Today marks a significant change for healthcare in the USA, both for the present and future of the country. Obama signed into law today a nearly 1 trillion dollar healthcare bill that will affect the way everyone receives and pays for healthcare going forward. I'm not here to completely bash the bill or applaud it, as time will tell how effective it truly is. While I certainly have my thoughts and opinions about the pros and cons of the bill from both a morality and fiscal standpoint, I want to take a different approach to looking at the 'health' of the country.
Preventative health measures vs. Medicine/Prescription Drugs:
I guess this seems pretty obvious to me, but the country as a whole relies far too much on medicine and prescription drugs. You have a problem? I bet we can find a medicine that can fix it! You have a headache, pop an aspirin! You have diabetes, take a pill! You have an erectile disorder, here's a viagra! While I understand these can help people and certain situations, it is ultimately a 'quick fix' versus finding a solution to a problem. Doctors are some of the biggest offenders of this as well, because many of them and whole medical establishments are in the pockets of 'big pharma' anyway.
Taking a preventative health approach can help improve and sometimes remove certain diseases/issues all together. Just think if the government and this country took an approach to help educate early on so people wouldn't be affected later in life. Afterall, many diseases are preventable and the treatment of these is what can drive healthcare costs up and up. By improving ones lifestyle now, the quality of life down the road will be much greater and relying on medicine to simply survive and function might not be necessary. Preventative measures may take some work and effort on the individuals part along with the educational efforts by the government, but I think that is a better option than simply giving everyone free reign on healthcare and continuing down the path we are on.
Higher Taxes:
I'm not referring to raising taxes on individuals or those who make lots of money, because they shouldn't be solely responsible for the care of others either. The higher taxes i'm referring to should be placed on specific items and products that cause the majority of the health issues to begin with! I personally get a little upset thinking that I might have to help pay for the healthcare of someone who smokes a pack a day, drinks soda non-stop and eats fastfood twice a day. So, how about we dramatically raise the taxes on cigarettes, foods high in trans fats and sugar and other processed crap? Then, those who purchase these products (which directly contribute to poor health) are being taxed and not Joe Sixpack who would never touch the stuff.
The bill signed by Obama today did have something similar to this that I noticed, an increased tax (10%) on indoor tanning bed use. So, someone obviously realized that tanning has been directly linked to cancer and those choosing to partake in such activities should be charged an additional amount. Makes sense to me.
Pattern of Behavior (THE BELOW PATTERN NEEDS TO CHANGE!)
Eating Poorly=Gain Weight/Fat=Health Problems=Dr. Visits=Using Medicine/Drugs=Rising Medical Costs=Higher Premiums=Higher Cost of Healthcare For Everyone
To finish up, I basically think a healthier lifestyle would help fix and cure a lot of the diseases and ailments people in this country are faced with today. Rather than throwing money (we don't have) into a healthcare overhaul, how about starting with a preventative approach.
Eat healthy and get some exercise.
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