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Posts Tagged ‘Health’

Some people believe that our brain becomes inactive when we sleep. If that were so then we should not have any dreams. Dreams are evidence that our mind remains active, even when we are asleep. This simply means that our mind is active 24 hours a day without any rest at all. Just imagine how our bodies would behave if we were to go through 24 hours of physical activity.

Although research may show that 30% of mental illness may occur without a trigger of stress, it also shows that a majority – 70% – of mental illnesses occur with stress. The research may have failed to look at the other 30%, mentally ill who may not be ‘acknowledging’ stress at a given moment. This gives us a pessimistic view of mental illnesses. We are made to believe that we can do nothing about them. We are also told that mental illnesses occur because of our genes, our upbringing, our personality, our temperament, our lifestyle and we can do nothing about them. Stress or no stress, we are told, if we have all these factors loaded in our personal history, we are prone to have a mental illness. Some psychiatrists adhere to this belief strongly. This belief is then put across authoritatively as the “gospel truth” of science. Naturally, this brings up a sense of low self-esteem and helplessness in the person who is suffering with the illness. We are then made to believe that medications are man-made answers to mental illness, which is a curse of nature.

Prayer, which was until recently considered unscientific, has now been shown to have beneficial effects on patients.1 Similarly, the current belief in psychiatry is that mental illnesses can be treated by medical professionals only and the person who is mentally ill has no control over their lives. The medical system works in a way in which the doctors themselves have limited choices other than prescribing drugs. The patient has no choices worth mentioning. From the legal perspective, a person who is mentally ill is considered not capable of taking any responsibility for their actions. This is one of the most unfortunate aspects of mental illnesses. People who are mentally ill also have a sense of responsibility in many areas of their lives.

The role of emotions in mental illnesses has been totally ignored by scientists. Yet researches do show that separation from mother,2 losses3 – including deaths,4 traumatic events, especially when they occur over the previous three months5 can trigger mental illnesses. What has been looked at is the history of such events in a person’s life. What is ignored is the emotional upheaval it causes in a person’s body and mind. Emotional expression ameliorates the effects of trauma.6 Repetitive upheavals in the body are simply not forgotten. Release of emotions by emotional expression explains the role of counselling and confession. We tend to believe, erroneously, that everything will settle with time. Things do settle with time – but not everything. It is these issues and their emotional effects, that cause mental illnesses and psychosomatic illnesses. It is obvious that whenever we undergo any emotional experience, our nervous and hormonal systems are shaken-up. The nervous system and the hormones together control the activities of various parts of the body. If the neurohormonal expression is allowed to go through completion, a physiological calmness occurs in the body. This has a scientific basis.7

For people who attend church regularly, a common experience is the sense of calmness on entering a church. Coupled with music, incense and sermons spoken in a low, soft tone, a sense of calmness dwells on the person. There is scientific evidence to suggest that going to church helps a person remain healthy.8 More interesting is the fact that there is little research to state that music or aromatherapy help to bring about mental health. Yet experience shows that they have a calming effect. Only recently have papers started to be published in scientific journals bridging the gap between spirituality and science.9 It has now been researched that people who are religious in orientation have a lower rate of strokes than those who are not religious.10

The whole area of mental illness is about losing a sense of freedom. When we find ourselves bound to emotional issues of our life, that we cannot rid ourselves of, we lose our freedom of thinking. This creates stress in our mind and our body bears the brunt of it. This loss of freedom brings up a sense of fear or a sense of helplessness. Both such feelings bring up a sense of insecurity. A person loses confidence in their own worth. Self-esteem becomes low. With lack of confidence and low self-esteem, comes poor decision-making. A person suffers with all these conditions when suffering with a mental illness. This changes the behaviour of the person. The behaviour is affected by the way the person feels and thinks. If the person feels fear for a long time, the chances of becoming phobic and paranoid increase. Withdrawal from social situations occurs. The family members observe the person to be unwell. Such a person is then asked to see a doctor. With the person’s self-esteem low, vulnerability increases. This does not mean however, that the person becomes totally irresponsible towards their own well-being. Many times the person wants to do ‘something’ to get better, but the health system has limited resources to offer much in terms of growth of the person, except medication. When a mentally ill person goes to seek help – confidence, self-esteem and sense of freedom are already lost. Instead of helping the person become independent, there is a tendency to make the person dependent on medication.

