DarkStar Spouts Off

Comments R Us:Quickie On Health "Care" Politics

I wrote this somewhere:

Obama isn't in control of the "health care issue", the Dem congress is in control. The administration learned from Clinton-care that when you are specific, you get specific bullets and arrows shot at you. Unfortunately, you get bombs dropped on you when you provide no specifics and leave it up to the nut jobs in congress.

I hope the effort fails.

I mean it.

Government Insurance "Care"

Maryland cuts in Medicare

The board approved cuts, proposed by Gov. Martin O’Malley, $75 million in cuts in Medicaid reimbursements that will now be covered by federal matching funds as the state unemployment rate grows, as well as another $34 million in reductions in Medicaid payments to hospitals, nursing homes and other health care providers.

...

Nancy Fiedler, a spokeswoman for the Maryland Hospital Association, said the group, representing the state’s major medical providers, is concerned about the state’s recent budget cuts, “and even more concerned” about additional cuts O’Malley could make prior to Labor Day.

“This round of cuts limits the number of days a Medicaid patient can stay in the hospital,” Fiedler told IFAwebnews.com. “That falls disproportionately on hospitals that care for the greatest number of Medicaid patients and patients who are often the sickest patients. “

She noted that hospitals that can least afford it, including Bon Secours and Prince George’s Medical Center, are “already in extremely fragile financial condition.”

“It is important to remember that every dollar cut in Medicaid results in program reductions of $2, because the federal government matches the state contribution dollar for dollar,” she said.

Emphasis mine. I need to point out two things.

First, when companies were rushing women out of the hospital after having a baby, people strongly objected. Now look at what the government is doing. Second, you know that O'Malley and company KNOW what their cuts mean for federal funding.

A Query Concerning Health Care

A family member of yours is in the hospital with terminal cancer. This family member wants to come home to spend his last days. To be blunt, he wants to die at home, not at the hospital.

Meanwhile, because the cancer is terminal and nearing the last stages, the hospital wants to stop dialysis treatments and medicate for the pain. In fact, they tell you they will no longer provide the treatments because it is too expensive. But, they won't release him because he needs dialysis treatments.

Catch-22.

You work it out and your family member is now at home. He does a few treatments and finally passes one morning with family around him praying for him.

Now change one word in the second paragraph. Substitute government for hospital.

Meanwhile, because the cancer is terminal and nearing the last stages, the government wants to stop dialysis treatments and medicate for the pain. In fact, they tell you they will no longer provide the treatments because it is too expensive. But, they won't release him because he needs dialysis treatments.

Does it make a difference?

You Want Gov't To "Fix" Health Care?

You want the government to "fix" health care?

June 12 (Bloomberg) -- Health-care overhaul legislation being drafted by House Democrats will include $600 billion in tax increases and $400 billion in cuts to Medicare and Medicaid, Ways and Means Committee Chairman Charles Rangel said.

Democrats will work on the bill’s details next week as they struggle through “what kind of heartburn” it will cause to agree on how to pay for revamping the health-care system, Rangel, a New York Democrat, said today. The measure’s cost is reaching well beyond the $634 billion President Barack Obama proposed in his budget request to Congress as a 10-year down payment for the policy changes.

Asked whether the cost of a health-care overhaul would be more than $1 trillion over a decade, Rangel said, “the answer is yes.” Some Senate Republicans, including Senator Orrin Hatch of Utah, say the costs will likely exceed $1.5 trillion.

I say leave it alone. This is the nonsense that is going to get our economy further in trouble and get Democrats kicked out, but the only hope then would be a "real" "third party" option.

Family First

Family has to come first, because in the end, they are the people who should have your back.

It's been a rough 5 weeks but things are going to get back to normal as much as they can when a member of your family passes.The point of the "Black men get yourself checked out" has been the death of a family member which may have been prevented if regular checkups were done. The death of Mrs D.S. family member, however, was unexpected and, frankly, the work of evil.

But with the grace of God, both families will prevail and continue to live life.

