Health Policy | Jacqueline Laurette Jones

Fear Mongers Won’t Stop Health Care Reform

March 12, 2009 By Jacqueline Laurette Jones Leave a Comment

They’re at it again. The fear mongers who have few positive ideas to contribute to the debate are rounding up a posse to take shots at the health care reform train. The internet is the latest weapon in their arsenal.

In addition to the blogs that seem to multiply like gerbils, a friend forwarded an email from an unknown source. It was based on a blog post by Betsy McCaughey that appeared on Bloomberg.com. McCaughey is an adjunct senior fellow at the Hudson Institute, a non-partisan policy research organization supposedly dedicated to innovative research and analysis.

McCaughey’s post criticizes the section of the stimulus bill that establishes a Federal Coordinating Council for Comparative Effectiveness Research. This council will pinpoint treatments that are most effective.

McCaughey claims the council’s work will lead to limitations on treatments for serious illnesses and shift funding toward younger patients. Her post fails to mention the $1 billion set aside for prevention and wellness programs, which should reduce the need for expensive treatments by preventing disease. The bill channels an additional $8.2 billion into research to find cures.

The Council has not been granted authority to establish guidelines for private or public plan payments or coverage. It will establish a database where professionals can easily access the latest information. McCaughey seems unaware that proven treatments often take several decades to reach the consumers who desperately need them.

Now the email I received is spreading claims that Democrats want to ration health care for the elderly and that those efforts need to be stopped. Doesn’t the author realize we’re already rationing care for everyone under the current system? The list of doctors who won’t take new Medicare patients in my area seems to grow daily, and out-of-pocket expenses are rising for everyone, including Medicare recipients. How many people do you know personally who can afford the care they need, with or without insurance?

Every health care consumer in this country, whether satisfied with the system or not, should watch the film Critical Condition, which aired on PBS last year. It highlights the struggles of four people whose lives were totally disrupted when they couldn’t afford the care they needed.

The story I will never forget followed a man who opted to have his foot amputated so he could return to work before he lost his benefits. He thought the treatment his doctor preferred would take too long. When his recovery period was longer than expected, he lost his job anyway, and the insurance company retroactively denied his claim for a prosthesis. He was forced to have his ill-fitting temporary prosthesis repaired after it broke because he couldn’t find work. He received severance pay and found a new job after a year, but was concerned that his new employer’s insurance would not cover a pre-existing condition.

Most of the people I know have experienced some nightmare in the system or know someone who has. Health professionals, insurers, advocates, business leaders, and patients agree that change is inevitable.

The fear mongers won’t succeed this time. The question is no longer if but when and how.

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Jacqueline Laurette Jones is author of Unmasking a Diagnosis: How to get Help for a Confusing Chronic Illness Without Filing for Bankruptcy.

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Filed Under Health Issues Unmasked™ Tagged With health care reform, Health Policy, LinkedIn

Economic Health Requires Revolutionary Change (Part 4)

December 11, 2008 By Jacqueline Laurette Jones Leave a Comment

Every day brings an announcement of more layoffs and business closings. Look in the mirror to see who is responsible for this mess. We’ve allowed our leaders and the lobbyists to run the country off a cliff.

This recession is the result of policies we all supported, fought, or ignored for selfish reasons. Some of us just gave up and let the bad guys win.

The last election showed us that we can make a difference. If we don’t use our new power to help each other and live what we know is right, we’ll never get out of this mess. Now is the time to demand policies that provide opportunity for those who are willing and able to work, support the weak, and protect the taxpayers. In addition to the obvious need for more regulation and oversight in the financial services industry, here are other ways to move forward:

Help cities build mixed income, green communities. Seattle’s High Point neighborhood is a good example. High Point is a 100-acre master planned community. Its energy efficient condos and townhomes are available for sale or for rent at market and subsidized rates. Members of the community mingle with each other in 20 acres of parks and playgrounds, on front porches, or along tree-lined sidewalks and trails. The library and community health center are already open for business. A community rec center and neighborhood shopping are in the works.

