What's Roy Herron got to do with it? Medicaid Expansion.

Expanding Medicaid is to choose life
By Roy Herron
Special to The Commercial Appeal, Thursday, August 8, 2013

At 13, I found my father on the floor. He’d had a heart attack.
What passed for an ambulance back then in rural Tennessee rushed him to the hospital. The doctor told Mother if Dad had gotten to the hospital 10 minutes later, the doctor could not have saved him.

If the hospital had not been there, the doctor could not have saved him.
Now that hospital — like many others — is at risk. More than 50 hospitals in Tennessee are struggling financially, and we are told that some will close.
And when hospitals close, other children’s fathers and other loved ones will die.


Why is this happening? Because the Republican officeholders controlling this state have refused to cash a federal check.

Tennessee could extend health insurance coverage to as many as 330,000 people in working families, if state officials accept the federal funds that would pay 100 percent of the costs of expanding the state’s Medicaid program for the first three years.

And if, but only if, we wanted to continue the expansion beyond three years, Tennessee would not have to pay more than 10 cents on the dollar. Hospitals providing millions of dollars in uncompensated care to uninsured patients could be paid for their services, and stay open.

But so far, Tennessee’s Republican governor and Republican legislators have refused to accept $1 billion a year of federal funding to cover 330,000 working poor. This is money that hospitals, doctors and nurses need to serve patients in rural areas and even in urban centers such as Nashville, where at least one major hospital is now releasing hundreds of employees.

The New England Journal of Medicine last year published research dealing with “Mortality and Access to Care” that documents how access to health care saves lives. The study, conducted by researchers from Harvard’s School of Public Health, analyzed data from states that did and states that did not expand their Medicaid programs to cover low-income adults without children or disabilities.

The researchers found that when more people have access to health care, more people live — “particularly those between the ages of 35 and 64 years, minorities, and those living in poorer areas.”

In fact, they found that for every 500,000 adults included in state Medicaid programs, deaths declined by 6.1 percent. In other words, Medicaid expansion for 500,000 saved about 2,840 lives per year.

In the words of the study: “This finding suggests that 176 additional adults would need to be covered by Medicaid in order to prevent one death per year.”

Officials say 180,000 more Tennesseans could receive Medicaid coverage next year if the state accepts the federal funding. If they are not served, according to the Harvard study, more than 1,000 could die.

Deuteronomy 30:19 recounts Moses proclaiming God’s Word: “I have set before you life and death, the blessing and the curse; therefore choose life that you and your children may live.”

None of our neighbors and loved ones should have to die because politicians rejected Deuteronomy 30 and the Golden Rule.

Any Republicans denying Tennesseans lifesaving health care ought never again call themselves “pro-life,” not if they condemn thousands of uninsured Tennesseans to die.

Fortunately, there is still time to choose life. Pray that they will.

S.L. Brannon on DBSA Life Unlimited web site
http://bot.ly/1kEBzlZ

Going Through the Open Space to a New Life

 

My book, The Two Agreements, is not only about my reinterpretation of the New Testament; it is also largely about my own spiritual journey. That is why I have written at length about the “open space”. The open space is a time when your old life is gone (either because it was “taken” or because you consciously shed it), but you have not yet arrived at your new life. This transformative period can be incredibly lonely, painful, and anxiety-ridden; however, it is also an opportunity to challenge old beliefs. The goal is to learn to trust the process. I have gone through several such periods, the longest being the five years when I slowly and agonizingly sloughed off my fundamentalist beliefs and eventually emerged in my new spiritual life.

Without a doubt, the most difficult aspect of an open space is how utterly isolated you feel. When you left your old life, you did not just lose places, things or jobs; you have left people behind as well. Perhaps you have lost your spouse through death or divorce; maybe your friends have stopped calling because they can’t or won’t understand what you are going through. You may have even been separated from your church community. The key to arriving on the other side of the open space is to realize that you are NEVER alone, for you are never disconnected from God. I have often heard in my ministry groups stories of people who, in their darkest hour, felt the presence of an “Unseen Hand”, a force that kept them rooted to their lives. For some, it materialized as love for their children; for others it was a mere whisper, promising better things to come. Then, others saw the new life of someone who “made it through” and got the hope of their own new life. In all cases, it was the life force manifested, and it most likely saved their lives.

It is also imperative for anyone finding himself or herself in an open space to connect with community. Unfortunately, this often easier said than done, especially for those facing mental health challenges. In my interfaith support groups, I have heard hundreds of stories, many from people who were rejected or ignored by their fellow church members. One woman literally ran to her church after an incident in her home had left her fearing for her emotional stability. She was without transportation, and she asked the women in the administrative office if one of them could drive her to a nearby mental health facility. Instead of helping her, the women backed away, as if she was a leper. One even asked if there weren’t services for “people like her”.

I heard another story, from a Deacon at a local church. Twenty years before, his wife had broken her leg. For days, his phone never stopped ringing, with callers offering prayers for a speedy recovery. They showed up at his door, bearing enough food for an army. The reaction was very different, however, when his daughter was hospitalized with a mental health issue. Imagine his sorrow when the phone rang not once; when no one showed up with food for his family.

Open spaces do not only apply to individuals; larger entities and organizations can also face transitional periods that threaten their very existence. An example that immediately comes to mind is the United States, with its uncertain economic future and political divisiveness. Christianity has also been at a stand-still for some time, and arguably, is regressing. People, particularly the young, have been leaving fundamentalist churches in droves. According to Tony Jones, author of The New Christians—Dispatches From the Emergent Frontier, millions of church-goers have left the church, never to return. Many of these folks were raised in the church; but now, disillusioned, they are walking away, not only from the church’s teachings, but, in some cases, belief in God. And, that is indeed a travesty.

Very simply, whether we are talking about an individual, a country, or a religious institution, the questions remain the same: “Now that all hell has broken loose, what are you/we going to do about it?” – for your old life died, gone and never to return. And, something needs to be done. Then, the follow up question is, “How much do you/we love yourself/ourselves?”— for the spiritual lesson is to love one’s self enough to “resurrect” a new life. Only a genuine love will do.

Stigma is something we can do something about!

Below, I share with you a stark definition of stigma.  Consumers and those who love them must make a decisive stand to push back against all forms of social inequality in the form of stigma. We can make a difference!

It’s easy to label someone else and overlook what’s really inside. When mental illnesses are used as labels – depressed, schizophrenic, manic or hyperactive – these labels hurt. Using negative labels leads to branding and shame – what is called stigma. Stigma leads to discrimination. Everyone knows why it is wrong to discriminate against people because of their race, religion, culture or appearance. They are less aware of how people with mental illnesses are discriminated against. Although discrimination may not always be obvious, it exists – and it hurts. Stigma is not just the use of the wrong word or action. Stigma is about disrespect. It is the use of negative labels to identify a person living with mental illness. Stigma is a barrier and discourages individuals and their families from getting the help they need due to the fear of discrimination. An estimated 50 million Americans experience as mental disorder in any given year and only one-fourth of them actually receive mental health and other services.          bp magazine Winter 2012