I haven't been paying close attention to the news of the day but that will start to change now that things are going to "get back to normal." But what I have been paying attention to, I have a lot of thoughts about. That should come out in the next few days.

I Say, Get Yourself Checked Out

I don't get too personal on this blog, but I'll make an exception here. Mind stream follows...

A few weeks ago I posted that Black men need to get checked out.

A close cousin wasn't feeling well. After deciding which hospital was the best one to go to and when was the best time, he checked himself into a hospital thinking he was sick from a change in diet. When he checked himself in, his blood pressure was SKY high and the doctors worked to bring that down, which they did. However, he suffered some kidney damage from the VERY strong medicine they gave him.

He had blood in his urine and it turned out he had polyps on his colon. They removed the colon polyps and saw spots on his liver and they had to remove part of his kidney.

"Man, you know us Black men! We don't go to the doctor or get checked out!" That's why he told me when I first talked to him in the hospital. He said that in response to a doctor who said to him, "You're not in as good of shape as you thought you were."

It was said he had colon cancer and they gave him 6 months to live.

He died today (Friday), 4 weeks later, at home with his sister, mother, ex-wife, my daughter, and nurse around him, praying for him.

I had stayed the night because I got a call he wouldn't make it. I had to be there. This morning, I left to go home and wash up and then head back. After I got out of the shower, the call came saying he passed.

Grand total for services and burial? $9 - 10K when we are finished. A few of the family members are rallying around to pay funeral expenses.

My daughter works part-time in the hospital where he checked himself into. She's a transporter. She wheels people around. When he checked himself in, she was the one who took him to his room.

"Daddy. I don't understand. He came in feeling so-so, and now..."

His last day in the hospital, before he was released, he said, "If I knew I was this sick, I would have gotten checked out a long time ago."

Once at home, he was staying in his nephew's room and said he wanted his recliner chair from his house.

We got it.

Yesterday (Thursday) he left his room and got in the chair. Today (Friday) he died in the chair.

I think he left the room to die because he didn't want to die in his nephew's room.

I got checked out 2 weeks ago. I'm scheduling a colonostopy for the end of the week or the following week.

My cousins, who I track for health issues because we look so much alike and have shared mannerisms, have told me for years things to look out for, and I seem to be on their track.

High cholesterol? Check but I'm working on it.

I'm "in store" for high blood pressure even though I'm fine right now.

Again, Black men, get checked out.

Black Men: Get A Regular Physical

The title says it all.

"The story ends" but not really, because the story has yet to be finished.

It's been a rough few weeks.

How Do We Get People To "Wrap IT Up"?

Someone PLEASE tell me how we get people who are just going to have sex without benefit of marriage or outside of marriage, to do what is necessary to "protect" themselves?!?!?!

ESPECIALLY BLACK PEOPLE as is, YET AGAIN, demonstrated with the HIV/AIDS rate, this time in Washington, D.C.

The first 3 paragraphs:

At least 3 percent of District residents have HIV or AIDS, a total that far surpasses the 1 percent threshold that constitutes a "generalized and severe" epidemic, according to a report scheduled to be released by health officials tomorrow.

That translates into 2,984 residents per every 100,000 over the age of 12 -- or 15,120 -- according to the 2008 epidemiology report by the District's HIV/AIDS office.

"Our rates are higher than West Africa," said Shannon L. Hader, director of the District's HIV/AIDS Administration, who once led the Federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's work in Zimbabwe. "They're on par with Uganda and some parts of Kenya."

OK, so that's the "hyperbole" to get people's attention to keep reading. So, now comes the "pc" component:

The District's report found a 22 percent increase in HIV and AIDS cases from the 12,428 reported at the end of 2006, touching every race and sex across population and neighborhoods, with an epidemic level in all but one of the eight wards.

