Janel Swallia
janelswallia@mycwi.cc
English 102 035W
Title Page
Health Care in Local, Film, and Global Issues
Sunday, December 9, 2012
Introduction
Janel Swallia
janelswallia@mycwi.cc
English 102 035W
Introduction
This
project analyzes health care issues happening in the United States. It looks at
how films interpret health care, and how people in foreign countries like
Africa receive health care if any at all. It looks at AIDS in America and
Africa, and how Ebola is affecting people in Africa.
Local Issues
College
of Western Idaho
Health Care in America
Janel Swallia
0093399
English 102 035W
Leslie Jewkes
October 17, 2012
Abstract;
This paper will describe the different
types of health care the government has to offer. It will analyze different
diseases that the United States is currently experiencing with. It will look at
AIDS, Obesity, and Cancer more specifically. It will also show that the
government has a lot to offer when it comes to treatment for these problems. It
will also show that this new “ObamaCare” wasn’t necessarily needed because
people without insurance still have other options to look at.
Talking about health care in the
United States tends to always be a touchy subject. Some people have nothing but
praise for it, boasting that we have the best health care in the world. Others
on the other hand have very little good things to say about it. These
individuals are always complaining that the U.S. government needs to be doing
more, or that they need to be spending more money on research. Some argue that
we need more health care options for people without insurance that have
pre-diagnosed conditions, and that this new thing called “ObamaCare” is the
only answer. This paper is written to defend the works of the government, and
to show that “ObamaCare” wasn’t necessarily needed because of the other options
our government already had to offer. It will also examine the current status of
the governments work on current diseases like AIDS and Cancer.
AIDS and cancer have always been two
major problems that have loomed over the United States. These two diseases are
with out a doubt frightening because we have yet to find a cure for them, and
also because they are really common. In 2010 it was found that 1.3 million
Americans were suffering with HIV/AIDS. On a government website it also showed
that 1 in 5 people are unaware that they have HIV and that every 9.5 minutes
someone has become infected with the disease. Obesity is something that has
also been running rampant in the U.S. The Center for Disease Control mentioned
that 35.7% of Americans were obese. They also found that “obesity can lead to
different types of conditions. Some of them being: heart disease, stroke, type
2 diabetes, and certain types of cancer.” It was found in 2008 that 11,958,000
men and women had been diagnosed with cancer.
According to the government website, aids.gov, it talks about the new
HIV/AIDS Strategy that the president has come up with to help stop the spread
of infection. On July 13th, 2010 President Obama came up with three
goals that he wanted to achieve, which that being to, “Prevent New HIV
Infections, Increase Access to Care and Optimize Health Outcomes, and Reduce HIV-Related
Health Disparities.” He then when on to state that this strategy shouldn’t just
be the government’s responsibility, but that everyone should join in on the
effort. This means that citizens would reach out more to people with these
diseases, getting messages out about how to protect yourself from contracting
infections, and also more funding from everyone through charities and
non-profit organizations.
In spite of what most Americans think,
the government is doing what it can to help out. Just recently, in April of
2012, the Health and Human Services gave 68 million in grants to just woman,
children, and youth that are dealing with the HIV virus alone. Millions of
dollars in grants are given every year just for the fight for AIDS. This money
doesn’t just go to finding a cure, but it also goes to help people that are
currently are dealing with it. In 2010 the HHS (the Health and Human Services) gave
out 1.84 billion dollars for the health care of HIV/AIDS and for medications.
Now with all this money going to the
funding of AIDS, one would think that the government would have forgotten about
cancer, but this is not true at all. When talking about the budget for this
upcoming year 2013, the American Association for Cancer Research’s progress
report stated, “The current NIH (National Institutes of Health) budget is $30.6
billion for FY (Fiscal Year) 2012, having peaked in FY 2010. The President's
Budget Proposal and a House-passed measure would provide flat funding for FY 2013,
whereas the current Senate proposal would provide a $100 million increase.” The
government has not taken these issues lightly, and has continued on funding
these diseases. In fact the government spends roughly 17% (Christopher
Chantrill) of its budget on healthcare alone. In conjunction with that, it was
found that in 2011, that the government spent 103 million to target chronic
diseases. It was stated that chronic diseases are the number one reason for
killing citizens in America. “Chronic diseases are responsible for 75 percent of healthcare costs in
the United States, according to government statistics. The root causes of
chronic disease are often related to economic, social and physical factors such
as tobacco use or a lack of places to exercise.” If we got rid of things like
tobacco in the U.S., people would be able to live longer, also if more places
were provided for means of exercise then that might also help out the problem
with obesity and all of the health concerns that come with being overweight.
