Closing the gap y'all!

I found this website a while ago (www.closingthegapinhealthcare.org). It’s run by this man named Dr. Bell and his aim is to….close the gap in health care, obviously.

He says that one major problem in health care is that not only are minorities excluded from many things because they have low income jobs, live in underserved areas and have little access to health insurance, but there is also a lot of ignorance.

What he does is give tips to people to help them stay healthy.

These tips are directed mostly at the African American population he says, but from looking at a few of them, I think they apply to all minorities (or not) living in “the hood.”

Here’s an example from his written tips titled “Behaviors that Kill You.”
1 Not taking your medications as prescribed
2 Smoking any amount of cigarettes
3 Not exercising on a regular basis
4 Eating fast foods on a regular basis
5 Not eating fruits and vegetables as recommended
6 Not practicing safe sex
7 Drinking too much or using drugs
8 Driving too fast
9 Not getting a good education

10 Not being careful about the people you hang out with.

These all seem pretty obvious to most of us (I hope) but he sees a lot of people who do not practice these and so he feels like it is necessary to keep people informed.

I think this is very telling because there are people who grow up almost knowing this from birth. However, people who are living in say, Camden, are not exactly eating organic produce and going jogging at night.

Also, Dr. Bell has a facebook group where he also posts the same tips. I thought this was a great idea, because I don’t think I know more than three people who don’t have facebook, and it is a good way to reach a younger population, so that a lot of sickness can be prevented.

I think that what Dr. Bell is trying to do is great because like I said before, there should also be emphasis on prevention rather than just treatment.

What I find most interesting is that he does not ask people to help “close the gap” through petitions or any kind of activism. He is asking individuals to close the gap by preserving their own health. I think this is most effective because there is nothing going against you other than your own bad habits.

Dr. Bell also has videos up on his website, and he says that his tips are sometimes fun, sometimes make people angry, but always true. And that’s what people need to know- the truth about their health and what they

Congress Deadlocked Over How To Not Provide Health Care

We all have our guilty pleasures.
The Onion is mine.

I know it's not be best source for anything, and I probably shouldn't even mention it on this blog, but I just laugh at everything they write. Also, It's a way to get your thoughts out there. Sarcasm can go a long way you know.

http://www.theonion.com/content/news/congress_deadlocked_over_how_to


I found this article on their website under "Politics," haha.

Basically, they’re poking fun at the government as it is functioning now and basically saying that everyone is fully aware that health care is necessary for Americans, but there is too much at risk because it is such a big deal.

The article says,
‘"No matter what we come up with," Reid continued, "rest assured that millions of citizens will remain dangerously uninsured, and the inflated health care industry will continue to bankrupt the country for decades."’

This is meant to be a joke, but a more scholarly source written by two students at the University of Michigan called “The Development of an Unequal Social Safety Net: A Case Study of the Employer-based Health Insurance (Non) System” talks about something similar.

Basically, the idea is that the government is broken to begin with. You’ve heard it before, “the rich are getting richer and the poor are getting poorer.”

However, the United States is a country where there are supposed to be all these opportunities but the safety net that is provided for these people who need help is not efficient and no one bill can change that because the root of the problem is that there are the few on top who will not allow the many found at the bottom climb up.

It was funny to see the same view come through in two different sources though.

We're young, we don't need health insurance!

I can’t remember how many times I’ve bragged about never being sick. But really, I’m never sick.
I have health insurance, but I haven’t seen a doctor in a long time because I’m 18 and I think that nothing can hurt me.

Don’t we all?

But…I was thinking today about my life.
I know, deep.

Anyway, my boss recently had a heart attack and that’s scary to me. He is not exactly the healthiest guy I know, he smokes and eats Philly Cheese Steaks like there is no tomorrow, but he didn’t LOOK sick either.

Now, I’m 18 and other than my braces (ha-ha) I don’t think I’ve gone to a doctor for anything serious.

But, in twenty years I’ll be almost 40! And I won’t be as healthy as I am now, I’m sure.