But, then a little further down, comes the REAL DEAL:

More than 4 percent of blacks in the city are known to have HIV, along with almost 2 percent of Latinos and 1.4 percent of whites. More than three-quarters -- 76 percent -- of the HIV infected are black, 70 percent are men and 70 percent are age 40 and older.
Heterosexual sex was the principal mode of transmission for blacks with the disease, 33 percent. Men having sex with men was the chief mode of transmission for white residents, 78 percent; and Latinos, 49 percent. Black women represent more than a quarter of HIV cases in the District, and most, about 58 percent, were infected through heterosexual sex. About a quarter of black women were infected through drug use.

People know what's out there. The question is, WHY continue doing what will kill you?

He Didn't Tell Me He Loved Me!

He said he would be gentle.

He covered up.

He lubed up.

He stuck it in and moved around.

It was over quickly, although it seemed like it was forever.

He finished and said my prostate seemed healthy and just to be sure, part of my blood workup will be a PSA test.

But he didn't tell me he loved me! He didn't even buy me dinner! :-)

 Did you know that high blood pressure, untreated, can cause kidney disease?

Black man, get checked!

There will be little to no blogging for a bit.

Men! Get Checked Out

Are you a Black man, 40 or over?

Get regular check ups. Get your prostate and colon checked.

[ UPDATE ]

A story told to me:

"Oh, I FEEL fine!

I don't know what's going on, on the INSIDE, but I FEEL fine!"

Look guys....

If you and a few of your friends get the exam, trust me when I say, you can actually joke about "the snap of that glove and the finger."

Your life may depend on it.

More On The Government In Medical Care

If the federal government were to say that medical records should be in X format, encrypted to at least Y standard when at rest, contain at least Z information, provide for A areas for additional information, provide for B options, and dictate S minimum level of security when the data is in transport, this can be justified using inter-state commerce clause for involving the federal government in medical records. Note in this example, the federal government is involved in defining an interstate commerce standard. The government is not involved in medical decisions. So, I think for the above, it's a good thing to do. HOWEVER....

But the bill goes further. One new bureaucracy, the National Coordinator of Health Information Technology, will monitor treatments to make sure your doctor is doing what the federal government deems appropriate and cost effective. The goal is to reduce costs and "guide" your doctor's decisions (442, 446). These provisions in the stimulus bill are virtually identical to what Daschle prescribed in his 2008 book, "Critical: What We Can Do About the Health-Care Crisis." According to Daschle, doctors have to give up autonomy and "learn to operate less like solo practitioners."

The above is the reason that should cause everyone's heart to skip a few beats. Here's the example:

Your mother getting treated by Dr. Vasoul. Dr. Vasoul decides on a treatment plan and gets approval from you and your mother on the plan. Dr. Vasoul implements the plan. You make sure your mother adheres to the plan and things start looking good. Your mother has returned to normal, meaning she's spoiling your children on a regular basis.

Now, Ms. Gover Mint comes around and reviews your mother's medical history and her current treatment. Ms. Gover Mint decides that based on her age, the treatment plan is not cost effective, even if the digital records show Dr. Vasoul noting your mother is responding well to the treatment. Ms. Gover Mint then tells Dr. Vasoul to follow another treatment plan that Dr. Vasoul knows is not as effective as the current plan and does not increase the quality of life. In fact, the stated plan even hinders the quality of life.

Think about the bureaucracy required to get the treatment plan approved while your mother suffers.

And consider this point. The I.R.S. has caught its employees snooping into the tax records of celebrities. Think about how many DON'T get caught and how many may use the medical information for ill.

Think about the trouble veterens have getting treatment at the V.A. hospitals.

This is NOT good.

Big Brother Does Meds

[ UPDATED ]

Medical whammy in the "stimulus" bill.

Feb. 9 (Bloomberg) -- Republican Senators are questioning whether President Barack Obama's stimulus bill contains the right mix of tax breaks and cash infusions to jump-start the economy.

Tragically, no one from either party is objecting to the health provisions slipped in without discussion. These provisions reflect the handiwork of Tom Daschle, until recently the nominee to head the Health and Human Services Department.

Senators should read these provisions and vote against them because they are dangerous to your health. (Page numbers refer to H.R. 1 EH, pdf version).