Medication plays its role in controlling the condition or state of illness. It does nothing to improve the quality of life permanently. To improve their quality of life, the person needs to take responsibility for their own well-being. This is encouraged in some of the organisations, which are being run by the sufferers themselves. GROW is an example of such an organisation. Are there any alternatives to medication in mental conditions? A doctor can only prescribe drugs to “control” the mental condition. The current trend in some other parts of the world is to encourage people suffering with mental illnesses to take responsibility for their own well-being, along with medication. Psychotherapy11 and self-help is encouraged. The usage of medication in such situations is minimised or eliminated.

In psychiatry, we know that the suicide rate among physicians is higher than in the general population and psychiatrists are at a greater risk among physicians, than other specialists.12 Research shows that psychotherapy is more economical than medication alone in treating mental illness.13 Conditions like schizophrenia are also being treated without medication in some parts of the world.14 It is also a known fact that the more positive the attitude we have, the more balanced are the chemicals in our body.15 This would be more acceptable for those who see the positive role of religion on mental health. Some authors have suggested that the medicine of the future is going to be “prayer and Prozac.”16 Mental health is a preventative activity. Do we need to suffer first before we take steps to deal with it? If we could only assume responsibility for our own mental health, we may not have to suffer. The best medicine in this case is certainly prevention.

We live in a free society. The freedom to suffer is also one kind of freedom. We also have the freedom to look for answers to minimise our suffering.

REFERENCES

ASTIN, J.A., (2000) Prayer, Other Forms of ‘Distant Healing’ seem to have Positive Effects. Medscape. Annals of Internal Medicine 132: P.903-910.

HARRIS T., BROWN G. W., BIFULCO A., (1986) Loss of Parent in Childhood and Adult Psychiatric Disorder: The Role of Lack of Adequate Parental Care. Psychological Medicine 16: P.641-659.

BROWN G. W., HARRIS T., (1978) Social Origins of Depression. Tavistock, London.

BIRTCHNELL J., (1970) Depression in Relation to Early and Recent Parent Death. British Journal of Psychiatry 116: P.299-306.

BROWN G. W., BIRLEY J. L. T., (1968) Crises and Life Changes and the onset of Schizophrenia. Journal of Health and Social Behaviour 9: P.203-214.

KELLER, S.E., SHIFLETT, S.C., SCHLIEFER, S.J. & BARTLETT, J.A. (1994) Stress, Immunity and Health. Handbook of Human Stress & Immunity. San Diego: Academic. P.217-244.

CHADHA, P. K., (2000) Drugless Psychiatry – Physiological Basis of Clinical Experiences. Paper presented in 6th Conference – Innovations in Psychiatry, London, April 2000.

COMSTOCK, G.W., PARTIDGE, K.B., (1972) Church Attendance and Health. Journal of Chronic Diseases 225: P.665-72.

SLOAN, R.P., BAGIELLA E., POWELL T., (1999) Religion, Spirituality and Medicine. Lancet 353: P.664-67.

KOENIG, H.G., (1997) Is Religion Good for your Health? Haworth Pastoral Press, N.Y.

POMERANTZ, J.M. (1999). Focused Psychotherapy as an Alternative to Long Term Medication. Drug Benefit Trends 11 (7) : P.2, 5.

KAPLAN, H.I., SADOCK., B.J., (1998) Synopsis of Psychiatry – 8th Edition – B.I. Waverly Pvt. Ltd., New Delhi. P.865.

TALLEY P. F., STRUPP, H. H., BUTLER S. S., (1994) Psychotherapy Research and Practice, Harper Collins: London.

McKENZIE, C.D., & WRIGHT, L.S., (1996) Delayed Post-Traumatic Stress Disorders from Infancy – The Two Trauma Mechanism. Harwood Academic.

MOON, A. M., (2000) Positive Psychology Halved Depression in Kids. Clinical Psychiatry News. 28 (5): P.29.

MATTHEWS, D.A., LARSON, D.B., (1997) Faith and Medicine: Reconciling the Twin Traditions of Healing. Mind/Body Medicine : 2: P.3-6.

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HEALTH INSURANCE:

Health insurance, which is coverage for individuals to protect them against medical costs and give them a surity to a secured life in this unsecured world with day to day accidents, enormous infections and diseases which may be highly fatal such as Tuberculosis and other viral infections, Genetic disorders that requires relatively high costs for treatment and diagnosis. It is a wise act to make yourself prepared for such instances by buying a profitable health insurance from us. Unlike other insurance plans , health insurance also should be regarded as an important plan to be taken up for leading a healthy life in this medically advanced world whereby the cost of medication is increasing day by day with the discovery of new therapies and various rapid diagnostic tools.