It’s tough to look into the future as you are aging and see such uncertainty. I think that as human beings, t security is what we long for most and that security comes in different ways.

Money, love, and health are among the things we want most. Being able to be healthy is not only what we want for ourselves, but we want it for those around us as well.

When I am 40 and have children and a husband, my health will not be just about me, but it will be about my family as well.

People who are in this situation now and people who are going to be in this situation later (because we all will be) need and want this kind of security.

This, I think should be a right, not a privilege.

"Why We Need Government-Run Universal Socialized Health Insurance"

I love Youtube!!

I found this video a little while ago and I thought it was pretty good in explaining how government-run health coverage would work.

Also, I love these home made you tube videos because they really get your attention, you know?

They’re made by people who feel strongly enough about something to take time off to make a video, or by people who are doing it for school and want a good grade.
Both mean that the person puts a lot of work into it.

I liked this one because it compared government run health care to other things, like the police and the postal service, and Medicare.

Also, if you look at the related videos at the end you will probably see a video on why we SHOULDN’T have government run health care.

It’s the same video but it’s edited to show how the original video was wrong. I liked this one also, and I think it’s good to watch because it shows both sides of the argument, and as always, it is good to see both sides, which is what I wanted to do with this blog.

Seeing and understanding differences leads to compromise and only with compromise can real changes be made.

Heath Care Ration(alizing).

I found this on the web today. It's all of the "good reasons" why the people are opposed to the health care bill. I can't stress enough that health should be about people’s…HEALTH….not about money! Or like in the cartoon, enemies.

There is an idea that a lot of Americans share. The idea of “individuality.”

Basically it’s this:
“My taxes pay for these people’s food stamps”
“It’s not fair to pay for a war that I don’t want”
“I don’t need to pay for these people’s health insurance”

It’s the idea that people should do things for themselves, kind of like survival of the fittest.

There is a long history in America of what some call a (Non) System. Basically, these safety nets that are made for people who need help such as food stamps, Medicaid, so on, is not as effective as it seems to be.

I feel the same way when I get my paycheck and there is money for Social Security taken out and I don’t even know if I will ever get it back!

However, it is what we have to do because we live in this country and because those are the laws. There is no way to get around taxes because they are necessary to keep the government going!

So, I might be saying this now because I’m not paying up but money is the most disposable thing that we have!
It comes and it goes. I think that a person’s life is worth more.

Sad Story of the Day pt. 2

Yesterday, I was at work and someone asked me how to make fried plantains, because we’re in the Lower East Side, so I would be the only one who knows…
Anyway, I tried to explain it to him
And he says he’d rather go home and Google it.
Thinking I should try to be more helpful, I tell him that if he fries them he should probably have them with some sour cream (it’s delicious).
This is how the rest of the conversation goes.

Man: Sour Cream??
Me: Yeah! It’s really good!
Man: I try to stay away from dairy.
Me: Well, you know, I can’t, Spanish people love cheese
Man: It’s not good for you
Me: Yeah but you know, you only have one life to live
Man: And I’d like to live it healthy and happy, and with no health insurance, I can’t go around eating cheese.
Me: …

This health insurance thing, or lack thereof, is driving people crazy! Cheese probably isn’t the healthiest thing for you, but there are people who are depriving themselves out of fear. Not to say that you shouldn’t be healthy either way, because you should be, but it shouldn’t be because you have no health insurance and you’re afraid you can’t afford to be sick!

Also, it got me thinking because people who shop at the place I work at (“Natural Food Market”) eat things I had never seen before I stepped foot in there. I have never seen kale or chard at any supermarkets around my house.

So, lesson of the day: Cheese will kill you.

Just Kidding.

It’s that health insurance coverage is scaring people to death to the point that in their every day lives they are making decisions based on it. Now, something should be done about that.

Sad Story of the Day.

The other night I was hanging out with a few friends and we were talking about injuries. Then one of my friends starts telling us about the day that his dog (a bulldog that weighs as much as me) accidently bit his hand. My friend doesn't have health insurance, so he didn't go to the hospital...instead...he tried to stitch his own hand.