The bill's health rules will affect "every individual in the United States" (445, 454, 479). Your medical treatments will be tracked electronically by a federal system. Having electronic medical records at your fingertips, easily transferred to a hospital, is beneficial. It will help avoid duplicate tests and errors.

But the bill goes further. One new bureaucracy, the National Coordinator of Health Information Technology, will monitor treatments to make sure your doctor is doing what the federal government deems appropriate and cost effective. The goal is to reduce costs and "guide" your doctor's decisions (442, 446). These provisions in the stimulus bill are virtually identical to what Daschle prescribed in his 2008 book, "Critical: What We Can Do About the Health-Care Crisis." According to Daschle, doctors have to give up autonomy and "learn to operate less like solo practitioners." 

Keeping doctors informed of the newest medical findings is important, but enforcing uniformity goes too far.

Yeah, I'm Packin' [ UPDATED ]

The Giants have decided to suspend Plaxico Burress without pay for the rest of the season.

All of this happened because Plaxico went to a club packin' heat, and shot himself in the leg. Now, me, I'm thinking dude is a fool for carrying a gun in New York when New York has the strictest gun control laws in the country. I was also thinking that he is supposed to be hurt, and there he is, out partying at a club, a few nights before a game, even if he is not going to play.

A team is paying you millions of dollars, you are already hurt, and there you are, out there ready to get your groove on instead of trying to get back playing. Yes, I realize you can't rehab 24/7, but hanging out at a club with a messed up hamstring? And you're packin' heat?

In NYC?

Look, I understand that high profile people in this day and age may need protection, but at dude's level, couldn't he hire a bodyguard? Couldn't he just NOT go to the club?

Here is a quick list:

• Broncos player Darrent Williams was killed outside of a club in a drive by after leaving a club.
• Raiders player Javon Walker beat up and robbed.
• Jaguar Richard Collier shot.

I say just don't go to the club. But then there is the case of Sean Taylor.

He was in his home. He was at home.

If I'm making enough money, there is a "safe room" in the basement, a safe room on the living level, and safe rooms in the bedroom level. The safe room would be in the master bedroom closet and in the children's bedroom closets.

If I'm not making enough money, there would be a safe room somewhere in the house and at a minimum, I'm packin' on every level.

Dude should have hired a body guard, so the comments about him being dumb, are on point, even when you take into account players "being targeted."

[ UPDATE ]

I forgot to mention something important to the story. Plaxico's teammate, Steve Smith, was robbed a few days before Plaxico was caught with the gun. It's important to mention but my comment still stands; he should have had a body guard or not gone out.

Men's Retreat

I attended a men's retreat held by my church and I will never be the same.

Coming back, I thought about a thread I read on P6 and other places about Black men needing to talk through issues with other men. I'm looking but I can't find it which is too bad.

You see, I heard some very interesting testimonies. There seemed to be a single core running though them all and it dealt with relationships with fathers and men taking their problems on all alone.

Men need to talk with other men.

I am not the same and my family will be better for it.

Health Care

If you had free health care available, and it was "good", and you had paid health care available, that is also "good," what would you do?

HONOLULU (AP) - Hawaii is dropping the only state universal child health care program in the country just seven months after it launched.

Gov. Linda Lingle's administration cited budget shortfalls and other available health care options for eliminating funding for the program. A state official said families were dropping private coverage so their children would be eligible for the subsidized plan.

"People who were already able to afford health care began to stop paying for it so they could get it for free," said Dr. Kenny Fink, the administrator for Med-QUEST at the Department of Human Services. "I don't believe that was the intent of the program."

So, how many people are surprised?

My main criticism of this government provided health care has always been, when the money gets tight, the health care provided will get worse.

Men Need To Talk

Thanks to reader LLR for this one:

Starting a new Mens Group in DC/MD/VA area

I want to start a support group of like minded men to fellowship with, support and encourage.

Some of us go through a lot of crap in a week with no real brothers to download and get a word of help. Some need a new job and all of us have connections to something or ideas that don’t fit us but may benefit another.

