Healthcare: Part Deaux

I've failed at keeping this guy updated but have come up with what I think is a decent compromise. I'm going to try and post once every 2-3 days with shorter blurbs, which is a more reasonable goal that I can actually keep up with (rather than longer ones that I like to write but take me forever and lead to posts like once a month). So, here goes.

I wrote in my first post about the historic passing of healthcare legislation by the Senate in December of 2009. Well, just the other day, the House also had a historic vote in which it also passed this bill. While I again applaude the efforts of congress there are still major things missing from this bill. The most important is, once again, the lack of a public option, which will hurt when the insurance companies once again attempt to nickel and dime people out of good benefits and the government has to leverage. Further, I think it's ridiculous that Bart Stupak of Michigan single handedly screwed the people of the United States out of abortion coverage, a MEDICAL PROCEDURE that should be treated no differently than any other.

While Rep. Stupak came close, he does not take the major prize of this post of 'Jackass of the Post'. This instead goes to Michael Steele, Chairman of the Republican National Committee. Congrations Mr. Steele. Here is a recap of exactly (and I mean verbatim) what he said on FoxNews to Geraldo Rivera after the House passed the Healthcare Bill:

"Today, America witnessed the first vote for the end of representative government. Congressional Democrats said no to the will of the American people and voted yes to President Obama’s $2.5 trillion government run health care system... Americans across the country made their voices heard and flatly rejected this legislation loaded with special deals and tax increases, but Democrats did not listen and instead chose to force this bill through because they believe they know what’s best for the American people. The simple truth is this bill will allow taxpayer dollars to pay for elective abortions, as confirmed by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, and that the Executive Order negotiated by Rep. Bart Stupak does nothing to trump the language in the bill. It is, at best, a ruse. Further, the bill will cause 9 million people to lose the insurance they have now; it will increase the deficit by over a hundred billion dollars when all the components (including the physician fee schedule change) are included; it will increase taxes by $569 Billion; it will cut Medicare by $524 Billion; it will increase premiums by 10 percent for people without employer-based insurance; and, it will create a new marriage penalty with new income and investment taxes. And after all the spending has been done and the bill is fully implemented, 23 million people will still be uninsured in 2019. The American people are sick of the blatant arrogance of President Obama, Speaker Pelosi and the Senate Majority Leader Reid... It is time to fire Nancy Pelosi and send a message to President Obama that it’s time to stop their partisan liberal agenda of government takeovers and start working for Americans to create jobs and grow our economy."

Seriously, what was be smoking before he got on the air. First off, 'end of representative government' and 'Americans across the country made their voices heard and flatly rejected this legislation'. Really Michael? You mean, all those people that voted for Obama in the presidential election, you know... the one where he specifically campaign on healthcare reform, made their voices heard and rejected this legislation? Pretty sure that they supported such a change if they voted for him anyone (if they didnt want it, they could have voted for McCain). Also, did you not read any of the bill? Let's just say you didn't. Do you not watch the news? I guess not. You seriously believe that this bill will 'pay for elective abortions' after all the flack that Bart Stupak is enduring for basically ensuring that women can't have this procedure done? I'm left speechless. Finally, he states that it is 'time to stop their partisan liberal agenda of government takeovers'. Seroiusly? Did Obama not preach for the last year about how we have to work together to solve this, Democrats and Republicans? Did he not even hold a summit at the White House? I'm starting to think that Michael Steele is actually Michael from the TV show LOST since it would appear that he has been stranded on an island in the middle of nowhere for some time.

All in all, I with that this bill had done more and is a good first step. I'm hoping there will be more to not only enhance the benefits of the people, but also the benefits, compensation, and protection for the physicians whom they are charging with the task of caring for all these new people.

It's Been A While...

So, I'm back to writing where nobody is reading. It took a while to get back thanks to that medical school thing that I'm doing on the side. But, I'm here, and I have good news.

I have discovered a new syndrome. I discovered it because I came down with it about a week ago. It's called Steinberg syndrome obviously (since all doctors, or in my case future doctors, feel the need to slap their names on a collection of symptoms). It's main symptoms are fatigue, a stiff neck, behavior changes, abdominal discomfort, and constipation. It hits a very select population usually between the ages of 21-30 and affects both males and females equally. My syndrome also goes by another name, medicalstudentitis.

Ok, so if you haven't figured it out yet, I'm being fascious. I've basically described what every medical student experiences due to late nights studying (fatigue, behavioral changes), constantly being hunched over a book (stiff neck), and drinking too much coffee (abdominal discomfort and constipation). This is pretty much my life most days, but especially this past week as a result of a midterm, quiz, and 140 skill physical examination that I had to do in front of an attending from Stroger Cook County Hospital. Lets just say I've had more relaxing weeks in my life.

