LifeMine Vision Care
August 31, 2010 - 10:49 pm
The LifeMine personal health organizer comes with a 45min dvd. This section is on the importance of vision care
Duration : 0:3:3
Posts Tagged ‘history’
Historic Health Care Bill Signed
August 29, 2010 - 5:16 pm
During a triumphant ceremony for congressional Democrats, President Barack Obama signed the historic health care reform legislation bill into law. Chip Reid reports.
Duration : 0:2:17
Historic Health Care Bill Signed
August 29, 2010 - 5:08 pm
During a triumphant ceremony for congressional Democrats, President Barack Obama signed the historic health care reform legislation bill into law. Chip Reid reports.
Duration : 0:2:17
On the Road to Health Reform, Congress Moves a Step Closer
August 29, 2010 - 4:02 pm
This is the VOA Special English Economics Report, from http://voaspecialenglish.com
A major reform of the American system of health care and insurance has moved farther in Congress than ever before. President Obama wants a final bill passed by the end of the year. But a difficult road still lies ahead.
On November seventh, the House of Representatives passed a bill with an estimated trillion-dollar price over ten years. The president called the vote historic. President Obama said the Affordable Health Care for America Act will provide stability and security for Americans who have insurance. It will provide quality affordable options for those who dont. And it will bring down the cost of health care for families, business and the government while strengthening the financial health of Medicare.
But thirty-nine Democrats voted no, and only one Republican, Joseph Cao of Louisiana, voted yes. The bill passed with just two more votes than required. Republicans say the plan would add to the nation’s debt, raise insurance costs and expand government involvement in health care.
Republican Representative Joe Barton from Texas said: “So, there is a choice. Bigger government, more mandates, more control, less freedom. Or lower costs, more opportunity, more freedom or more choice. I vote for more freedom.”
The bill aims to provide health coverage to thirty-six million Americans. That would raise the nation’s coverage rate to about ninety-six percent.
The most disputed part of the bill is a “public option” for individuals and small businesses. The government would compete with private plans by offering its own insurance — based on payment rates negotiated with providers.
The House bill would raise taxes on high earners to help pay for the plan. It would also cut four hundred billion dollars from health programs for the retired and poor — money that supporters of the bill say is now being wasted.
Most Americans would have to buy insurance or pay a fine; the government would help the needy. All but the smallest businesses would have to offer insurance for their workers or pay a tax. Some small businesses could receive tax credits to help with their costs. Insurance companies could not deny or cancel coverage for people with pre-existing conditions. And the industry would lose its protection from anti-competitive laws.
And that’s the VOA Special English Economics Report. You can read more about the health care debate at voaspecialenglish.com.
(Adapted from a radio program broadcast 13Nov2009)
Duration : 0:4:2
David Axelrod Comments On The Late Sen. Edward Kennedy
August 29, 2010 - 3:37 pm
White House Senior Adviser David Axelrod talks to CNN on the morning after the death of Sen. Edward Kennedy. Axelrod shares memories about Kennedy and his remarkable career in the Senate, and comments on where the health care reform plan stands in the wake of his passing.
Duration : 0:3:33
LifeMine family medical history
August 29, 2010 - 3:09 pm
The LifeMine personal health organizer comes with a 45 min dvd. This section is on the family medical hsitory
Duration : 0:0:37
Obama Signs Historic Health Care Bill
August 29, 2010 - 3:07 pm
This is the VOA Special English Health Report, from http://voaspecialenglish.com
President Obama has signed legislation to make the biggest changes in the health care system
in forty-five years. The president said: “Today, after almost a century of trying; today, after over a year of debate; today, after all the votes have been tallied, health insurance reform becomes law in the United States of America.
Many parts of the plan will fully take effect in four years. But some take effect quickly. For example,
in six months the new law will bar insurance companies from denying coverage to children with
pre-existing health conditions. Adults with pre-existing conditions will be added in four years.
The government will help millions of people pay for insurance. It will also permit millions more to receive free coverage through the Medicaid program for the poor. In all, the plan aims to make health insurance available to thirty-two million people now without it. People will be able to buy private policies through marketplaces called exchanges to be administered by
the states. Illegal immigrants
will not be able to take part.
An estimated eighty-three percent of people under age sixty-five who are in the United States legally now have insurance coverage. The plan
is expected to raise that to
ninety-five percent within
several years. People over
sixty-five are covered by the Medicare insurance program which
the government created in nineteen sixty-five. For the first time, Americans will be required to have health insurance or face a yearly fine starting in four years. The law will also require companies with more than fifty employees to
offer coverage. If not, they could face a fine of two thousand dollars a year for every worker. Also, this year the law will start closing what is known as “the doughnut hole.” That is a lack of Medicare
coverage for some drug costs for older Americans. President Obama promised senior citizens that the reforms will not cut their guaranteed benefits. The
Senate quickly made a last set of legislative fixes needed in the
new law. However, some states have already gone to court to fight the new health care reform law. The health care plan is expected to cost about nine hundred forty billion dollars over ten years. But it is also expected to help reduce the federal budget deficit.
And that’s the VOA Special English Health report. You can comment on this story at our Web site, voaspecialenglish.com.
(Adapted from a radio program broadcast 24Mar2010)
Duration : 0:4:1
Simple, Low-Cost Ways to Cut the Risk of an Early Birth
August 29, 2010 - 2:36 pm
This is the VOA Special English Development Report, from http://voaspecialenglish.com
We talked last week about a new report on preterm births the leading cause of death in newborn babies worldwide.
Each year an estimated thirteen million babies are born too soon. More than one million of them die as a result of their prematurity. Yet experts say many early births can be prevented.
The report came from the March of Dimes and the World Health Organization. Christopher Howson is the vice president for global programs at the March of Dimes, a nonprofit group. He says there are a number of simple, low-cost interventions that can improve the chances of a full-term birth.
Mister Howson said: “We should treat malnutrition in women both before and during pregnancy. We should treat infections that increase risk. We should monitor pregnancies carefully for signs of trouble. And should that baby be born preterm, we should care for that baby by providing a package of interventions that have been shown to be tried and true and very effective.”
For example, there are programs in Africa that teach the skin-to-skin method, also known as kangaroo care. Mothers learn to carry preterm babies in front instead of the traditional African way of carrying a baby on the mother’s back. Skin-to-skin helps keep a preterm baby warm and makes it easier for the baby to breastfeed.
Most preterm births take place in Africa and Asia. But rates in the United States have increased by more than one-third in the last twenty-five years.
Alan Fleischman is the medical director of the March of Dimes. He was among a group of medical experts who met in Washington, D.C., in October.
The group met to develop a plan for dealing with the problem in the United States. Doctor Fleischman says there is concern especially about rising numbers of what are known as late preterm births.
Those are the babies who are born between thirty-four and thirty-seven weeks of pregnancy. They are responsible for seventy-two percent of all premature births in America.
The rise of these births may be linked to increased use of drugs to start or speed up labor and more births by Cesarean section. Doctor Fleischman says the group strongly advises against these interventions before thirty-nine weeks unless medically necessary. The experts also say doctors need to work with pregnant women to do a better job of estimating exactly when a pregnancy began.
And that’s the VOA Special English Development Report.
(Adapted from a radio program broadcast 26Oct2009)
Duration : 0:4:2
Sen. Kennedy’s Cause: Health Care Reform
August 29, 2010 - 1:54 pm
In December, Senate Democrats led historic Senate passage of The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, delivering on the cause of Senator Kennedys life. The Senate is currently working with the House and President Obama to secure a final bill through both chambers of Congress.
The video includes archival footage of Senator Kennedy as well as Presidents Theodore Roosevelt, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Harry Truman, John F. Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson and Barack Obama discussing the need for comprehensive health reform through the years. Each leader’s work to extend health coverage to more Americans is highlighted. Decades-old clips and recent interviews with Senator Kennedy’s colleagues look back at what he described as the cause of his life: making health care a fundamental right for all Americans.
Duration : 0:6:21
Unemployed? No Health Insurance? What’s your story?
August 29, 2010 - 1:53 pm
Our employer based coverage scheme was began during WWII when businesses were legally barred from raising wages. Benefits tied to an employer may have made sense when jobs were long term but in this age seem an anachronism. What’s your story with insurance?
Duration : 0:3:23