Healthcare "Re-Forum"

tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-46491153446475643482011-10-10T15:32:28.286-07:00Healthcare "Re-Forum"Thomas LaVeist, PhDhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16544973925897031088noreply@blogger.comBlogger171100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4649115344647564348.post-77338191460858113282011-04-14T07:52:00.000-07:002011-04-14T07:54:42.110-07:00

The Wolrd Health Organization has a new report out on frameworks for addressing the social determinants of health inequalities. You can obtain a copy of the report here. I will post a comment on the report once I have had a chance to look it over.

Thomas LaVeist, PhDhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16544973925897031088noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4649115344647564348.post-12600112459631647252009-10-25T09:48:00.000-07:002009-10-25T09:59:37.761-07:00Letting congress know what you think about health care reform

With congress set to vote on health care reform in the coming weeks, this would be a great time to let your representative know what you think. I know it seems that congress does not listen, but that is not necessarily true. Members of congress are very concerned to know what the people of their district think. Here are three ways you can let them know how you want them to vote on health care

Thomas LaVeist, PhDhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16544973925897031088noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4649115344647564348.post-90165713684440865862009-10-20T06:49:00.000-07:002009-10-20T12:12:08.323-07:00Are people in "government" health insurance plans as satisfied as people in private plans?

Opponents of reforming healthcare often express concern that "government" healthcare will be less desirable than private health insurance. But surveys of satisfaction with various health insurance plans show that people in Medicare (government run) are more satisfied with their health plan than people in private health insurance plans.Click here for source for chart...

Thomas LaVeist, PhDhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16544973925897031088noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4649115344647564348.post-45520545080855276752009-10-07T19:50:00.000-07:002009-10-07T20:28:18.368-07:00Do you think your health care access is safe?

In the last few days three things happened that graphically illustrate why health care reform cannot wait, and that those of you who think you are secure with your health insurance should rethink your sense of security.Friday October 2 – The US Department of Labor announced that the economy lost 263,000 jobs in September. This brings the number of jobs lost since December 2007 to 7.2 million.

Thomas LaVeist, PhDhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16544973925897031088noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4649115344647564348.post-18178515458752044772009-09-28T03:33:00.000-07:002009-09-28T04:12:45.892-07:00Racial health disparities exact moral, financial toll on nation

Today's blog entry is published as an op-ed articles in the Baltimore Sun newspaper. Follow this link to read the article. Leave a message. Let me know your reactions.

Thomas LaVeist, PhDhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16544973925897031088noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4649115344647564348.post-78403674536210014772009-09-17T02:27:00.000-07:002009-09-19T12:22:51.463-07:00The Economic Impact of Racial Inequalities in Health

This morning at the National Press Club in Washington was the release of “The Economic Burden of Health Inequalities” a report I co-authored with Darrell Gaskin of the University of Maryland, and Patrick Richard of George Washington University. The report details the economic impact that health inequalities has on the U.S. economy. This project was a labor of love. We had been seeking financial

Thomas LaVeist, PhDhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16544973925897031088noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4649115344647564348.post-79653331888072402742009-09-09T12:43:00.000-07:002009-09-17T02:39:46.357-07:00What is it really like to get health care from the British National Health Service

During the health care reform "debate" that has been going on for the last few months, we have often heard mention of how horrible it is to obtain "government-run" health care from the National Health Service in England. An editorial in the newspaper, Investor’s Business Daily, even went as far as to state that renowned physicist Stephen Hawking, a professor at the University of Cambridge would

Thomas LaVeist, PhDhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16544973925897031088noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4649115344647564348.post-58305665174446940122009-08-31T05:23:00.000-07:002009-09-03T18:49:30.570-07:00The Creator of the Obama Death Panel Myth Speaks

Last week the “Daily Show” aired an interview with Betsy McCaughey, widely considered the creator of the Obama death panel myth. Dr. McCaughey is the former Lieutenant Governor of New York State and has a PhD in history from Columbia University. Dr. McCaughey never actually used the words "death panel." In fact it was failed Vice Presidential candidate and failed Alaska Governor Sara Palin who,

Thomas LaVeist, PhDhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16544973925897031088noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4649115344647564348.post-61990162641440418872009-08-27T17:59:00.000-07:002009-08-28T18:47:05.926-07:00Should Obese People Pay Higher Health Insurance Premiums?