Place high quality public charter and magnet schools in each community. Parents often relocate to ensure that their children receive a good education. A return to neighborhood schools will increase parent involvement and student achievement. Students can walk to schools in their neighborhoods, which will reduce or eliminate the need for busing. Busing students across town produces obese children, wastes taxpayer dollars, and fragments communities. Most people want to surround themselves with people who have similar values, goals, and experiences. That may not be right or politically correct, but it’s human nature. Even those of us who think we’re open-minded like to surround ourselves with other open-minded people.

Increase funding for research. Our country is falling behind industrialized and some emerging nations because we don’t value deep thought. We’ll need deep thinkers to develop the technologies and processes that will help us get out of this mess.

Develop trade and foreign policies that benefit others without hurting ourselves. Foreign aid workers, missionaries, diplomats, and military commanders agree that world conflicts cannot be solved with military might alone. People around the world share many of our same concerns. Most of them want to earn a living, educate their children, gain and maintain health, and live in healthful surroundings. By exporting the technologies and teaching them the processes we develop to meet our own challenges in these areas, we can reduce conflicts and reduce the trade deficit without abusing workers in this country or others.

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Jacqueline Laurette Jones is author of Unmasking a Diagnosis: How to get Help for a Confusing Chronic Illness Without Filing for Bankruptcy.

Filed Under Economics/Politics Tagged With Disease Prevention, energy policy, foreign policy, green communities, Health Policy, taxpayer dollars

Economic Health Requires Revolutionary Change (Part 3)

December 4, 2008 By Jacqueline Laurette Jones 2 Comments

Few suggestions for dealing with the recession are based in reality. Just ignoring all the problems won’t make them go away, and throwing money at them without a long-term plan will increase the national debt without addressing the underlying causes.

The United States has lost more than 3.2 million factory jobs since 2000. That total excludes jobs that have been lost in other sectors and more than a million that have disappeared so far this year.

Experts predict that this downward trend will continue as 6100 retail stores close by the end of the year and another 14,000 in 2009. War veterans are returning home to find that they also have joined the ranks of the unemployed. Employers in every sector are announcing more job cuts daily. Many displaced workers have moved into lower paying jobs in the service sector, which also is beginning to shrink.

With or without government assistance, the auto industry will be forced to shed still more jobs as the rising unemployment rate decreases purchasing power throughout the country. Lenders will continue to limit access to the credit the industry needs to sell its products.

In light of these facts, recovery plans must focus on creating jobs that pay a living wage and leave room in household budgets to pay for emergencies and save for luxuries. Without those jobs, the economy will continue to collapse, and there won’t be enough tax revenues to repay the escalating debt.

We must also correct the imbalance in financial and human capital. The U.S. Department of Commerce Bureau of Economic Analysis says the financial services industry, including real estate, accounted for 21 percent of the gross domestic product (GDP) in 2006. Businesses related to the auto industry currently account for another 4 percent and 1 in 10 American jobs. The housing crisis has reduced employment in financial services. Expansion of public transportation and competition from foreign automakers could further reduce auto sales

New policies should attempt to save as many jobs as possible without postponing inevitable contractions in certain areas. If those policies don’t point us toward the future, America will be left behind in the global economy.

Chinese officials are recruiting unemployed workers from the financial services industry to help them move forward. Even medical professionals are losing their jobs in this economy, and will surely join the exodus. Still more are voluntarily leaving patient care because the stress and expense of caring for chronically ill patients is destroying their personal lives. This talent pool cannot be replenished overnight.

The return to a focus on providing necessary services is the solution. By enacting aggressive reforms in business, education, and health policy, the incoming administration can save jobs, create new ones, and save money at the same time. In addition to the suggestions in my first post on this subject, here are new ones that could move the country in the right direction:

Offer microcredit loans through the Small Business Administration (SBA). Large corporations will never be able to absorb all the displaced workers.