Also, on a side note, I've always heard the stories and such about Cook County Hospital. You hear about the crazy people that are there, the rare diseases you see, the rare presentations of somewhat common diseases, etc. You also hear about how they are understaffed and require doctors to wheel their patients to X-Ray or the lab because they don't have others to do the pushing. But, what I was not made aware of was how difficult it was to just get a simple ID badge made. I have tried now on 4 different occasions to get and ID made. One time the machine was broken, another time they ran out of blank ID card. To top it all off, Stroger has a strict policy that they only make 35 new IDs per day. That's it. So if you show up at 10:00 a.m. (they open at 8) and they've already made 35 for the day, you have to come back another time. Ridiculous. Clearly, I have to keep on going to eventually get one but wouldn't you think there would be some other, more efficient way for them to do this. This is just another clear example of how nobody cares about Stroger when they should since its the only public hospital in the city.

Microbiology: The New Source for Disney Names

So, I clearly haven't been rocking this blog as much as I had hoped. I guess that's sort of what happens as a med student. Anyway, Happy New Year to anyone actually reading this. Figured I'd post something (even if its short), just to make sure that I know this thing still exists.

So, there I am in Microbiology, when my professor teaches us about a parasite called Naegleria fowleri. In stumbling though the pronunciation, I decided that I was going to call it Naegleria fowleria as it just rolls off the tongue better with the final 'a' in fowleri (even though it shouldnt be there). Then, as I thought about it more, I decided that it sort of sounds like some sort of weird name that Disney would concoct for an animated movie or kids TV show. Therefore, I think that for any Disney producers reading this blog, Hannah Montana should have a new international friend named Naegleria Fowleria for her show. They could go on adventures together (On a side note, this parasite invades your brain via your sinuses and usually kills people within 7-10 days... I know that's pretty serious but it super rare and I need to have a sense of humor about this stuff). So, if you don't want to go globe hopping with Hannah Montana's new friend, don't swim in open, warm, fresh water places that aren't treated with chemicals (like swimming holes in Georgia)

Top ______ of This Decade (2000-2009)

So I'm perusing the internet in my usual manner (aka googling random things, clicking on people's links from Twitter/Facebook, and reading CNN.com for news) when I come across the fact that everyone and their Mom has decided to do their own top whatever of the decade. Things used to be simpler, like when billboard.com was the only place that you would look to find the most popular songs/albums for music. So, in making sure that I fit into the norm of everyone else on earth, I've decided to compile my own top things from this decade below. Keep in mind, these lists are a combo of my favorites/opinions and things that had a big impact/were widely popular (just because they weren't my favorite, doesn't mean they aren't relevant). Anyway, check it out. Oh, and Happy New Year.

Best Tech Gadgets:
10. Netbooks (2007)
9. Slingbox (2005)
8. Blackberry (2002)
7. iPhone (2007)
6. Nintendo Wii (2006)
5. TiVo (DVR, ????)
4. TomTomGo (Car GPS System, 2004)
3. Digital Cameras (????)
2. Flash Drives (????)
1. iPod (2001)

Best Songs: (seriously, this one needed extra space... too many to choose from)
15. Hoobastank - The Reason (2003)
14. Green Day - American Idiot (2004)
13. Franz Ferdinad - Take Me Out (2004)
12. Gnarls Barkley - Crazy (2006)
11. R. Kelly - Ignition (Remix)
10. Coldplay - Clocks (2002)
9. Daft Punk - One More Time (2001)
8. Kanye West - Jesus Walks (2004)
7. Kelly Clarkson - Since You've Been Gone (2005)
6. Eminem - Lose Yourself (2002)
5. White Stripes - Seven Nation Army (2003)
4. Jimmy Eat World - The Middle (2001)
3. Jay-Z - 99 Problems (2003)
2. The Killers - Mr. Brightside (2004)
1. Outkast - B.O.B. (2000)/Outkast - Hey Ya (2003)

Best Movies:
10. Kill Bill (2003/2004)
9. Anchorman (2004)
8. The Dark Knight (2008)
7. There Will Be Blood (2007)
6. Lord of the Rings Trilogy (2001/2002/2003)
5. Memento (2000)
4. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004)
3. WALL-E (2008)
2. Gladiator (2000)
1. Almost Famous (2000)

Best TV Shows: (**Qualifier: I never saw The Sopranos or The Wire so don't hate me for them not being on here)
10. South Park (1997-Present)
9. The Office (2005-Present)
8. How I Met Your Mother (2005-Present)
7. 30 Rock (2006-Present)
6. Californication (2007-Present)
5. Curb Your Enthusiasm (2000-Present)
4. The Daily Show (1996-Present)
3. Dexter (2006-Present)
2. Arrested Development (2003-2006)
1. LOST (2004-Present)