These
aspects of health care are not the only solutions that the government is
working on, . When I was doing some more in-depth research I found that there
are numerous healthcare programs for people that already have pre-existing
conditions. It is a common myth that people with pre-existing conditions cannot
get any health insurance. This in fact is untrue, the government has provided
many options for people with conditions to receive healthcare. According to
Emily Main, “One
provision that you may not have heard about is the establishment of
Pre-Existing Condition Insurance Plans (PCIPs). The plans are intended to help
people who have pre-existing
conditions and were previously denied coverage to get insurance
between now and 2014, when the law will make it illegal for private insurance
companies to deny coverage to people with pre-existing conditions.” Because of
the PCIPs, people could have low-cost insurance that would cover their
pre-existing conditions. This was something that was put into effect before the
Affordable Health Care Act of 2010. Another thing to note is that the
Affordable Health Care Act of 2010 or “ObamaCare” forces Americans to purchase
health insurance, but a federal judge in Virginia pronounced that this was
unconstitutional. The opinions of the Affordable Health Care Act of 2010 are
undoubtedly split, “A recent poll by the Kaiser Family Foundation found
Americans split down the middle, with 41 percent approving of the law, and 40 percent
saying they didn't like it” (Joshua Holland AlterNet). According to this article it says that
Americans are misinformed on this Act. It explains the benefits of it; it will
make the richer Americans pay more taxes, that it will cut down on the deficit,
and that communities will be getting more money. This article further explains
that most Americans will like the Act once they know more about it. But the Act
was not necessary. As stated above, Americans had plenty of options to choose
from, and they would have known about these options if it had been more
properly advertised. The solution isn’t to make more health care plans, but to
advertise the ones that are already in effect. If those plans do not work then
it would be time to implement a new one to try out. The research did not show a
reason as to why these programs are not advertised, but a problem with the lack
of advertising is that money is wasted on programs each year that people are
not even using. If they were able to reach out to people more that are in need
of this health insurance, then we would not even need the Affordable Health
Care Act. They would be able to save money, and in turn use the money for
different programs that are in need of it. One-source talks about how the
government would be able to save money instead of using the costly “ObamaCare”.
“The federal government should create a nationwide rule (which states would
implement) allowing the continuously insured to move from one insurance group
to another, including individual market plans, without facing coverage
exclusions or premium adjustments based on the development of potentially
costly health conditions since they first gained coverage.”(Tom Miller and
James Capretta).
During
an interview with a registered nurse from Boise, Idaho, Celina Abernathy has
had quite a bit of experience in the medical field and she has seen first hand
some of the options that hospitals give to their clients without health
insurance. It was first asked if she had to deal with people without health
insurance, and what the experience seemed to be like for them. The next
question was if the hospital had any options to give their clients if they did
not have any insurance. “There were several people without health
insurance. The experiences seemed stressful for them because it came out of
their pockets. We would either set up a payment plan for them or go by their
income (which includes pay stubs from your employer) and if they are living in
poverty we would charge them by their monthly income.” The last question then
went on to ask her what her opinion on “ObamaCare” care was and if she thought
if it would be useful or not, “I feel it is your choice as a American to have
healthcare or not. You should not be penalized for not having it, but I do feel
there should be more options for more affordable healthcare for those who do
want it. I feel it could be useful in a lot of cases but should not be forced.”
Lastly I asked her if she believed that the U.S. government was doing what it
could to provide programs to those in need and if they were spending their
money usefully, “I do believe the government helps out quite a bit for people
without healthcare. There are several programs that will waive your fees, but a
lot of people don't know about it. There are also doctor offices that will
charge you by your monthly income or not charge you at all if your income is
low enough. In all of these situations the government covers.”
Despite what most Americans believe
the government does help out as much as it can. It gives grants and billions of
dollars every year to help out with diseases like AIDS, cancer, and obesity.
Obama has laid out a strategy to help those dealing with AIDS, and has created
a program where people can talk about their experiences with AIDS freely
without being judged. The government laid out different solutions of healthcare
to those with pre-existing conditions, and it was found that “ObamaCare” wasn’t
necessarily needed. There are so many programs that are swept under the rug and
government money is wasted on these yearly. One thing that they needed to do
however is to expand on their advertising to get these programs out in the open.
Works Cited:
1. “HHS awards $68 million in grants for HIV/AIDS care for women, infants,
children and youth.” U.S. Department of Health & Human Services. 14 August
2012. Web. 2012.
2. “HHS Awards $1.84 Billion in Grants for HIV/AIDS Care and Medications.”
U.S. Department of Health & Human Services. 05 April 2010. Web. 2012.
3.
Holland, Joshua. “10 Reasons Most People Like Obamacare Once They Know What's Really In
It.” AlterNet. Holland, Joshua. 03 July 2012. Web. 2012.
4. “Global
HIV and AIDS Estimates, 2009 and 2010.” Avert. UNAIDS. Web. 2012.
5. “HIV in the United States.” U.S. Department of
Health & Human Services. 06 June 2012. Web. 2012
6. “Cancer Prevalence: How Many People Have
Cancer?” The American Cancer Society. 23 October 2012. Web. 2012.
7. “Adult
Obesity Facts.” Center for Disease Control and Prevention. 13 August 2012. Web.
2012.
8. Chantrill, Christopher. “Estimated FY 2012
Spending for Governments in the United States.” Web. 2012.
9. Griffin, R. Morgan. “Getting Insurance When you
Have a Health Problem.” Karriem-Norwood, Varnada. Web. 2012.
10. Main, Emily. “The Low-Cost Health Care Option
You Never Heard Of.” Rodale. Web. 2012
11. “Federal Appropriations for the NIH and NCI.”
AACR Cancer Progress Report. Philadelphia. 2012. Web. 2012.
12. Monegain, Bernie. “$103M in Government Funding
Targets Chronic Disease.” Health Care IT News. Monegain, Bernie. MedTech Media.
Web. 2012.
13.
Miller, Tom & Capretta C. James. “Curing the Pre-existing Conditions of
ObamaCare.” The American. American Enterprise Institute. 10 September 2012.
Web. 2012.
14.
Goodnough, Abby. “Liking it or Not, States Prepare for Health Law.” The New York
Times. 23 September 2012. Web. 2012
Personal Piece #1
Janel
Swallia
English
102 035W
Personal
Writing
Fiction
Jim the Mutt
There once was a chicken, his name was
Eddie. Now Eddie was a small little rooster, but he was very handsome. Jet black
was his feathers, small brown beady eyes, and a comb that was blood red. Every
morning he would do his duty at precisely 5am. He would puff up his feathers,
and as loudly as he could he would say, Kaka-Doodle-Doo! Now there was a lazy
dog named Jim that hated being woken up at 5am every single day. He was a
scruffy thing. A pure mutt he was. He wasn't much bigger then a blood hound,
and he even had some of the characteristics of one. He was pretty irritable
too, and this particular morning he was even more irritable. He heard the
piercing call that Eddie made, and was awoken almost right away. He growled under
his breath. He could no longer stand this insolence.
"I will make sure that Eddie will never Kaka-doodle-doo again!" He vowed. His mind began to reel with ideas. Suddenly he came up with a plan, one that was cunning, one that would for sure end this once and for all. But he would need help, help from someone that also was annoyed with Eddie's unbearable calls. Suddenly he had it, Jewel, the fluffy white bunny. She was spoiled, and a bit fat, but she hated Eddie almost as much as he.
Quickly Jim was up, he trotted to where Jewel stayed. It was a small little building, and about ten other rabbits were housed there. Everyone was awake, which was no surprise thanks to Eddie. They all nodded a greeting to Jim, and he nodded to them slightly, not caring for any of these rabbits. The one he cared about seeing had her own spot in the back, A nice giant pen, that was decorated by pink fuzzy pillows.
"Jewel?" He called, not quite spotting her in her pen.
He heard her groan, "What??" she whined as she emerged from underneath a mound of pillows. Almost immediately she saw Jim sitting by her pen, she rolled her eyes. What did this dog want now? She wondered to herself.
"Jewel you know as well as I do that Eddie is annoying, he must be stopped." Jim growled quietly. He didn't want the other rabbits to overhear.
She looked at him curiously, "Oh? and I suppose you have a plan?"
