richmond High School this past weekend should all be tried as adults and convicted. It is disgusting to think that not only did so many young men actively participate, but there were also many bystanders who did nothing. In my personal opinion, all of the participants in this heinous act should have their balls nailed to a table in house set on fire where they are only given a knife and a choice. After they make that choice, by the way, they should spend years in prison getting raped themselves so they comprehend the magnitude of their actions and the severity of their crime. That is just my personal opinion though.
Saturday, October 31, 2009
Wednesday, October 07, 2009
Healthcare and Us
With the battle over healthcare reform roiling on in the Capitol, I see very little progress being made. Granted, we have had plenty of distractions over the last few weeks; such as an Olympic bid for Chicago, Afghan recommendations from Gen. Stanley McChrystal, and ethics committee investigations into John Ensign and Charlie Rangel. I am having a very difficult time believing that any of the politicians in Washington are actually trying to fix the problems with our healthcare industry. Senator Max Baucus introduced a bill with no public option that has been scrutinized and heavily contested in the Senate. Interestingly enough, Baucus and the rest of the Senators debating this bill have all taken money from the healthcare industry. Sounds like a conflict of interest to me.
This weekend, I went to visit my grandparents and great-grandparents (yes, they’re still alive). While I have been watching this healthcare debate closely, I hadn’t realized how deep of an effect our current healthcare system was affecting my own family. My grandfather has pre-existing conditions making him virtually impossible to insure; or any company that will insure him charges an arm and a leg. Naturally, my grandparents can’t afford the coverage, so the make up the large percentage of Americans who remain uninsured. My great-grandmother (Abuela) also has pre-existing conditions doubling the complexity of the scenario. She qualifies for Medicare, but it doesn’t cover everything. Abuela recently injured her knee. Being in her late 80s, she isn’t a particularly great candidate for knee replacement, so her doctor prescribed a series of three injections into the knee to lubricate the joints. The injection, Synvisc, is manufactured in Germany. The price for this drug itself, not including the doctors’ fees, came out to $978.00. After Medicare, the price was still almost a thousand dollars just for the medicine. Obviously, that was out of the question. The doctor agreed to administer the injections if my grandparents could get the drug cheaper elsewhere and bring it to the office. My price savvy grandparents ordered the injections from our Northern neighbors up in Canada. The injections are the exact same as they would have received here; same manufacturer, same dosage, same drug. After shipping and handling and the currency conversion, the cost came out to just under $400.00. Simply by ordering the medicine from another country, they were able to save almost $600.00. Needless to say, I was very annoyed to hear this, but I understand the importance of shopping around.
What made me especially mad were my grandfather’s medications. To keep his cholesterol in check, he was prescribed Crestor manufactured by Astra Zeneca. With no insurance to help offset the cost, the prescription runs about $128. My grandfather gets the generic version Rosuvast 10, also manufactured by Astra Zeneca, from Argentina for $15. This furthered my outrage at our healthcare system, but it was a generic, and those are always cheaper. What really blew me away was what he showed me next. Another cholesterol medicine which he was prescribed is Niaspan 1000mg. Purchasing the prescription here in the States would have cost them $140. Purchasing the exact same medicine again from Argentina, cost him $22. A $118 difference for the exact same drug, same dosage, same everything. Here’s the kicker… Niaspan is manufactured by KOS pharmaceuticals, here in the United States. It is cheaper to purchase American-made medicines abroad in other countries than it is to purchase it here. I couldn’t believe it if I didn’t read the packaging with my own eyes. It is unfathomable to me, that we pay more for medicines made right here in our own country.