I was at dinner the other night with several friends and naturally healthcare reform came up in conversation. One person suggested that people who are obese should be charged higher health insurance premiums than people who are not obese. This proposal has been gaining support. While it is currently not in any of the health reform bills I have looked at, I have been hearing more and more people

Thomas LaVeist, PhDhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16544973925897031088noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4649115344647564348.post-86642374406704783242009-08-18T07:29:00.000-07:002009-08-18T08:55:15.187-07:00My new favorite Member of Congress

This morning, while drinking my “morning Joe” and watching the MSNBC TV show by the same name, I saw my new favorite member of Congress. He is Anthony Weiner, a Democrat from Brooklyn, New York. I assure you my admiration for Congressman Weiner has nothing to do with the fact that I am also a native Brooklynite. My admiration for Mr. Weiner comes from his cogent defense of the “Medicare for All”

Thomas LaVeist, PhDhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16544973925897031088noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4649115344647564348.post-31078360712263691532009-08-14T04:45:00.000-07:002009-08-28T12:25:40.374-07:00As with Medicare in the 1960s, Dems should do it alone

Like most health policy professors I have been thinking about healthcare reform for years, so when the issue finally took front stage I was elated. I strongly supported President Obama’s objective of working with Republications to find a bipartisan solution, so although I favor Senators Edward Kenney and John Dingell’s “Medicare for all” approach, I understood that would never secure Republican

Thomas LaVeist, PhDhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16544973925897031088noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4649115344647564348.post-6432493662199333742009-08-11T14:32:00.000-07:002009-08-11T14:45:05.751-07:00The President's Town Hall Meeting

The president appears to be taking a new tack in his effort to make the case for healthcare reform. I watched his town hall meeting from New Hampshire today. He made all the right arguments. He focused on the personal stories of individual Americans who had suffered in the present system. He defused the lies and rumors… death panels, and such. I always get a chuckle when I hear people rant

Thomas LaVeist, PhDhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16544973925897031088noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4649115344647564348.post-69736970822377416002009-08-06T17:55:00.000-07:002009-08-20T19:58:05.691-07:00Mental Contortionism Reigns

Healthcare reform is very complicated to explain, but very easy to distort. And, opponents are doing a great job of distortion. Their mantra - do you trust the government to run healthcare? - dredges up images of your last visit to the Department of Motor Vehicles. Now, that is scary! The fact that Medicare is a government run program somehow seems not to matter. I watched Keith Olbermann tonight

Thomas LaVeist, PhDhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16544973925897031088noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4649115344647564348.post-64934749152999681152009-07-30T18:48:00.000-07:002009-07-30T18:50:18.745-07:00New Polls Show Confusion Rules the Healthcare Reform Debate

A spate of polls was released today. Several reported that support for President Barack Obama's health-care effort has declined. According to Wall Street Journal/NBC News, in mid-June, respondents were evenly divided when asked whether they thought Mr. Obama's health plan was a good or bad idea. In the new poll, conducted July 24-27, 42% called it a bad idea while 36% said it was a good idea.This

Thomas LaVeist, PhDhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16544973925897031088noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4649115344647564348.post-75406458066766781172009-07-28T18:11:00.000-07:002009-07-28T18:17:51.282-07:00Why should your employer have anything to do with your healthcare?

The biggest problem with American healthcare isn’t the 47 million Americans without health insurance. The problem is the 260 million Americans that have health insurance.Try this experiment. Close your eyes. Clear your mind of the daily hassles of work. Now ask yourself this question. Why should my employer have anything at all to do with my healthcare?Your employer is not involved with your auto

Thomas LaVeist, PhDhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16544973925897031088noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4649115344647564348.post-19526065839153594602009-07-24T08:41:00.000-07:002009-07-24T12:27:59.713-07:00Obama Healthcare Press Conference: "Missed Opportunity?"

Wednesday night President Obama held a much anticipated press conference on healthcare reform. I didn’t watch the press conference live because I was in Washington at a dinner sponsored by the Atlantic Monthly Magazine, which brought together about 20 health policy experts to discuss healthcare reform. So instead of viewing the press conference like most Americans, I read the President’s remarks.

Thomas LaVeist, PhDhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16544973925897031088noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4649115344647564348.post-75321418655823013412009-07-22T09:23:00.000-07:002009-07-23T11:17:54.427-07:00Which Healthcare "crisis?"

Judging by the number of questions I have been getting from friends, relatives and people sitting around in the barbershop, there is a lot of confusion about healthcare reform. People seem to know there is a “healthcare crisis,” but don’t understand what about it is a crisis. So I set up this blog to try to help.About 85% of Americans have health insurance, most receive it from their employer and

Thomas LaVeist, PhDhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16544973925897031088noreply@blogger.com2