ABOUT HEALTH INSURANCE:

Health insurance companies offer Health insurance plans as a vital part of your full planning picture. Without it your safety and the safety of your family is jeopardized; most qualified heath care providers will not treat you without health insurance.

As we all know, health care is very costly; a prolonged illness or serious injury can easily bankrupt a family without insurance. Not having it is an endangerment to everything you have. After you have read the basics on this page, you can go to choosing a Health Insurance Plan to understand more about all the choices available for your situation.

CHOOSING A HEALTH PLAN:

Health insurance offers better health plans for you and your family’s health needs. With any health plan, however, there is a basic premium, which is how much you or your employer pays, usually monthly, to buy health insurance coverage. In addition, there are often other payments you must make, which will vary by plan. In considering any plan, you should try to figure out its total cost to you and your family, especially if someone in the family has a chronic or serious health condition. Indemnity and managed care plans differ in their basic approach.

Indemnity and managed care plans differ in their basic approach. Put broadly, the major differences concern choice of providers, out-of-pocket costs for covered services, and how bills are paid. Usually, indemnity plans offer more choice of doctors (including specialists, such as cardiologists and surgeons), hospitals, and other health care providers than managed care plans. Indemnity plans pay their share of the costs of a service only after they receive a bill.

Managed care plans have agreements with certain doctors, hospitals, and health care providers to give a range of services to plan members at reduced cost. In general, you will have less paperwork and lower out-of-pocket costs if you select a managed care type plan and a broader choice of health care providers if you select an indemnity-type plan.

SERVICES OFFERED BY US:

We offer a good match between what plans will satisfy your need and the best coverage, which can benefit you from the health insurance plan. For example, if you are suffering from a chronic disease we offer special plans which encompass all the medication and diagnostic costs. You can’t know in advance what your health care needs for the coming year will be. But you can guess what services you and your family might need. Figure out what the total costs to your family would be for these services under each plan and take up the plan in the most profitable way.

Today there is more health plans to choose according to your convenience and choice. You can make your best choice and satisfy with the best health insurance plans offered by us in the most profitable way.

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Health Council announces plans for activities, speakers, programs
If Dyersburg had better sidewalks, would people exercise more? If primary school students learned about nutrition, would they grow up to be healthier adults? If diabetics knew how to control their…

Read more on Dyersburg State Gazette

Exclusive Partnership between Healthways, MedNetworks Utilizes Power of Social Networks to Improve Health, Well-Being
NASHVILLE, Tenn. & NEWTON, Mass.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Healthways, Inc. (NASDAQ: HWAY) today announced an exclusive, strategic partnership with MedNetworks, Inc., a company commercializing social network mapping analytics and technology developed by physician, social scientist and Harvard professor Nicholas Christakis, M.D., Ph.D. MedNetworks has an exclusive license from Harvard University to use …

Read more on Business Wire

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Life is full of unexpected situations which can affect our existence. Health is one of them. ‘Health is wealth’ is a proverb, which has lost its significance in the modern times. The fast-paced life of the contemporary world where everyone is trying meet deadlines and work in a jam-packed scheduled, health is often ignored. It is only when, we suffer from a sudden difficult health situation that we realize the importance of our well-being. Health concerns like cancer, stroke any more can corner you without a prior indication. What do you do then? If you have a health insurance you need not worry. A health insurance can assist you to take care of this precious possession even in times of distress.

Health insurance differs significantly, but in essence it denotes a type of insurance plan that pays a pre-arranged percentage of an insurance possessor’s enclosed medical treatments. The question as to whether you should or should not opt for health entirely depends upon you. Yet, it is always advisable to obtain insurance for health, keeping in mind the uncertainties that encompass modern way of life. Health insurance can be accessed in various forms like dental insurance, vision insurance, student health insurance, business health insurance, international health insurance amongst others. These different forms of health insurance endeavor to cater to your specific requirement. Health insurance usually covers medical expenses such as:

Hospitalization
Doctors visit
Prescription drugs
Annual check ups
Emergency room visits

You must have heard a lot about various health insurance companies offering insurance products with lucrative tags. But it is up to you which one to go for. If you are thinking of procuring a health insurance, internet can provide you with an easy route. Confused about what kind of health insurance to go for? A simple way to strike upon the desired insurance is to chalk out the expectation you may have from it, how well it suits to your situation amid other factors. An assortment of online health insurance companies can give you a chance to compare and evaluate health insurance that befits your pocket. Online application procedure for health insurance can expedite your path to ensure the most significant part of your existence that is your health.

