A wave of high-profile retirement announcements continues to sweep through Congress. Consequently, there will be significant shifts of power within both chambers, as well as electoral developments that have the potential to change which party controls the Senate in the 114th Congress. New committee chairmanships and open-seat elections will have significant implications for both the … Continue reading
Category Archives: Healthcare
The Young and Sick?
In 2013, Kaiser released a poll stating 7 out of 10 young adults rate having health insurance as “very important” and worth spending money on. Yet a recently released Issue Brief on the Marketplace from the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE) shows that in the last three months the “young invincibles” did not … Continue reading
How Vermont’s Single Payer Proposal Can Backfire
American health care reform is a three-headed beast. Attempts at reform typically seek to resolve issues regarding access, quality care, and cost control. The ACA, one of the largest overhauls of American healthcare is aimed at improving access—but the problem becomes what good is increasing access to expensive and low quality care? Vermont’s leaders have … Continue reading
Obesity May Be the Government’s Fault
Diabetes is one of the most expensively debilitating conditions there is. It is the seventh leading cause of death in the United States with a total estimated cost of $245 billion in 2012. A new study published in Global Public Health shows that large amounts of high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) found in national food … Continue reading
The Importance of Preventive Care Training in Medical Education
As a public health professional, the emphasis on preventive care is important. It remains to be seen what the Affordable Care Act (ACA) can achieve in regards to preventive care. Currently, the ACA requires most health plans to cover a set of preventive services like shots and screening tests at no cost to the insured. … Continue reading
A Vicious Cycle of Narrow Networks: Trading Cost for Access for the Benefit of Whom?
Broader choice comes with a price. As the Affordable Care Act (ACA) slowly phases in, health policy experts predict a primary care physician shortage gap as well as a deep crack in the patient-physician relationship in the United States to grow deeper over time. Especially if the President doesn’t keep the promise he made to … Continue reading
Another Day, Another Bailout
In the early days of his presidency and even during his campaigning for the election, Obama’s primary goal was to get a comprehensive healthcare bill passed. Anyone in politics knew from the start that this would be no easy task. But who could have anticipated that the Affordable Care Act (ACA) would take over the … Continue reading
Tackling Our Attitudes Toward Aging
Age is a sensitive topic in our society. Even Hollywood actress Jessica Chastain has gone on the record saying that she will never reveal her age because she’s an “actress.” (It is widely speculated she is 35 years old.) Another actress Isabelle Huppert rebuked an interviewer for asking a question about her “longevity” in the … Continue reading
Delayed Aging: A New Concept for Living a Longer, Healthier Life
Slowing the biological aging process (senescence) is now a realistic goal. According to a new research study published in Health Affairs, the elimination of diseases such as cancer and heart disease would have less effect on longevity and quality of life than delaying aging itself. Although most medical research remains focused on combating individual diseases, … Continue reading
What the Obamacare Exchanges Could Have Learned From the Failed Launch of Diablo 3 Last Year.
“Error 37: The servers are busy. Please try again later.” This simple error was the source of much grievance for hundreds of thousands of gamers last year when Diablo 3 was first released. After waiting years for the third installment in the massively successful role playing franchise, the servers could not handle all of the … Continue reading
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