There are many interesting ideas in this world. This blog is dedicated to pursuing them wherever they go. Politics, philosophy, religion, environment, and anything else that captures imaginations and leads to healthy discussions. Never take the world for what it is, there's always a better way to do something.
I don’t know whether to begin with the positive or the negative. Oh, if only I remembered what the I/O literature said to giving feedback.. is it negative positive negative.. or the other way around?
Lets start with the positive. Senate Democratic Majority Leader Harry Reid announced earlier today that the sweeping healthcare reform bill will include a public option. Although the White House has been indecisive at best on the issue, I’m glad the Senate is moving it along. With 57% percent of the population supporting it, there is no reason not to pass it.
There is another interesting story relating to healthcare today. A Thomson Reuters report today detailed that United States healthcare system wastes around $500 to $800 billion annually. Of that figure, 37% percent is estimated to be spent on unnecessary procedures and another 20% is lost due to fraud.
Maybe we should vote more former comedians to political positions. They’re funny, controversial, and they tend to be more or less honest. Either way, Al Franken is quickly becoming my favorite politician. Scratch that. He’s quickly becoming a politician that I actually.. like?
Perhaps my conservative disposition biases my life motive, but through my personal experience I have always learned that no one is ever entitled to anything. Personal responsibility and accountability are two attitudes that any citizen in a free country must possess for that country to prosper. It is unfair and irresponsible to reward individuals who deny accountability – those who consciously choose ignorance over responsibility. The potential reality for universal health care for all citizens disregards justice and equality to those Americans who are making an effort to live a healthy life. Simply stated, if tax supported, universal health care were to pass, healthy people should not have to pay the same price as those who will undoubtedly require more attention and expense. Health care reform should subscribe to the car insurance approach – safe drivers pay less for car insurance due to the fact that they are less likely to use it.
Approximately seventy-five percent of U.S. health care costs are a result of personally preventable chronic illness (Center for American Progress, 2007). Two specific, voluntary, and absolutely preventable behaviors are responsible for over $220 billion of health care costs in the United States: obesity and smoking.
Reading some of Dean Baker’s work exposed me to an aspect of US health care coverage that I haven’t seen discussed much: protectionism for medical professionals and its impact on health care costs. According to this MNT article (http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/77635.php), physicians are in short supply. This raises some interesting questions. How does the supply of medical service effect the cost of care and the salaries of medical professionals? Why is the supply short in the first place? And on the cautious side, could there be negative consequences of having a more saturated job market?
In recent history, trade agreements such as NAFTA have expanded the ability of US countries to invest in cheap imports produced by foreign workers. This has typically been referred to as “globalization”. While it has an impact on the market for manufactured goods, it has not applied to skilled professional services including medicine, law, academics and journalism where we in the United States seem to retain protectionist policies.
In the last few days there have been rumors flying around a ’seminar paper’ written by Obama in his Columbia days. According to the bloggers that have helped spread the story, in the paper, Obama wrote about the plight of the poor, the faults of the current economic system, and about taking another look at the founding fathers. The story garnered enough buzz and interest to make it all way up to Rush Limbaugh’s radio show. Since Mr. Limbaugh keeps his focus on the negative things about Obama, and anything democrat/liberal in general, it becomes clear that this ‘potential thesis’ wouldn’t been seen as good.
First of all, it was untrue. Rush Limbaugh was told in the middle of his show that it was a hoax, although he said it was believable. For my part, I am disappointed it was a hoax. From the little exert that was passed around.. I don’t see any destructive or negative ideas. Here’s what Obama didn’t actually write:
