Tiddee News

WASHINGTON, March 30:  Reform in the U.S. healthcare system is of great significance this year because of increasing costs and deteriorating care, the Health and Human Services Department stated on Monday in a report.

Various studies conducted in this field justify the calls for an overhaul of the entire healthcare system. The HHS report compiles findings of these studies and publishes them at www.healthreform.gov.  

Though the call for change is not a controversial issue, conservatives and liberals hold different opinions on the approach that they should have. President Barack Obama declared he wants the legislation this year but has left to Congress to work out the details.

Jenny Backus, HHS spokeswoman, declared in a statement that today’s report outlined the excessive cost incurred just in waiting to fix a system that left countless Americans deprived of the quality healthcare they actually deserved.

According to the report the United States spent $2.2 trillion on healthcare in the year 2007, or $7,421 per capita. Healthcare expenses account for more than 16 percent of the GDP. The figure is nearly twice the average of amount spent by other developed countries.

Healthcare costs have almost doubled from 1996 to 2006. They are estimated to rise to 25 percent of the gross domestic product in 2025 and 49 percent by 2082, other things being equal.

The report reads the employer-sponsored health insurance premiums have more than doubled during the past nine years. As per this report American businesses are gradually losing their capability to battle the international marketplace because of these devastating healthcare overheads.

It was further stated in the report that despite the vast amount of resources invested in healthcare, the system has not attained the goal of high-quality care as yet.

The report said that U S scored an overall total of 65 out of a probable score of100,  across the 37 performance indications. Such reports help the US President’s beareau  to decide the US policy  of  healthcare .

Source:http://www.reuters.com/article/marketsNews/idUSN3034868020090330

March 29, 2009: A gunman killed seven aged patients and a nurse and injured several other people, including a police officer in an open fire on Sunday at a nursing home in Carthage, N.C., as reported by the authorities. Investigators in Carthage, N.C., discovered a weapon at the scene of incidence. The police have detained the gunman in custody. 
 
The shooting began at around 10 a.m. at Pinelake Health and Rehab. It is a one-story building made in brick with white rocking chairs in front.
 
The Associated Press identified the patients as Louise Decker, 98; John Goldston, 78; Lillian Dunn, 89; Tessie Garner, 88;  Bessie Hendrick, 78; Margaret Johnson, 89; and Jessie Musser, 88. They were all American residents. The nurse has been identified as Jerry Avant Jr., 39.
 
The sister of Mr. Avant, Frances Green, said the authorities were of the opinion that her brother was shot when he was trying to prevent the gunman.
 
Ms. Green said, “He just lay down his life to protect the residents and employees there,” “Unfortunately he lost his life. But he was a hero.”
 
The gunman has been identified as Robert Stewart, aged 45. He was wounded and held in custody at the scene of incidence, as reported by Maureen Krueger, the Moore County district attorney. The officials released details about the attack, including the motive Mr. Stewart, himself a resident of the county, might have had behind the act.
 
The Associated Press reported that Stewart’s ex-wife said he had been meeting family members recently, telling them that he had cancer and was preparing to “go away”, while the authorities denied to remark on a likely intention.
 
State Senator Harris Blake of Moore County addressed the nursing home as a pillar of the community.
 
Mr. Blake said he predicted that almost everybody in that area knew someone who knew someone at that center. He added that they hear about tragedies like that all over the country and call it bad, and until it hits your own home, you don’t get a complete picture.
 
Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/30/us/30shooting.html?hpw

March 27, 2009: Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus, who is promoting the new health care insurance legislation bringing in renovation to the existing healthcare system, said on Friday that it is essential for an all American individual to get health coverage.

A coalition of business and consumer groups supported the idea rallying after the insurance industry’s demands that the health insurance coverage should be available to all American as it will help reduce the premium cost and better the insurance market function.

Baucus further explained that providing health insurance to the people with no insurance
will increase an extra cost to medical care, though an additional burden on the Govt. will be taken care by federal subsidies, the idea backed by Health Reform Dialogue.

The coalition members including hospitals, nurses, doctors, business, consumers, and insurance companies had a full support for the mandate to bring around the changes for the better future of people of America helping people for medical coverage.

The coalition and Baucus made it clear that the healthcare legislation will go ahead to embrace the insurance coverage mandate. Though there are some concerns over the people, the individuals or employers, who won’t be able to afford it, the Govt. will come out with a plan to keep premiums affordable to both the parties.

President Barack Obama also wants a widespread reform in healthcare system in 2009 and his priority will be to provide health insurance to all those 46 million people who were not coming under the umbrella of health insurance coverage in 2007.

Though Obama was questioning against the mandate during the Democratic presidential nomination last year defying his rival Hillary Clinton’s proreform agenda, now he has shifted his position and given a green signal stating that health insurance mandate is a part of the White House debate over the people who are not covered and want health insurance while they wont be able to afford it.

Source:http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSTRE52P7MF20090327