Websites That Changed It All:
10. Amazon (1995)
9. Hulu (2007)
8. Digg (2004)
7. Twitter (2006)
6. Pandora (2000)
5. Skype (2003)
4. Wikipedia (2001)
3. Facebook (2004)

2. YouTube (2005)
1. Google (2002)

Also, found this: The Top 10 Worst of the Decade. Pretty funny stuff.
http://fansided.com/2009/12/29/2000s-the-top-10-worst-things-of-the-decade/

End of Year Chicago Sports Round Up (Part 1)

The end of the calendar year is upon us and I thought to myself, what better time to reflect on all the wonderful athletic teams from Chicago. After quickly coming to my senses, I realized that I only have good things to say about the Blackhawks. Either way though, here is my run down of Chicago sports right now:

1. The Blackhawks: Where do I begin? The Hawks are.... how do you say in French... Rolling. Their 24-9-3 record has them tied for 1st in the Western Conference with San Jose and they are 7-3 in their last 10 games. Though, what has to most staggering, after an offseason that brought in Marion Hossa, John Madden and other offensive stars, is the continued brilliance of the Hawks defense. They lead the league with only 74 goals given up (which is 1 better than the Eastern Conference Devils and 11 better than the next Western Conference team), are 2nd in PK percentage (87%), Cristobol Huet is 4th in GAA (2.05), and Antti Niemi has been making the most of his playing time by posting 4 shut outs in only 9 games played (tied for the league lead). The one area the Hawks are struggling is on the PP, converting only 18.8% of their chances (good for 14th in the league). It'll be important to get this percentage up as the season progresses and they enter the postseason, but for the time being, I can accept the just plain domination that they dishing out and the continuous stream of W's.

2. The Bears: I'm pretty sure that the combination of the Titanic and Tiger Woods' popularity didn't sink as fast as the Bears have in recent weeks. They enter this week 2-8 in their last 10, beating only the lowly Browns and Rams. Their issues are numerous and wide spread. Offensively, the line needs incredulous amounts of work in general, Cutler needs a QB coach to reemphasize the fundamentals (e.g. throwing the ball away, looking off defenders, and not throwing off your back foot), and Matt Forte needs to refind that killer, hole-hitting instinct that made him great last season (He's had one 100 yard game this season and the Bears are dead last in rush yards/game this season in the league). The only upside has been the development of Johnny Knox, Devin Aromashadu, and Earl Bennett as WRs (maybe this is a sign to finally move Devin Hester by to KR full time). Defensively, things are just as bad. Injuries galore and just overall sloppy play have hurt the Bears. They are usually good to drafting defensive talent in the mid-to-late rounds of the draft but the Cutler trade has someone depleted their selection numbers, so it will be interesting to see what they do in the offseason. Overall, the Bears need a firey coach who will scream at them when wrong and celebrate with them when right. Someone who is old school and doesn't put up with any shit. It's time for the Lovie train to pull into the station and the Bears to go in a new direction. I love Mike Singletary to replace (love the no-nonsense attitude and that he still wears a stopwatch around his neck during games) but we'll see if what happens.

3. The Bulls: Like it wasn't excruciating enough to write about the Bears, now I have to write about the Bulls. They started the season 4-2 and looked promising. Unfortunately, since then, they are 6-15 and dropping faster than it took to write out the public option in the new Healthcare bill. John Salmons has been shooting the ball atrociously and the defense has been lackluster (that's the nicest way I can put it). They have currently lost 8 straight on the road. Joakim Noah put it best when he said that the team "definitely have a lot of soul searching to do." There has been no fire in this team all year. It looks like they just go out there and play flat every game, which is just plain not going to win you games. Del Negro hasn't done anything to demonstrate that he has any idea how to coach, especially after allowing the Bulls to blow their 35 point lead to Sacramento and lose by 4. After watching all this, I say, much like the Bears, its time to clean house. Get rid of Del Negro and a number of the players. Keep Rose, Noah, Gibson, James Johnson, and Kirk and just start over. There was a very interesting articles on ESPN.com recently regarding how the Blackhawks are slowly overtaking the Bulls for popularity in Chicago (article).

Ok, that's enough for now. I'll get to some winter meeting deals and such in regards to the White Sox and Cubbies sometimes in the next day or 2. Have a great holidays to all those out there in internet land.

1st post/Health Care Reform

So here I am, in suburbia, IL not sure what to do with myself. Hence, I start a blog. I'll be writing about pretty much anything that comes to my head, from interesting medically related stuff to Chicago sports to sweet celeb gossip. If it runs through my head, it'll probably end up on this blog in some form or another.

Onto my first post....