Married men, need a “attaboy” every now and then when we do what is right but not necessarily what we would want to do

Single brothers need to hear some wisdom from fathers that have overcome…

This group would maybe do breakfast, go fishing, see a game together..etc. once a month. Whatever. But geared toward going deeper than usual.

If you are interested, give me a shout.

This is a good idea.

Troubles With The HPV Vaccine?

8 more deaths connected to HPV vaccine
Adverse reactions from Gardasil number in thousands

Another eight deaths in just the past few months are being connected to Gardasil, Merck & Co.'s vaccine that targets the sexually transmitted human papillomavirus and is being considered by many states as mandatory for all schoolgirls, according to documents released by Judicial Watch.

There also have been another 1,824 adverse reactions to the drug, bringing the "known total" of such problems to 3,461, according to the public interest group that investigates and prosecutes government corruption.

"In light of this information, it is disturbing that state and local governments might mandate in any way this vaccine for young girls," said Tom Fitton, the group's president. "These adverse reactions reports suggest the vaccine not only causes serious side effects, but might even be fatal."

More at the link.

Summer of Murders

This is the summer of murders of mostly Black teenage and young men by other Black teenage and young men. If the madness is to stop, or at least slow down, immediately the following has to happen:

• If you are caught with an unregistered gun, you get locked up with no bail until the hearing.
• If you are found guilty for committing a crime with a gun, registered or not, and it is not a case of self defense, you will be sentenced to 15 years with no parole. You do all of the time.
• If you are found guilty of witness intimidation, you will be sentenced to a minimum of 15 years with no parole. You do all of the time.
• If you are found guilty of killing a witness, you get life with no parole.

That is for the short term and this has to happen at the local level, not the federal level as Project Exile.

I Know This Statistic

I know one of the dead people named in this article.

I told my daughter that although there is a bond with the person who is now dead, if you see him in the street, speak and keep moving because I didn't want her to get caught up in the mess that he was involved in. Today she gave me a call telling me what happened. He is survived by both parents, siblings, 3 young children, nieces, nephews, cousins and, unfortunately, a strong object lesson.

Murder King Hospital

[ UPDATES ]

Occasionally, I've read news articles or commentary about Martin Luther King, Jr. Hospital in Los Angeles. Yesterday, I read about a tragic death at the hospital, then last night, I heard TWO AUDIO TAPES of people who called 9-1-1 to get help for a woman who was vomiting blood.

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Newly-released tapes show a woman died in King-Harbor Hospital in Los Angeles after doctors ignored her and 911 dispatchers would not arrange her transport to another facility.

  Forty-three-year-old Edith Isabel Rodriguez died in the emergency room May ninth.

Tape transcripts show the woman's boyfriend and a bystander called 9-1-1 to say hospital staff were ignoring Rodriguez while she vomited blood and writhed in pain for 45 minutes in the hospital waiting area.

Dispatchers said paramedics would not come to move Rodriguez to another hospital. Instead, dispatchers suggested contacting hospital administrators and security, who then arrested Rodriguez for a parole violation. She died on her way out of the hospital.

SHE WAS IN THE HOSPITAL AND WAS NOT GETTING HELP! One 9-1-1 operator was stunned. A second 9-1-1 operator was incensed that someone would be calling 9-1-1 from a hospital to say someone was dying in the hospital and assumed the person was under medical care!

Point blank: At a minimum, MANSLAUGHTER CHARGES should be filed against nurses and doctors on staff at the time.

Next, EVERY POLITICIAN who supported keeping that hospital open, should resign right now. If they don't resign, the good people in L.A. should recall each and everyone of their behinds! I don't care about the so-called reasons they worked to keep that murder palace open! THEY MUST LOSE THEIR DAMNED JOBS!

And the second 9-1-1 operator should be suspended!AT LEAST!

Just Think About This

Just think about this.

Are you tired of going to the bathroom to do a #1 or #2? Wouldn't you like to not have that "inconvenience"? Why don't you have an operation that plugs up the holes? That will solve it, right?

