Healthcare
U.S. healthcare System working to be Part of Global Change
The US Healthcare system is a substantial contributor to climate change, responsible for about 10% of the nation's carbon emissions and 9% of harmful non-greenhouse air pollutants. If the global health sector were a country, it would be the 5th largest emitter on the planet. Fortunately, there are a growing number of cutting-edge Wisconsin and national health care facilities that have made significant progress by voluntarily incorporating sustainability into their work.
Gundersen Hospital in La Crosse leads Wisconsin's pioneers. In 2008, then CEO Jeff Thompson, MD ...
Supreme Politics
The recent big news story is the Supreme Court's leaked draft of the upcoming decision to overturn Roe vs Wade. This should be no surprise. It has long been expected.
Obama was outrageously denied an appointment and Trump made three appointments to the Court. These three judges were deliberately chosen for their opposition to abortion and their extreme positions on other issues. The current Supreme Court is a glaring example of a “packed” court dominated by extreme right wing ideologues. These judges are not impartial arbiters of the law.
Jim Hightower devoted ...
Poor People’s Campaign rallies to Washington D.C.
We will have a full story in our next edition of Middle Wisconsin.
In 1968, Martin Luther King Jr. organized low-income Americans of different backgrounds in a march on Washington known as the "Poor People's Campaign."
Over fifty-years later, thousands of protesters gathered Saturday to deliver that same message at the Poor People's and Low-Wage Workers' Assembly and Moral March on Washington and to the Polls.
The rally urged low-income voters to participate in the upcoming midterm elections and featured religious organizations, pro-democracy groups, labor ...
Women’s reproductive health under fire from an unjust system
Eight million women are uninsured as they face the "Medicaid gap" when their income is too high for Medicaid and too low to purchase healthcare through the Affordable Care Act (ACA).
Individual Liberty and Health Care
Recently I had conversation with a college student on the subject of a national health care program. The student objected to “Obama Care” because it limited his “liberty.” Being required to participate infringed on his freedom to choose not having health insurance. He also objected to paying for other people, especially those who might do unhealthy things.
I suggested to him that we are all members of a society. No man, or woman, is an island and no one is free to do, or not do, anything they want. All civilized societies impose necessary restrictions on people. ...
Looking at ACA
Remember the high-gloss campaign mailings? The non-stop TV and radio campaign ads from last year about protecting people with pre-existing conditions? I bet you heard more than you ever wanted about pre-existing conditions, right? Well, the number one issue from last fall’s election is coming home to roost here in the Legislature.
When I left office as State Representative in 2010, bipartisanship was at an all-time low. The biggest political football at the time was the Affordable Care Act (ACA), also known as Obamacare. Democrats knew it would be a political liabil...
AFFORDABLE CARE ACT
The Affordable Care Act (ACA), also known as Obamacare, is insurance-based healthcare legislation designed to improve Americans' access to medical care at lower costs.
Some of its components are:
get everyone in the insurance pool by requiring insurance with the individual mandate;
help low-income folks pay for insurance with government subsidies;
expand Medicaid eligibility to very low-income populations;
let children stay on parents' plans until age 26;
require insurance companies to cover pre-existing conditions;
make participating insurance ...
KEEP COVERAGE OF PRE-EXISTING CONDITIONS
I am writing to inform people that our attorney general, Brad Schimel, in a move approved by Scott Walker, is suing in federal court to overturn the part of the Affordable Care Act that prohibits health insurance companies from denying coverage to people with pre-existing conditions.
Obviously, neither of these gentlemen care about cancer survivors, diabetics or others who suffer from chronic diseases.
If you think Walker and Schimel should represent everyone, not just those of us who enjoy good health, I urge you to call your state senator and state representative ...
JASON’S LAW—BIPARTISAN VA OPIOD PRESCRIBING REFORM
You should know the story of U.S. Marine veteran, Jason Simcakoski. Like too many of our veterans, Jason Simcakoski, went to the VA to get help, but instead got hooked on prescription drugs. Tragically, Jason Simcakoski died in 2014 from mixed drug toxicity while receiving care at the Tomah Veterans Affairs Medical Center. The Simcakoski family decided to turn their tragedy into hope for other military families. Working closely with Senator Baldwin, they crafted bipartisan legislation named in honor of Jason to reform the VA and stop the overprescribing of opiods at the ...
ADVANCE DIRECTIVES
Advance directives are documents signed when we are of sound mind to inform those who will be taking care of us in the future -- usually our power of attorney -- how we want our finances handled and what we would want for medical care under particular circumstances.
Until now, there was no advance directive addressing one's preference for medical treatment when suffering from dementia.
The National Public Radio show "On Point," heard on many public radio stations from 9:00-11:00 a.m. weekdays, recently discussed a new advance directive form created to address one's ...