"Yes I do." He grinned. But his grin looked almost evil, his lips were pulled back, showing all of his white pearly teeth, all looking dangerous.
"What will I get out of this by helping you?" The princess of a bunny asked, she was definitely interested in helping, but if she could get something out of it she would certainly help him for sure.
"You'll get all of the sleep you want..." He said, but he saw her skeptical face, so quickly he added, “And a big pile of carrots."
Jewel squeaked with pleasure, "Well of course my dear, you have a deal."
Jim leaned in and whispered his plan to her, all the while Jewel would squeak again in pleasure. This was a plan that had to work! It was perfect.
Both Jim, and Jewel waited until 4:30 am for when their plan would commence. They watched as Eddie began to climb to his post, and there he stayed. They knew he was waiting for 5am, when he would call and awake their masters.
Jewel hopped over to where Eddie was, she looked up, "Why hello Eddie? Getting ready to wake everyone up I see."
Eddie fluffed his feathers with pride, "Why yes my good Jewel, I certainly am."
"Good." She squeaked, her head tilted to one side, a look of pure delight danced in her red eyes.
"Need something else Jewel?" Eddie asked quite curiously. If he had been a smarted rooster he would have sensed something behind him, something fowl, something dangerous. But he did not, he was too busy being proud of his duty.
"Yes." Jewel laughed, "YOU!"
Eddie jumped in surprise at her sudden raised voice, but he didn't jump far, something grabbed onto his torso. He squawked in surprise and in fear. Jim growled, but that made the noisy rooster squawk more. So very quickly Jim jumped down and Jewel put her bunny paws over the rooster's mouth to muffle the noise. They took him to an abandoned barn at the edge of the property. And waited, soon the sun was up high in the sky and they set Eddie free.
Eddie ran as fast as he could to his post, he was frightened, but he knew that he needed to wake his masters up. He knew it was late morning, but maybe the masters wouldn't mind him being late.
Finally he made it back to his post and did his call. A few minutes later two people came out, angry. "Dang bird! I was supposed to be awake hours ago!!" one of them growled. "He's useless!" whined the female.
They came over to Eddie and caught him, Eddie was confused and frightened. He thought that these people liked him, why were they doing this?
Jim and Jewel had come back, they watched as the masters took Eddie into another barn. Both of them smiled, they heard a loud squawk and then silence. Finally Eddie's reign was over. Jim barked and yelped in happiness, and Jewel hopped around in joy.
Jim quickly gave Jewel a big pile of carrots, and that night both went to sleep. Jim was having a wonderful dream when suddenly he heard a Kaka-Doodle-Doo! He jerked awake. "Huh?" he growled. Thinking he was hearing things he bounded quickly to where Eddie had done his calls. And there stood a majestic golden rooster, he was a lot bigger then Eddie had been.
"Who are you!?" Demanded Jim to the rooster.
"My name is King, I am Eddie's son." He said fluffing his golden feathers the way Eddie always had.
"What!?" Jim suddenly was in a rage, he jumped up to attack the rooster but this rooster was stronger and smarted than Eddie had been. He attacked right back. The rooster pecked at both of Jim's eyes, and Jim whined, and crawled backwards.
"Ahh! I'm blind!" The mutt yelped. He laid there defenseless.
"Now I hope there won't be anymore trouble from you Jim." King cooed proudly.
"No.." Jim whined. The masters had come out and seen what had happened to Jim. Both were sad to see what had happened to their dog, so they brought him into the house, and there he stayed the rest of his days, never bothering another animal, or chicken again.
Epilogue
Jewel soon grew very fat from her big pile of carrots that she eventually died from overeating a few days after Jim had lost his sight.
The chickens then reigned over the farm and no one bothered them again.
The End
"I will make sure that Eddie will never Kaka-doodle-doo again!" He vowed. His mind began to reel with ideas. Suddenly he came up with a plan, one that was cunning, one that would for sure end this once and for all. But he would need help, help from someone that also was annoyed with Eddie's unbearable calls. Suddenly he had it, Jewel, the fluffy white bunny. She was spoiled, and a bit fat, but she hated Eddie almost as much as he.
Quickly Jim was up, he trotted to where Jewel stayed. It was a small little building, and about ten other rabbits were housed there. Everyone was awake, which was no surprise thanks to Eddie. They all nodded a greeting to Jim, and he nodded to them slightly, not caring for any of these rabbits. The one he cared about seeing had her own spot in the back, A nice giant pen, that was decorated by pink fuzzy pillows.