Enlist the help of Teach for America to prepare some displaced workers and business leaders to change America’s schools. This organization has an excellent reputation for quickly retraining people from a variety of backgrounds to teach America’s troubled youth, who are dropping out of school at an alarming rate. A well-trained workforce is essential to meet the demands of the 21st century. Our educational institutions prepare students for 20th century jobs that no longer exist. Teachers placed through Teach for America have a two year commitment, with the option of staying put if things go well. That will give them time to find other work if they discover teaching is not a good fit. With wisdom forged by real world experience, workers and leaders could help shape education programs that include courses in entrepreneurship, the backbone of the American economy. After school programs staffed by this new force could also provide relief for cash-strapped parents.

Increase funding for college work study programs. Displaced workers will need income as they develop new skills to reenter the work force. Overworked instructors could also use extra help from disciplined, motivated students who have real life experience.

Work with labor and business leaders to create policies that reduce stress, the main cause of chronic illness. Balance pay cuts and increased job security with frequent breaks, onsite adult and child care, onsite health care and fitness programs, flexible hours, increases in paid personal leave, continuing education, and other perks that increase productivity, reduce the need for higher wages, and make companies more competitive. Businesses that have adopted such polices have saved money on health care costs and increased productivity.

Dramatically increase payments for preventive health care. Treatments for advanced chronic illness are costly.

Pay family caregivers. According to Medical News Today, about 34 million caregivers provided about $375 billion in free services to family and friends last year. These caregivers often leave their jobs and neglect their own health to provide full-time care and delay or eliminate the need to place their loved ones in nursing homes.

Ask patients and leaders in medicine to suggest immediate practical changes for Medicaid and Medicare. Both programs spend more money trying to save money than it would cost to just cover some services. These ridiculous practices are driving many doctors to refuse patients serviced by these programs.

Incorporate natural medicine into mainstream care. Patients and professionals alike are finding that natural protocols often work best with chronic illnesses, especially in the early stages. Bastyr University in Seattle has received several research grants from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and operates a clinic that offers alternative medicine services to the public. Doctors of functional medicine also claim dramatic results with their holistic treatments for chronic diseases. When combined with preventive care and changes in Medicare and Medicaid, the savings could reduce the budget enough to pay for universal coverage and save millions of jobs.

Unless some new disaster rears its ugly head over the next week, my next post will address practical long-term solutions to domestic and foreign policy challenges.

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Jacqueline Laurette Jones is author of Unmasking a Diagnosis: How to get Help for a Confusing Chronic Illness Without Filing for Bankruptcy.

Filed Under Economics/Politics Tagged With displaced workers, economic policy, government assistance, gross domestic product, health care reforms, Health Policy, purchasing power, unemployment rate

Economic Health Requires Revolutionary Change (Part 2)

November 20, 2008 By Jacqueline Laurette Jones Leave a Comment

A new type of pollution is making the air unfit to breathe these days. Carbon-based fuel is no longer our biggest problem. Fear mixed with hate-filled language aimed at the people around us has turned into a toxic mix that is beginning to choke us all.

While everyone seems to be looking for someone else to blame, we’ve forgotten something important. We’ve all contributed to this economic crisis. The results seem like the remake of a bad movie that could have played in ancient times.

The Apostle Paul summed it up clearly in 1 Timothy 6:10: “But if it’s only money these leaders are after, they’ll self-destruct in no time. Lust for money brings trouble and nothing but trouble. Going down that path, some lose their footing in the faith completely and live to regret it bitterly ever after.” (The Message)

King Solomon, one of the wisest men who ever lived, also spoke the following words that were recorded in Ecclesiastes 5:10 and still apply to our situation today: “He who loves money will not be satisfied with money, nor he who loves abundance with its income. This too is vanity.” (New American Standard Version)

We’ve all bought things we didn’t need, sometimes with money we didn’t have. Now we’ve learned the hard way that life in “Never Never Land” isn’t quite what we expected. Because we were so willing to sacrifice the future to satisfy the desires of the present, we don’t know where to turn for help now that the future is staring us in the face.

Only God has all the answers. Those of us who believe in Him should pray for His forgiveness and direction and for our ability to hear Him clearly. Even if we hear Him, He won’t provide quick or easy solutions. He doesn’t operate that way when we’ve strayed. Like any good parent, He wants to make sure we’ve learned our lesson so we won’t forget what we’ve done wrong.

