My friend Brian Christiansen posted this one at his tumblr, Off The Grid, but I wanted to feature it here as well. Check out our health care spending per person, as compared with other countries of the first world:
Another interesting read on the health care topic is this article, The Rest is Just Noise, at, of all places, The New Republic.
So I just read an article over at Salon, Camp Lejeune whistle-blower fired, and it absolutely blew my mind. I mean, I don’t expect our military to be perfect, especially at things beyond the battlefield, but seriously? Battle is traumatizing. Nobody’s gonna argue that seeing your buddy get turned into mist is something anyone would be ok with. I’ve known enough former and current soldiers & sailors to be aware that they’ve seen some awful things, and they need not only our understanding, but our help. I mean, both of my grandfathers wouldn’t even speak of their experiences in WWII or the Korean War to me, from which I can only surmise that they never wanted to even revisit those memories.
And while the issues facing the marines of Camp Lejeune are completely different from those that appeared to have afflicted the alleged Fort Hood shooter, Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, that does not mean that we should ignore them. Rather, we should grab hold of the focus that the Fort Hood incident has created and use it to shine a spotlight on the poor care our veterans receive for the invisible wounds they receive on the battlefield.
A friend of my family recently was attacked while in convoy in Iraq back in June, and nearly lost his life. A roadside bomb exploded, the soldiers sitting in the front of the vehicle were killed instantly, and our family friend was injured (he was blown right out of the vehicle.) Amazingly, he suffered no serious physical injury, and was released from the hospital within just a few days, but I cannot imagine the effect just that one event might have had on him. I mean, he was a mere few feet from death; had he opted to sit in a different seat in the vehicle, he’d be gone. He was awarded the Purple Heart, and continues to serve in Baghdad today. It sickens me to think that if he returns home with injuries beyond just the physical ones he’s suffered, that he’ll be treated with indifference at best, and derision at worst by the very country and military he’s sworn to serve.
And yes, the headline is meant to provoke. I’m a huge proponent for mental health care, having enjoyed its benefits in my own life.
(Via Salon.com)
The New York Times published a really great article yesterday evening: Details on Health Care Bills in House, Senate. The article details the two House bills and single Senate bill that have been proposed to enact reform in the healthcare industry.
The first bill, The House Democratic bill (Affordable Health Care for America Act), is the most ambitious, and, to my eyes, the most forward-thinking. It proposes a public option, requirements for healthcare, hardship subsidies, and yes, new taxes. It also provides for a removal of antitrust exemptions that the healthcare industry currently enjoys. This is the bill I’d love to see passed, but it’s gonna be tough. Call your Representative’s office!
The second bill they mention, The House Republican bill (Common Sense Health Care Reform and Affordability Act), is a snake in the grass. It’s costs have yet to be determined, and the changes it makes are nominal only. Reading through the details about this bill it’s hard not to wonder just who these Representatives are, in fact, representing. Most interestingly, it does NOT seek to change the antitrust exemptions.
The third bill, The Senate Democratic bill, is still largely unpublished, so The Times reports what is known. It appears to tread a middle ground between the two House bills, and if it were beefed up slightly in regards to making the public option (either state– or federal-level) a sure thing, I’d be behind this bill as well. While unconfirmed, it’s suggested that a motion to strip those same antitrust exemptions will be made on the Senate floor at some point.
Have my fingers crossed that we see some real positive movement on this!
Chez over at Deus Ex Malcontent links to a New York Times article which reveals that one of CNN’s contributors, who happens to be against health care reform, is, in fact, in the pocket of the private health insurance industry. Disgusting. Having a conflict of interest is one level of unethical, but failing to disclose said conflict takes it to a whole other level.
Read on:
The New York Times: CNN To Disclose Contributor’s Ties to Advocacy Group/10.15.09
Read, then think. Then think some more. Then get out there & ask for that public option again to get this ball rolling in the right direction.
A Whole Lotta Nothing: The entrepreneurial case for national healthcare
(Via Off the Grid)
Absolutely unbelievable stuff. People wonder why our healthcare system is so fucked, here’s a perfect example.
Healthcare CEOs and Recission:
The sister of an Illinois man who died of lymphoma said his policy was rescinded for the failure to report a possible aneurysm and gallstones that his physician noted in his chart but did not discuss with him. […] Late in the hearing, [Bart] Stupak, the committee chairman, put the executives on the spot. Stupak asked each of them whether he would at least commit his company to immediately stop rescissions except where they could show ‘intentional fraud’.
The answer from all three executives: ‘No.’
In the words of John Gruber, “…even if you pay your premiums for years, if you ever fall seriously ill, they will do their best to find a way to cancel your insurance.” Unreal.
One of my other favorite bits? The “pre-existing condition”. Example: I have some sort of chronic condition, and I change health insurers. My chronic condition may suddenly become a “pre-existing condition”, and cease to be covered. And don’t even get me started on mental health coverage…
(Via ★ Daring Fireball)