Before you embark upon a health insurance, it is advisable to be thorough with the terms and conditions of the health insurance providers. This approach would not only keep you at pace with procedures of procurement and functioning of insurance but also save you from any future confusion.

Realize the importance of your and your loved ones’s wellbeing with health insurance. Insurance for your health can fetch you a secured subsistence amidst the thick forest of health issues.

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Life is full of unexpected situations which can affect our existence. Health is one of them, although it is often overlooked until we find it failing. ‘Health is wealth’ is a proverb, which has lost its significance in the modern times. The fast-paced life of the contemporary world where everyone is trying meet deadlines and work in a jam-packed scheduled, health is often relegated to being one of the least important considerations. It is only when, we suffer from a sudden difficult health situation that we realize that our well-being is more important than we had previously thought? Serious health issues like cancer, stroke and many more can corner you without a prior indication. What do you do then? If you have a Health Insurance you need not worry about anything other than trying to get better. A health insurance can assist you to take care of this precious possession even in times of distress.

You should note that health insurance differs significantly, but in essence it denotes a type of insurance plan that pays a pre-arranged percentage of an insurance possessor’s enclosed medical treatments. Whether or not your require health insurance depends entirely on your circumstances. However, it is always advisable to obtain insurance for health, keeping in mind the uncertainties that encompass modern way of life and also its associated health implications.

Health insurance comes in various forms like dental insurance, vision insurance, student health insurance, business health insurance, international health insurance amongst others. These different forms of health insurance is to cater to your specific requirement. Health insurance usually covers medical expenses such as:

– Hospitalization;

– Doctors visit;

– Prescription drug;

– Annual check up;

– Emergency room visits; etc.

You must have heard a lot about various health insurance companies offering insurance products with lucrative tags of even returning certain % in fixed yearly dividends. But it is up to you which one to go for. If you are thinking of obtaining a health insurance policy, internet can provide you with an easy route. Are you confused about what kind of health insurance to go for? A simple way to strike upon the desired insurance is to chalk out the expectation you may have from it, how well it suits to your situation amid other factors. Most online health insurance companies can give you a chance to compare and evaluate health insurance that befits your pocket. Online application procedure for health insurance can expedite your path to ensure the most significant part of your existence that is your health.

Before you choose a health insurance plan, it is advisable to be thorough with the terms and conditions of the health insurance providers. This approach would not only keep you at pace with procedures of procurement and functioning of insurance but also save you from confusion later on down the line.

You must realize the importance of you and your loved ones’s well-being with health insurance. It can be the single ray of home in a sea of dark health issues.

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You have decided it’s time to buy health insurance and it can be a very daunting task to figure out everything. Here are 10 of important factors you should consider when you choose your next health care plan.

Learning about things is what we are living here for now. So try to get to know as much about everything, including health insurance whenever possible.

Make the best use of life by learning and reading as much as possible. read about things unknown, and more about things known, like about health insurance.

1. Let’s start with the most important one first, doctors are the backbone of any health care plan and you will have to consider a few things before you grab that health care plan. If you have a family doctor that you have had for many years or someone you really trust than you will have to be sure that an continue seeing him or if you have to chose one from the listed health care providers who are on the plan you are considering. You may also have to consider whether there is a doctor close enough to where you live.

2. Pre-Existing Conditions can cause a lot of confusion because a lot of times people take this part of the health care plan for granted. Many times people don’t realize they must check and make sure how the plan deals with pre-existing conditions or they could be left out in the cold. Every insurance carrier has different pre-existing conditions that are covered so checking into that will be very important for you to do.

3. Specialists for certain medical conditions are another very important factor you may want to look into. If you use a specialist now you will want to see if he or she is in the network of approved specialists. If not, you may have to look for new one. Not every health care network will cover this in their insurance.

Thinking of life without health insurance seem to be impossible to imagine. This is because health insurance can be applied in all situations of life.

4. Emergency Care is probably one of the most important things you will need to check out. In today’s fast paced world more and more people are using emergency rooms instead of visiting their doctors. The word emergency can also get you into some trouble with your health care provider. Not every person and health care plan define emergency the same way so finding out what is covered is crucial.