It’s time to accept that things will not be the same in the near future, if ever. With that fact in mind, let’s try to work together through the next steps.

After my last post, I had planned to suggest solutions to problems in domestic and foreign policy that affect our health. My previous list of short-term solutions proved too ambitious, and what once seemed intermediate now poses a very present danger. With that in mind, please allow me to revisit some issues from last week.

Several new plans are in the works to address the mortgage problem. Sheila Bair of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) showed compassion for homeowners and empathy with lenders in the plan she proposed last Friday. Though Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson is not in favor of the plan, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke has publicly urged him to support it. On Wednesday the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) also announced changes to its Hope for Homeowners program. House Financial Services Committee Chairman Barney Frank, D-Mass., applauded the announcement, but said further steps may be necessary. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac next threw their hats into the ring today, according to Reuters News. Their plan will halt foreclosures from November 26 through January 9, which will give lenders time to rework troubled loans.

No plan has yet been announced to deal with the glut of homes that are already on the market. Until leaders address that problem, credit may still be hard to come by, and the bailout plans under consideration for the auto industry will surely fail.

The bipartisan plan presented in the Senate today by two Democrats and two Republicans would allow automakers to divert the $25 billion that Congress has already allotted them for retooling their plants toward meeting the current crisis. Without retooling, the industry will die because it will fall farther behind foreign automakers who are already reaching the growing market for energy-efficient cars.

Democrats in both houses have demanded that the automakers present a survival plan before they will agree to loan them the additional $25 billion they say is needed to help them get by. Without access to credit, consumers still will not be able to buy the cars that will help automakers generate income to repay the loan.

Automakers say millions of jobs that depend on their survival will be lost if our country’s leaders don’t help them stave off bankruptcy. It’s not fair to penalize hard working people who have no control over any of this mess while we bail out the financial services industry that was at the center of this economic earthquake.

Until someone comes up with a plan to clear excess houses from the market, the automakers are doomed to fail with or without our help. While they develop overdue plans to move toward the future, Congress needs to finish cleaning up the problem that started this whole mess.

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Jacqueline Laurette Jones is author of Unmasking a Diagnosis: How to get Help for a Confusing Chronic Illness Without Filing for Bankruptcy.

Filed Under Economics/Politics Tagged With Health Policy

Economic Health Requires Revolutionary Change (Part 1)

November 13, 2008 By Jacqueline Laurette Jones 3 Comments

Corrected 11/19/08

Most people in America understand that radical change is overdue in this country. The votes they cast in the last election signaled this basic understanding. Few people who cast those votes understand how much change is needed to save the U.S. economy and economies around the world.

Low wages don’t leave room in family budgets for health care expenses. Inflexible work schedules and long hours don’t leave time for workers to do what it takes to prevent disease. The resulting chronic illnesses make workers less productive and increase health care costs for employers.

Employers reduce expenses by slashing some jobs, moving others to foreign countries, and cutting work hours for remaining employees. That leaves employees without the means to pay for retraining programs that can prepare them to find better jobs. They stop making payments on second mortgages and credit cards that have helped them live beyond their means.

Unemployed and underemployed workers apply for public assistance as the tax base that pays for the assistance shrinks. People who once supported non-profit agencies that help the needy now seek help from those agencies. The agencies must turn people away.

Next add to the mix students who have borrowed heavily to prepare for jobs that aren’t there and now can’t repay their loans. This leaves lenders reluctant to lend money to anyone. Businesses that depend upon credit lay off more workers or close their doors. Tax revenues decrease even more, which leads government officials to slash budgets and lay off still more workers.

The list of people who have been reduced to buying just necessities, when they can afford them, is growing daily. When we stop buying, people in other countries who grow or manufacture many of the goods we used to buy make less money. They, in turn, purchase fewer products from us.

The country has not faced this many challenges since the American Revolution, says Nouriel Roubini, Associate Professor of Economics at New York University’s Stern School of Business and former adviser to the U.S. Treasury Department.