Huh? It's a natural process that cleans the system? So what? At least you won't have to take a time out to "relieve" yourself.

Now, think about taking a pill that stops your periods. And the difference is what?

Smoking Ban

The Maryland State Assembly seems close to outlawing smoking in all public buildings in Maryland.

I don't smoke and can't stand the smell. I like eating in restaurants that segregate smokers from non-smokers. Most times, 99.998% I'd say, I choose the non-smoking section. But sometimes, I choose otherwise. Be that as it may, if the State Assembly is going to outlaw smoking in all public buildings, they may as well outlaw smoking, period.

Smoking is not illegal. People are making a choice to smoke or not smoke. People are making a choice to patronize businesses that provide smoking sections or are entirely smoke free. Let people make their own choice. We are not stupid.

Again, the Maryland State Assembly is going too damn far. Next, they will go for smoking in cars and in private residences. Just watch. But they won't make it illegal, because they depend on the tax revenue.

Active and Vet Care

Since I was a kid, I've heard about the poor care of military veterans in VA hospitals.

The husband of a relative told me of his care when he was wounded in Vietnam. In fact, before he was wounded, he heard enough that when he was wounded, he made the hospital put him in the coldest area possible to minimize the chance of infection.

So, I have to ask, why now are politicians and military acting surprised about the revelations at Walter Reed and now other military hospitals?

This has been a long term shame and it has been known for some time.

You Are Going To Hate Me For This

You are going to hate me for this, but I have some questions:

1. Has this mother ever heard of toothpaste, tooth brush, and oral hygiene?
2. Did this mother realize sugar rots teeth?

Honoring Nursing and History

On Saturday, I went to an event sponsored by the Baltimore chapter of the Black Nurses Association, the Gamma Chapter of the Chi Eta Phi Sorority, Inc., and the Provident Hospital Helene Fuld School of Nursing Alumni Association.

It was an event meant to recognize individuals in the spirit of "The Nursing Legacy of Harriet R. Tubman." My cousin was one of the women who received the Harriet Tubman Legacy in Nursing Award.

I've attended Provident Hospital Alumni events in the past and these events have ALWAYS left me in awe at what the nurses educated at "the Black nursing school" of Provident has been able to accomplish over time.

For background information, the Provident Nursing School was the school in Baltimore, Maryland for Negro women to learn the art of nursing. The older women in my family who were nurses, including my mother, attended the school.

Two featured speakers were Lilyan Slater, R.N. and Esther McCready, R.N. About both women all I have to say is wow.

Lilyan Slater is older of the two women and spoke about the amount of materials she has about Black nurses in Baltimore. She is working with the Reginald Lewis Museum to get the material so that it is not lost.

Esther McCready spoke about what she went through to become the first Negro to attend and graduate from the University of Maryland Nursing School. This article matches, with much less detail, what she told to us about her path to attending and graduating from the University of Maryland.

One thing really struck me about what she said. She said she was isolated at the school. No one walked with her, talked to her, or ate with her. But, she said it didn't matter. When she was a child, she preferred to be by herself. That, she said, prepared her for being alone at the school. She said many times that she believes God prepared her for what she was going to do. Her faith, and the faith of Lilyan Slater came through strongly in their speech.

She also had an interest in music and had a second vocation which took her around the world as a musician. She also worked with Raven Symone.

At the end of the event, I spoke with my cousin and waited about 15-30 minutes to speak with both of the ladies. I told them both that I am not a nurse but my mother was a nurse. Given what my cousin told me, Esther McCready probably taught my mother. But, regardless of that, I wanted to thank them both for their contributions to Black nurses in Baltimore and the country.

Oh, yes, and how about this chain: Lilyan Slater mentored Esther McCready at Provident Hospital in Baltimore. Esther McCready taught my cousin at Provident. My cousin has taught at Provident and other schools. As people came up to speak with Lilyan Slater and Esther McCready, I kept hearing over and over again, "Thank you for teaching me." And what really moved me was hearing some women say the same to my cousin.