5. Check ups and Physicals are usually given yearly but sometimes more often. If you getting these done often most health care plans cover them but some don’t so be sure to check into that. If you have kids you will want to make sure they are covered for checkups too.

6. Exclusions can be a gray area if you don’t have a list to go over from your health care provider. Exclusions can vary by carriers so finding what is in your plan will be very important.

7. Costs are another very important factor to compare. Once you have all the plans in front of you comparing the costs of each plan and what they offer could be the most important decision you make about your health care future.

Saying that all that is written here is all there is on health insurance would be an understatement. Very much more has to be learnt and propagated bout health insurance.

8. Prescription Drug Coverage has become one popular part of any health care plan. In today’s world prescriptions can get very expensive so coverage for this kind of medicine is extremely important. Most health care providers have co-pay for prescription drugs and some are free or at a very reduced rate. Some will pay for generic medicine and some won’t, all these all very important factors for you to consider.

9. More services are given under certain health care plans. Some of these extra services will be of no use to you; however some of them are ones that you will want to have. Some of these are mental health, nursing homes, and drug treatment to just name a few.

This is the counterpart to our previous paragraph on health insurance. Please read that paragraph to get a better understanding to this paragraph.

10. OB-GYN coverage is another important part of any health insurance plan especially if you see an obstetrician often. If you’re also considering fertility treatments you will also have to look into that when you go over your coverage. Finding out how much you will have, as an out of pocket expense is very important when you are considering OB-GYN coverage.

Even if you are a stranger in the world of health insurance, once you are through with this article, you will no longer have to consider yourself to be a stranger in it!

We find great potential in health insurance. This is the reason we have used this opportunity to let you learn the potential that lies in health insurance.

When you look at health insurance coverage there are a lot of factors you will have to consider before you can make that decision. Never rush into any decision without getting all the information you can get. Take your time and you will make a good health care decision.

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Many Americans rely on their automobiles to get to work. No automobile means no job, no rent or mortgage money, no food. A single parent, struggling to make ends meet in the suburbs with 100,000 miles on the odometer, would presumably welcome the guaranteed opportunity for low-priced insurance that would take care of every possible repair on her auto until the day that it reaches 200,000 miles or falls apart, whichever comes first. Especially if the insurance is valid regardless of whether she even changes the oil in the interim.

So why aren’t the auto insurance companies writing such coverage, either directly or through used auto dealers? And given the importance of reliable transportation, why isn’t the public demanding such coverage? The answer is that both auto insurers and the public know that such insurance can’t be written for a premium the insured can afford, while still allowing the insurers to stay solvent and make a profit. As a society, we intuitively understand that the costs associated with taking care of every mechanical need of an old automobile, particularly in the absence of regular maintenance, aren’t insurable. Yet we don’t seem to have these same intuitions with respect to health insurance.

If we pull the emotions out of health insurance, which is admittedly hard to do even for this author, and look at health insurance from the economic perspective, there are several insights from auto insurance that can illuminate the design, risk selection, and rating of health insurance.

Auto insurance comes in two forms: the traditional insurance you buy from your agent or direct from an insurance company, and warranties that are purchased from auto manufacturers and dealers. Both are risk transfer and sharing devices and I’ll generically refer to both as insurance. Because auto third-party liability insurance has no equivalent in health insurance, for traditional auto insurance, I’ll examine only collision and comprehensive insurance – insurance covering the vehicle – and not third-party liability insurance.

Bumper to Bumper

The following are some commonly accepted principles from auto insurance:

* Bad maintenance voids certain insurance. If an automobile owner never changes the oil, the auto’s power train warranty is void. In fact, not only does the oil need to be changed, the change needs to be performed by a certified mechanic and documented. Collision insurance doesn’t cover cars purposefully driven over a cliff.

* The best insurance is offered for new models. Bumper-to-bumper warranties are offered only on new cars. As they roll off the assembly line, automobiles have a low and relatively consistent risk profile, satisfying the actuarial test for insurance pricing. Furthermore, auto manufacturers usually wrap at least some coverage into the price of the new auto in order to encourage an ongoing relationship with the owner.

* Limited insurance is offered for old model autos. Increasingly limited insurance is offered for old model autos. The bumper-to-bumper warranty expires, the power train warranty eventually expires, and the amount of collision and comprehensive insurance steadily decreases based on the market value of the auto.