In a consumer-driven society, there can be no stability on Wall Street without stability on Main Street. In spite of this fact, most of the aid in this economic crisis has been directed toward the financial services industry. The new man in town promised to change all that, and the people voted to let him try.

Reports are circulating that President-elect Obama’s advisers are weighing the political consequences of pushing incremental versus rapid changes. In a democratic society, the people must be willing to come along for the ride, but they will only continue the journey if they see results.

Effective solutions will involve careful planning that addresses short-term, intermediate, and long-term needs. Here are my suggestions for the next phase of the new American Revolution:

Meet again with lenders to develop and enforce a mandatory plan for restructuring mortgages. The new loans should be closer to 30 percent of an applicant’s available income. That was the accepted standard before the housing crisis began. The plan announced earlier this week will allow buyers to pay up to 38 percent of income. It also reduces the lending rate for only five years before it begins to slowly climb again. Both Sheila Bair, chairman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), and Bruce Marks, head of the Neighborhood Assistance Corporation of America (NACA), have said the new plan is not good enough.

Rewrite new mortgages to include penalties for anyone who abandons a home. Some mortgages include “no recourse” provisions. Many lenders are waiting for a government bailout, and more people are shirking their responsibilities every day. The government can’t continue to reward bad behavior. City and state officials also need to know how much tax revenue they will have to meet their obligations.

Recognize that we have a housing crisis, not a mortgage crisis. Allan Meltzer, economist and professor of Political Economy at Carnegie Mellon University, says housing prices won’t stop falling and credit won’t ease until the excess supply of homes decreases and the balance sheets at financial institutions stop shrinking. Meltzer proposes a tax credit through the end of next year for those who purchase homes that have already been foreclosed. This move will kick start the slumping construction industry as well.

Merge General Motors with one of the other “big three” automakers, then allow the remaining companies to reorganize under bankruptcy protection. This idea came from both Bill Ackman, CEO of hedge fund management company Pershing Square Capital Management, and Joseph Stiglitz, a Nobel Prize winning economist and professor. U.S. automakers aren’t prepared to meet the challenges of today or those of tomorrow. Bankruptcy will force them to develop long-range strategies.

Recognize that we have a service-based economy. Our economy is imploding because we have forgotten a basic principle of good business–find a need and fill it. Low-, medium-, and high-skilled workers are needed in all areas. Craftsmen, accountants, educators, writers and editors, engineers, and people with other transferable skills are essential.

Move displaced workers into similar jobs rebuilding the infrastructure and building a “green economy.” Infrastructure projects can build and repair roads and bridges and expand public transportation. Overlap them with public and private “green” construction projects that rebuild communities affected by disasters. Retrofit buildings that don’t meet energy efficiency standards. By doubling our current rate of recycling, including waste from these construction projects, we could replace almost every job that has been lost this year. Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, author, and columnist Thomas L. Friedman says “green” projects can employ workers with diverse skills.

Subsidize or give tax credits to organizations that hire displaced workers. Those who move into related positions may even be able to start immediately and train on the job. Workers who have good jobs are less dependent upon government assistance and can afford to stay healthy.

Without changing the policies that created this mess, we will not see the end of the downward spiral or avoid creating another one. My next post will address strategies for making intermediate and long-term changes that address both domestic and foreign policy issues.

The second sentence in the eighth paragraph has been corrected to end with financial services industry instead of businesses. The word occupants has been changed to anyone in the first sentence of the twelfth paragraph.

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Jacqueline Laurette Jones is author of Unmasking a Diagnosis: How to get Help for a Confusing Chronic Illness Without Filing for Bankruptcy.

Filed Under Economics/Politics Tagged With american revolution, chronic illnesses, Health Care Costs, health care expenses, Health Policy, LinkedIn, necessities, public assistance, radical change, tax revenues, underemployed workers, wages

Elder Law Can Interfere With Good Care

October 16, 2008 By Jacqueline Laurette Jones 3 Comments

Updated 10/17/08

After reading this post, click read “Never Assume Anyone Thinks Like You” for more information.