"Jewel?" He called, not quite spotting her in her pen.
He heard her groan, "What??" she whined as she emerged from underneath a mound of pillows. Almost immediately she saw Jim sitting by her pen, she rolled her eyes. What did this dog want now? She wondered to herself.
"Jewel you know as well as I do that Eddie is annoying, he must be stopped." Jim growled quietly. He didn't want the other rabbits to overhear.
She looked at him curiously, "Oh? and I suppose you have a plan?"
"Yes I do." He grinned. But his grin looked almost evil, his lips were pulled back, showing all of his white pearly teeth, all looking dangerous.
"What will I get out of this by helping you?" The princess of a bunny asked, she was definitely interested in helping, but if she could get something out of it she would certainly help him for sure.
"You'll get all of the sleep you want..." He said, but he saw her skeptical face, so quickly he added, “And a big pile of carrots."
Jewel squeaked with pleasure, "Well of course my dear, you have a deal."
Jim leaned in and whispered his plan to her, all the while Jewel would squeak again in pleasure. This was a plan that had to work! It was perfect.
Both Jim, and Jewel waited until 4:30 am for when their plan would commence. They watched as Eddie began to climb to his post, and there he stayed. They knew he was waiting for 5am, when he would call and awake their masters.
Jewel hopped over to where Eddie was, she looked up, "Why hello Eddie? Getting ready to wake everyone up I see."
Eddie fluffed his feathers with pride, "Why yes my good Jewel, I certainly am."
"Good." She squeaked, her head tilted to one side, a look of pure delight danced in her red eyes.
"Need something else Jewel?" Eddie asked quite curiously. If he had been a smarted rooster he would have sensed something behind him, something fowl, something dangerous. But he did not, he was too busy being proud of his duty.
"Yes." Jewel laughed, "YOU!"
Eddie jumped in surprise at her sudden raised voice, but he didn't jump far, something grabbed onto his torso. He squawked in surprise and in fear. Jim growled, but that made the noisy rooster squawk more. So very quickly Jim jumped down and Jewel put her bunny paws over the rooster's mouth to muffle the noise. They took him to an abandoned barn at the edge of the property. And waited, soon the sun was up high in the sky and they set Eddie free.
Eddie ran as fast as he could to his post, he was frightened, but he knew that he needed to wake his masters up. He knew it was late morning, but maybe the masters wouldn't mind him being late.
Finally he made it back to his post and did his call. A few minutes later two people came out, angry. "Dang bird! I was supposed to be awake hours ago!!" one of them growled. "He's useless!" whined the female.
They came over to Eddie and caught him, Eddie was confused and frightened. He thought that these people liked him, why were they doing this?
Jim and Jewel had come back, they watched as the masters took Eddie into another barn. Both of them smiled, they heard a loud squawk and then silence. Finally Eddie's reign was over. Jim barked and yelped in happiness, and Jewel hopped around in joy.
Jim quickly gave Jewel a big pile of carrots, and that night both went to sleep. Jim was having a wonderful dream when suddenly he heard a Kaka-Doodle-Doo! He jerked awake. "Huh?" he growled. Thinking he was hearing things he bounded quickly to where Eddie had done his calls. And there stood a majestic golden rooster, he was a lot bigger then Eddie had been.
"Who are you!?" Demanded Jim to the rooster.
"My name is King, I am Eddie's son." He said fluffing his golden feathers the way Eddie always had.
"What!?" Jim suddenly was in a rage, he jumped up to attack the rooster but this rooster was stronger and smarted than Eddie had been. He attacked right back. The rooster pecked at both of Jim's eyes, and Jim whined, and crawled backwards.
"Ahh! I'm blind!" The mutt yelped. He laid there defenseless.
"Now I hope there won't be anymore trouble from you Jim." King cooed proudly.
"No.." Jim whined. The masters had come out and seen what had happened to Jim. Both were sad to see what had happened to their dog, so they brought him into the house, and there he stayed the rest of his days, never bothering another animal, or chicken again.
Epilogue
Jewel soon grew very fat from her big pile of carrots that she eventually died from overeating a few days after Jim had lost his sight.
The chickens then reigned over the farm and no one bothered them again.
The End
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