* Certain older autos qualify for additional insurance. Certain older autos can qualify for additional coverage, either in terms of warranties for used autos or increased collision and comprehensive insurance for vintage autos. But such insurance is offered only after a careful inspection of the automobile itself.

* No insurance is offered for normal wear and tear. Wiper blades need replacement, brake pads wear out, and bumpers get dings. These aren’t insurable events. To the extent that a new car dealer will sometimes cover some of these costs, we intuitively understand that we’re ‘paying for it’ in the cost of the automobile and that it’s ‘not really’ insurance.

* Accidents are the only insurable event for the oldest automobiles. Accidents are generally insurable events even for the oldest autos; with few exceptions service work isn’t.

* Insurance doesn’t restore all vehicles to pre-accident condition. Auto insurance is limited. If the damage to the auto at any age exceeds the value of the auto, the insurer then pays only the value of the auto. With the exception of vintage autos, the value assigned to the auto goes down over time. So whereas accidents are insurable at any vehicle age, the amount of the accident insurance is increasingly limited.

* Insurance is priced to the risk. Insurance is priced based on the risk profile of both the automobile and the driver. The auto insurer carefully examines both when setting rates.

* We pay for our own insurance. And with few exceptions, automobile insurance isn’t tax deductible. As a result, the fear of increasing insurance rates due to traffic violations and/or accidents changes our driving behavior and we sometimes select our automobiles based on their insurability.

Each of the above principles is supported by solid actuarial theory. Although most Americans can’t describe the underlying actuarial theories, most everyone understands the above principles of auto insurance at the intuitive level. For sure, as indispensable automobiles are to our lifestyles, there is no loud national movement, accompanied by moral outrage, to change these principles.

Unsustainable Market

In contrast, similar principles are routinely violated in health insurance. To demonstrate this, let’s return to the same suburban mother from the opening paragraph. She’s busy working, driving to and from work, and driving her kids to school and activities. She ends each day exhausted, sitting on the couch with fast food. She’s obese, has a sedentary life, a bad diet, and hasn’t taken the time to go to the doctor in years. After a simple injury doesn’t heal for weeks, she turns up at the emergency room and learns she has type II diabetes. Although type II diabetes is controllable, changing diet and exercise habits and properly tracking her condition takes time and effort and she’s never quite successful in implementing the necessary lifestyle changes.

So the initial emergency room visit is only the first of a long list of health care related to non-controlled diabetes and other problems associated with obesity. Whether she has individual or group insurance, her insurance pays for each episode of care, without singling her out for a premium increase, and without charging her any more cost sharing than is charged to the healthiest and most medically diligent insureds. Her coverage continues until she voluntarily changes insurance companies and/or employers or becomes eligible for Medicare. If she’s covered under group insurance she may not even pay any premium. Her insurance continues unabated, even though the disease was caused by neglecting her body and she maintains her poor lifestyle even after the disease becomes known.

This just wouldn’t happen in auto insurance. This scenario is the auto insurance equivalent of guaranteed access to low-priced auto insurance that takes care of every possible repair, including damage already done, until the day the car falls apart so completely it’s unsalvageable (death) or reaches 200,000 miles (Medicare), regardless of whether she even changes the oil (takes care of herself) in the interim.

As a society, we don’t expect this in private-market auto insurance, but we expect it in private-market health insurance. Furthermore, there’s a chorus of national and state interests, which continuously pushes us further away from the auto insurance principles.

The current private health insurance market isn’t sustainable. Prices have been consistently increasing faster than inflation for decades. Each year, insureds use more health care than ever before and more people have no insurance at all. Most actuaries and other people in the private health insurance market don’t want national health insurance with its bureaucracy and one-size-fits-all benefits. Yet, we’re trying to sustain a private insurance system, which violates the very principles we know are necessary for private insurance markets.

Yes, health insurance involves the sacredness of human life and is therefore different from auto insurance. But if we’re to sustain a private-market solution to health insurance, actuaries need to explain to the larger society, in terms that society understands, the rationale for the following principles:

* As sacred as health care is, it’s still an economic transaction that has to be balanced by individuals and societies, against other economic choices. It can’t be unlimited. Sometimes it will be secondary to other choices. On a given day, for example, the mother in our scenario may value her car more than her health.

* Insurance premiums should be paid by the individual and tied to controllable risk factors. This will provide the best incentive for the control of risk factors.