Elder law sometimes works against the interests of caregivers and patients. Laws that were designed to protect patients and the government from scam artists have become a nightmare for a number of people who only want to do what’s best for their loved ones.

Many states require that patients sign separate Powers of Attorney to designate whom they want to handle their health care and financial decisions if they become incapacitated. The laws in some states require that courts approve conservators to handle these tasks if Powers of Attorney are not available. Conservatorships in my state cost $10,000.

Elders who were born in a time when families automatically assumed care for their loved ones may not be aware of the requirements until it’s too late. Limited finances may keep caregivers from going to court, and their loved ones could suffer as a result. Caregivers should only be forced into court proceedings in cases of obvious abuse. Policy makers should also adjust income levels for free or discount legal services to reflect today’s realities.

Another policy allows officials to seize the home of a patient who has been admitted to a nursing home if the expenditures for care exceed the patient’s income. In some states, those who transfer assets to qualify for Medicaid must do so five years before nursing home admission or lose their home.

To avoid seizure of the property until after they die or move, caregivers must live with the patient and play a part in delaying his or her admission into the nursing home for at least two years. Many caregivers ruin their own health by continuing to provide care in a desperate attempt to avoid losing what has become their only home. Some have been forced into homelessness after giving up because they couldn’t handle the stress or because the patient died too soon.

Why should officials take property they can’t use when someone needs it? A former neighbor of ours in another town lost her home when she was admitted to a nursing home. The vacant structure now serves as a haven for drug addicts.

As a current or potential giver or recipient of care, these laws could affect you someday. Contact your state and national representatives to demand that health care reform address these issues, the ones I addressed in my last post, and any other concerns you may have.

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Jacqueline Laurette Jones is author of Unmasking a Diagnosis: How to get Help for a Confusing Chronic Illness Without Filing for Bankruptcy.

Filed Under Caregiving Tagged With caregivers, Caregiving, elder law, Health Issues, Health Policy, Medicaid, nursing home

Preventive Care Reduces Costs, Saves Jobs

September 25, 2008 By Jacqueline Laurette Jones Leave a Comment

Update 10/10/08

There’s a growing consensus among Americans that a plan to address America’s economic woes must top the agenda of our next president. When the national debt surpassed $10 trillion, the National Debt Clock in New York ran out of digits, according to BBC News. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson’s plan to escape a possible economic meltdown could add $1 trillion to that figure, reports Politico.

With these facts in mind, government officials, business and health leaders, and the public must increase efforts to change our health care system. The economy will not recover without innovative reforms, including additional protections for American workers, the unemployed, the poor, the elderly, and the disabled, and an increase in spending on preventive care.

The facts speak for themselves. The cost of health care has been a major factor in the decline of America’s automobile industry. Mustafa Mohatarem, General Motors Corp.’s chief economist, once told an interviewer that the company spent more on health care for its employees than it spent on steel to manufacture its cars. Those expenditures added approximately $1500 to the cost of each car and made the company unable to compete against challengers from other countries.

Because of these costs, automobile manufacturers and other businesses have reduced or eliminated health care benefits for the majority of their employees and laid off thousands of other workers. Former employees lose access to health care unless their spouses remain employed at jobs that provide coverage. Programs that administer services for the poor, elderly, and disabled also have increased deductibles and co-pays for recipients.

Additional economic challenges are reducing the ability of Americans to replace lost coverage with individual policies or additional funds. Their health suffers without access to adequate care. Costs skyrocket when these same citizens go without care until problems related to their illnesses multiply. If they can’t afford to pay the full cost of services when they finally seek treatment, providers pass their losses on to insured patients, which helps drive up costs.

The majority of these health care dollars are spent on treating chronic illnesses. Nearly one in two Americans, approximately 133 million, has a chronic illness, according to a study by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and Johns Hopkins University. Eighty percent of these illnesses are preventable and comprise about 90 percent of health care expenditures, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Reesearch studies have connected many chronic illnesses with improper nutrition, lack of exercise, insufficient water intake, inadequate sunshine and fresh air, overeating, abuse of alcohol and drugs, lack of rest, and too much stress. Layoffs meant to save money and increase productivity among remaining workers have led to longer work hours, erratic schedules, and an increase in these disease-causing factors.