Now into my 2nd year of medical student, I'm pretty used to living on an incredibly restricted budget and simultaneously watching my level of debit rise faster than the number of Tiger Woods mistresses coming out of the woodwork. Living in such a way, I find that I'm living in an idyllic world of medical beliefs. I see comprehensive health care for all a necessity, regardless of physician reimbursement (Random Factoid of the Day: Family physicians currently are reimbursed $3 for an office visit for people on Medicaid), cost to the system, etc. While I understand that I am immensely simplifying a complex issue, I think it's unbelievable that people are forced to choose whether they have housing, food, or health care that month. Even more astounding are the number of hoops that people on public aid, etc. must jump through to simply see a doctor. In light of this, since the swearing in of President Obama on January 21st of this year, I have been waiting with baited breath to finally see some action by Congress on such a critical issue.

Today, the Senate passed the first step of health care reform legislation (60-39) in a historic Christmas eve vote (first one in 114 years). While a step in the right direction and getting a lot right (e.g. no pre-existing exclusion to policies), there are 3 major problems with this bill (amongst others like how we are going to pay for all this):

1. No Public Option
This has been one of the major sticking points with the whole health care reform movement. Maybe it's just me, but don't we already have a form of this? It's called Medicare. So, I'm not sure why so many people are in an upheaval about this being some kind of new 'socialist' ideation. Further more, I see a lack of this coming back to bite the government/U.S. citizens in the caboose. By straying from such an option, the Government seems to implicitly be backing the notion of health care co-ops. To briefly explain, these co-ops would basically be a non-for-profit group of people who would self-assemble and negotiate their own rates of payment with physicians. The governmental involvement would be a $6 billion dollar investment in getting these started and then allowing these groups autonomy. Ugh, where to begin. First of all, there would seemingly need to be substantial national or regional organization in order to negotiate even halfway decent rates as compared to private insurance (which is going to be difficult to accomplish). Further, the number of benefits that co-ops would be able to offer its constituency would not be near enough to compete with the large insurance companies. Finally, just look at the track record. While there have been some co-ops that have succeed in Washington (state) and Minnesota, the vast majority have fallen face down like a drunk celebrate trying to argue out of a DUI. Not good. At least a public option would have the organization and resources to push the insurance companies into offering good benefits at competitive rates. Co-ops just won't have enough to force this issue. Damn insurance lobbies are going to screw people out of the best coverage possible.


2. Abortion Clause
As the House attempted to pass their health care bill on Nov. 7th, Rep. Stupak of Michigan threw in an amendment that nearly sank the whole thing. His addition was to exclude coverage for a woman's abortion if they received an federal coverage. In the wake of these actions, Sen. Nelson of Nebraska today attempted to block this provision, once again nearly scuttling months worth of work. In the end, it was decided that women must pay in order to obtain abortion coverage. I understand the fervor over this topic and will try to stay away from the ethics. Nonetheless, an abortion is still a medical procedure performed by doctors and excluding it would be like excluding some other random procedure, say a mole removal. In the case of a mole removal, both are optional procedures, require the removal of alive tissue from the body, and can lead to complications/further issues (**Note: I'm not saying that having a baby is a complication/issue. But being pregnant comes with a whole slew of other risk factors like hypertension, gestational diabetes, etc. Also, there is always a risk of ectopic pregnancy, etc.) I just don't see how you can exclude one procedure without making an argument for excluding others and thereby leading to the whole exclusion problem all over again.

3. Who is Covered?
While the passage of today's legislation helps cover tens of millions of people, what happened to helping those ~150-200 million people currently with employer-supplied insurance that are at risk/currently struggling with extravagant out-of-pocket health care expenses? Well, in short, those people are screwed. Especially since there is little proposed about what alternatives would be available to those who switch jobs or are unemployed. Further, for those who keep their jobs, a new excise tax on employer health plans that are deemed to be 'Cadillac policies' has been proposed. The tax would be imposed on any annual premiums that exceeded $23,000 for family coverage. If this increase is enacted, you'd have to assume that companies would decrease benefits to remain under the $23,000 line. This assumption was backed up by Mercer (a benefits consulting firm) who polled employers and found that 2/3 of the companies polled would do exactly that if the tax is instituted. So basically, by including the tax, we'd be incentivizing profit-fueled companies to provide even less benefits to their employees, and thus require employees to pay more out-of-pocket. If we don't include the tax and leave things how they are, employees are required to pay a lot out-of-pocket. So, we're essentially making a change to change nothing. Great job Congress.

Overall, what I want most out of this is for anyone to be able to go see their doctor when they have a problem and not have to wonder if they are going to be able to pay their rent or for groceries if they do. This is a call to those on the Hill (who have great health care mind you): PLEASE don't forget about anyone of your constituents, be it the uninsured poor man, the middle class woman who pays >25% of her yearly income for health coverage, or the employer trying to give his employees the most he can in terms of health benefits. Helping one and causing another to struggle is not an answer.