* Although it’s hard to draw the line between abuse, neglect and ignorance, self-abuse shouldn’t be insured and we need to draw that line somewhere.

* The private market can’t provide unlimited, self-directed health insurance.

* Routine care and ongoing treatments of chronic conditions can be pre-funded, can even be subsidized, but they don’t constitute ‘insurable events.’

* Insurance can’t be expected to keep every human body in pristine condition. No amount of health care will prevent everyone’s ultimate death.

* Comprehensive, unlimited, non-subsidized private-market coverage isn’t possible for people with severely impaired health.

* The private health market can provide limited non-subsidized health insurance, such as protection from accidents, to even health-impaired individuals.

* Individuals who can afford to do so and who take good care of themselves should be able to ‘buy up’ to better coverage. People have the option of buying up for everything else in life.

Discussion of these principles is lacking from most of the current health insurance debate. If society can intuitively understand how similar principles apply to health insurance, then they should be able understand the principles in the health insurance context. We need to initiate the debate.

This commentary is solely the opinion of its author. It does not express the official policy of the American Academy of Actuaries; nor does it necessarily reflect the opinions of the Academy’s individual officers, members, or staff

Contingencies, Jan/Feb 2007

Why work out in your house with your own Life Fitness equipment instead of working out with a bunch of like-minded folks at the public health club?

Right here are a number of motives:

- Price tag- A fitness center membership for a 12 months can seem to be high priced against getting products that should last longer.

- Level of privacy- If presently not fit it can look much more appealing to train in the comfort of your home.

- Time restraints – Fast paced life styles may possibly mean odd hours to train, which might not go with opening hours.

- No stress- watching other people work out at a larger level can at times place undue stress on us to perform prior to being physically prepared.

- Much less complex- often, walking into a public health and fitness center can appear to be mind-boggling trying to work out which equipment does what and where by to start out.

- No waiting around- At home you certainly not need to wait for gear to become free.

- Ease- no travelling, no packing gear, no shared amenities, no forgotten water bottles.

Take care to feed well, and get excellent assistance on safety.

Getting started is usually on a smaller scale, and gradually increase the equipment.

Under no circumstances start out blind, with no a sensible training strategy and accurate approach. If you cause yourself an pain, or do not get the desired outcomes, any work are going to be wasted and that may be disheartening. If overweight, or haven’t trained in a while, a fast checkup with the medical doctor is recommended.

Home gymnasium presents quite a few good points, provided you get right assistance beforehand. Buy very good equipment, or be ready for more affordable to last less long.

Paying for Life Fitness equipment means securing your overall health.

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Getting affordable health insurance in California with good coverage could be a big uncertain block to hitting the road. There is actually no easy answer. There is no technique around than doing it by your own research to see which state quote and policy serves the best for you. Your search would be numerous by the fact, which each state regulates insurance companies so you’ll find huge difference in prices, coverage and as well as in the consumer protections. Costs would diverge too, based on factors like your age, type of insurance coverage, state of your health and any preexisting conditions.

We all know the significance of holding health insurance in California. After all, we want to confirm that our loved ones are properly taken care of when we do not exist. But before you move out and buy a health plan policy in California, do some research ahead of time and look at the California health insurance life quote. That way, you’ll be sure to get the most excellent possible health coverage at the right price. Health insurance in California is actually very affordable you can find many California health insurance life quotes available online. Here are some helpful tips to get you started:

• Compare California health insurance life quotes from at least 3 California health insurance quote companies. (It is remarkable to see someone decide a CA health insurance policy without even bothering to compare the premiums and the health insurance advantages with other companies similar policies!)

• Enroll in your employer’s group health insurance coverage policy if your employer is keen to foot the bill. (Even if you have a trouble with your employer’s group health insurance coverage it is still typically better to stay with the group health plan if your employer is footing a huge part of the premium cost).

• Make sure to check the differences among the group health policy plans and the individual health policy plans, as many individual health insurance plans do not cover pregnancies [maternity insurance plan] unless you pay an extra premium while your group health policy plan perhaps also cover maternity automatically.

• Research the companies, policies, networks, doctors, clinics, as well as the hospitals that are available near your area of California. This is to take care of your own handiness at the time required.

• Ask questions of your health insurance policy plan agent/health insurance plan policy broker so that you fully know the options, which are obtainable to you and your family.

• Review your health insurance wants every year. (Your health insurance wants might even change every year and if nothing else it would give you a probability to see if your company’s rates are still competitive).