The Motley Fool, a multimedia financial services company, has discovered policies that make allowances for the human limitations of its workers increase profit margins. Employees enjoy frequent breaks, flexible schedules, onsite recreation, yoga classes, and unlimited vacation and sick days. Best Buy has developed some of these policies. These Results Only Work Environments (ROWE) have reduced health care costs and increased employee retention.

An increase in spending on preventive care, which should include the services of alternative medicine providers and health educators, could reduce those costs even futher. Prevention is a recognized specialty in the medical profession. It focuses on educating patients about the effects of poor lifestyle choices and detecting the early stages of disease. Alternative providers, through knowlege of how the body’s different systems work together, can often detect disease factors before they appear on medical tests. They also sometimes halt the progress of existing diseases or reverse them even in advanced stages. Health educators communicate the importance of these principles to the general public.

The gravity of this country’s economic situation calls for bold new measures. A plan for addressing our health care woes can free capital for economic expansion and jumpstart our economy.

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Jacqueline L. Jones is author of Unmasking a Diagnosis: How to get Help for a Confusing Chronic Illness Without Filing for Bankruptcy. The book is available through Lulu.com and will be available early next year through Amazon.com and other online book retailers.

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Filed Under Economics/Politics Tagged With access to health care, alternative medicine, Disease Prevention, economic woes, health care benefits, health care system, Health Policy, preventive care

Who Will Care for the Living?

September 16, 2008 By Jacqueline Laurette Jones 1 Comment

My friend answered the phone immediately when I called. She was on her second visit to help another friend of hers, and that friend needed emergency prayers from everyone I could reach.

The recipient of these prayers had been caring for her mother around the clock for two years and had needed a break. The mother died shortly after my friend arrived this second time to help, but the next crisis had already begun.

Because the caregiver had been unable to work and tend to her mother at the same time, she and her mother had been living on the elder’s income. The long hours had taken their toll on the caregiver’s health, and she was unable to return to the job market. Soon insurance polices and other temporary income would be gone. She needed to sell everything, including the house, in order to survive. Suicide seemed like the only answer.

The prayers worked. The woman realized she needed to trust God, but sometimes more tangible help is needed. God often works through people. My friend, who is disabled and living on disability payments, could only help so much.

This woman is just one of countless citizens in this country who can’t see their way past the next moment. When added to other personal struggles, the tight job market, increasing energy and food prices, higher health care costs, and falling home prices are more than they can handle alone. They need prayers and encouragement, but they may need a helping hand. Traditional channels of aid are overwhelmed and nearly exhausted. People who gave in previous years now need help.

Five people I knew or who were related to people I know have committed suicide within the last two to three years. Four of these ended their lives within four weeks about two months ago.

This society has become so competitive it values productivity more than compassion. During each economic crisis, the cry goes out to cut entitlement programs. The politicians who lead these cries don’t understand that human lives are at stake. As they seek more ways to reward those who “win,” the “losers” are often left behind to drown in their own sweat and tears.

Though some abuses have occurred in the system, what do we have to gain as a country by turning our backs on the weakest in our society? How can we sleep at night while the elderly, the weak and the despondent are being pushed to the side, and sometimes over the edge?

Everyone needs help at times. If we are indeed “one nation under God” as we claim, why can’t we expend at least as much energy protecting those who have left the womb as we do on those who remain? How can we spend so much time fighting about preserving life when we spend so much money on taking it?

Who will care for the living? I tremble and shake my head as I begin to cry.

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Filed Under Caregiving Tagged With economic crisis, entitlement programs, Health Policy

Parties Unite to Fight Medicaid Cuts

April 27, 2008 By Jacqueline Laurette Jones Leave a Comment

According to the New York Times, last Wednesday two-thirds of Republicans in the House joined with every voting Democrat to block a White House proposal that would cut $13 billion from Medicaid over the next five years. [Read more...]

Filed Under Health Issues Unmasked™ Tagged With health care reform, Health Issues, Health Policy, Medicaid, preventive care