One, he is a stupid boy, and that is not a good idea, but it got me thinking about how important health insurance is to people. If he would have had insurance, he could have just gone to the hospital and have someone who has actually gone to school for years do it for him. But when you're young, you're stupid, and you think you're invincible, so these are the outcomes.

He was playing with the dog when he bit him, so he went to the pharmacy and got what he thought he would need to stitch it up. HIs idea of sanitizing the needle was alcohol...and he googled how to stitch.

Thank God for Google, huh?

Also, thank God that his hand didn’t fall off. He could have gotten anything! I think it might have been the worse idea ever. I didn’t believe it at first, but his mother confirmed it.

I know that paying for something like stitches doesn’t seem like a waste of money, but when you’re young and broke-it sounds like a good idea to do it yourself.

Bottom Line: You know you need to go to the hospital, but a trip to Ride Aid is cheaper.

Obama Health Care Bill.

I found a file from Obama's website that outlines the bill. It will be helpful to put it all in perspective because it would give me an idea of the issues and what Obama is planning to do.

It starts out with the problems that the country is facing now in terms of health insurance. It outlines what they are and how it is that they plan to fix it. First, it talked about the high costs of health insurance and what that means to Americans. It says that a lot of times it is difficult to pay the ridiculously expensive co-pays and that it is a major reason why people go bankrupt! If paying for health insurance is so difficult, then it is no wonder that so many minorities are not covered. In the plan he says the government will try to make health insurance available to all through financial help.
There will be a way for every American to chose a plan that they like. Also, if they already have a plan that they are happy with, they can keep it. He says that he wants to health care system to be for the people, not just for big companies to make money off of.

I can see why there is such big debate on this because he attacks large businesses. He says that pharmaceutical companies are making too much money and he says that he is going to allow people to buy from companies from other countries if they are cheaper and also allow generic drugs to be developed so that they will be less expensive. He points out that there are two companies that really make all the drugs in this country and argues that the problems is that there is not enough competition and that these companies have created a monopoly. To aid in this, he says he wants to improve competition and pass laws to prevent the monopolies to continue.

Also, he talks about "transparency," that is the idea that hospitals and other health providers will have to tell people what their visits, medicine, and tests really cost, and how much of their co-payments go to pay for it. I think this would be helpful because over charging will most likely not occur if people can demand to see what they really should be getting charged.

There is one line in his plan that I liked. He said, "Our health care system has become a disease care system, and the time for change is well overdue. " I liked this because it has become apparent that there is a lot of emphasis on taking care of sick people, but not preventing them from becoming sick, and that is the most important thing, and is what the health system should be based on.

That being said, there is a lot of disease in the United States, which are caused by people's lifestyles (i.e. obesity, diabetes, asthma.) Obama write that it is important to make changes so that people will not end up in these positions, and as I was reading it, I thought about something that I had missed out in all of the reading that I had done before. Not only are minorities the ones who live in disadvantaged areas, and hold jobs where health insurance is not usually offered, but they are also targets for things like fast food. It is obvious to me when I go to the supermarket near my house. I work at a Natural Food Store in the Lower East Side (think Whole Foods, mom & pop style) and the produce and products that we carry are so much better than the ones that are in my Bronx supermarket's shelves. It is true that one can travel to get these, but it not easy accessible, and that's where the problem lies. There are four McDonald's at walking distance from my house, but no park to go jogging at. So not only are minorities those who have the least access to health insurance, but they are also the ones who are more susceptible to the diseases that are plaguing Americans today.

He also talks about the disparities in health coverage, my topic exactly, but only dedicates a paragraph to it. However, he does outline what the plan is in terms to making these gaps smaller, but does not detail how it would be done. The plan is to requiring hospitals to collect, analyze and report health care quality for disparity populations and holding them accountable for any differences found. How they would do that is not specified, but I will definitely look further into that. Although there was not a lot on fixing the problem with said disparities, there was a huge chunk on health insurance in small businesses and how the government would help in making it easier for them to provide workers with benefits.