I find it completely disgusting that we allow companies to take advantage of our own citizens and prey on consumers who are in need of specific medicines. We are allowing these drug companies to financially rape our citizens. People rely on these types of medications. All across the country, these are people who are having difficulty staying employed. These are people who are trying to stay in their homes and put food on their tables. These are people who are trying to take care of their families. These are people who are being taken advantage of by their own. I understand the desire to make a profit; it keeps the company going, pays the people who work at the plants, and helps fund research for other drugs. The money also goes to pay the $4.7Million salary for Astra Zeneca CEO David Brennan. I am a firm believer in Capitalism, free enterprise, and the free market. It is a part of the American Dream to be wealthy and successful. However, I am deeply offended when some realize that American Dream by directly sabotaging the lives and well-being of their fellow citizens. Preying on the weak and infirm is vile and contemptible; pricing their medications out of their reach and at the ends of their budgets is a despicable act that only widens the gap between the rich and the poor. I hope Congress approves a damn good reform plan soon; otherwise, this type of conduct will continue and our population will suffer from it. We need to fix the health-care system now! Call or write to your Congressional Representatives and Senators and tell them to get on the ball.
This weekend, I went to visit my grandparents and great-grandparents (yes, they’re still alive). While I have been watching this healthcare debate closely, I hadn’t realized how deep of an effect our current healthcare system was affecting my own family. My grandfather has pre-existing conditions making him virtually impossible to insure; or any company that will insure him charges an arm and a leg. Naturally, my grandparents can’t afford the coverage, so the make up the large percentage of Americans who remain uninsured. My great-grandmother (Abuela) also has pre-existing conditions doubling the complexity of the scenario. She qualifies for Medicare, but it doesn’t cover everything. Abuela recently injured her knee. Being in her late 80s, she isn’t a particularly great candidate for knee replacement, so her doctor prescribed a series of three injections into the knee to lubricate the joints. The injection, Synvisc, is manufactured in Germany. The price for this drug itself, not including the doctors’ fees, came out to $978.00. After Medicare, the price was still almost a thousand dollars just for the medicine. Obviously, that was out of the question. The doctor agreed to administer the injections if my grandparents could get the drug cheaper elsewhere and bring it to the office. My price savvy grandparents ordered the injections from our Northern neighbors up in Canada. The injections are the exact same as they would have received here; same manufacturer, same dosage, same drug. After shipping and handling and the currency conversion, the cost came out to just under $400.00. Simply by ordering the medicine from another country, they were able to save almost $600.00. Needless to say, I was very annoyed to hear this, but I understand the importance of shopping around.
What made me especially mad were my grandfather’s medications. To keep his cholesterol in check, he was prescribed Crestor manufactured by Astra Zeneca. With no insurance to help offset the cost, the prescription runs about $128. My grandfather gets the generic version Rosuvast 10, also manufactured by Astra Zeneca, from Argentina for $15. This furthered my outrage at our healthcare system, but it was a generic, and those are always cheaper. What really blew me away was what he showed me next. Another cholesterol medicine which he was prescribed is Niaspan 1000mg. Purchasing the prescription here in the States would have cost them $140. Purchasing the exact same medicine again from Argentina, cost him $22. A $118 difference for the exact same drug, same dosage, same everything. Here’s the kicker… Niaspan is manufactured by KOS pharmaceuticals, here in the United States. It is cheaper to purchase American-made medicines abroad in other countries than it is to purchase it here. I couldn’t believe it if I didn’t read the packaging with my own eyes. It is unfathomable to me, that we pay more for medicines made right here in our own country.
I find it completely disgusting that we allow companies to take advantage of our own citizens and prey on consumers who are in need of specific medicines. We are allowing these drug companies to financially rape our citizens. People rely on these types of medications. All across the country, these are people who are having difficulty staying employed. These are people who are trying to stay in their homes and put food on their tables. These are people who are trying to take care of their families. These are people who are being taken advantage of by their own. I understand the desire to make a profit; it keeps the company going, pays the people who work at the plants, and helps fund research for other drugs. The money also goes to pay the $4.7Million salary for Astra Zeneca CEO David Brennan. I am a firm believer in Capitalism, free enterprise, and the free market. It is a part of the American Dream to be wealthy and successful. However, I am deeply offended when some realize that American Dream by directly sabotaging the lives and well-being of their fellow citizens. Preying on the weak and infirm is vile and contemptible; pricing their medications out of their reach and at the ends of their budgets is a despicable act that only widens the gap between the rich and the poor. I hope Congress approves a damn good reform plan soon; otherwise, this type of conduct will continue and our population will suffer from it. We need to fix the health-care system now! Call or write to your Congressional Representatives and Senators and tell them to get on the ball.
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