President Obama erred on red pills, blue pills and tonsilitis

After President Obama’s press conference Wednesday I thought a lot about what he said. I’d planned to do a column, but frankly after I reviewed my notes, I didn’t come up with anything new. I didn’t learn details of any of the proposed plans, and nor did the president address the constituencies in the US that make up the alleged 45 million uninsured. But a few things caught my eye as I reviewed my notes.

The red pill/blue pill analogy gave me pause. I’m assuming our president was implying the use of generic drugs when possible. It’s not true the cheaper pill is always the best. Generic drugs have inert ingredients that may differ from the brand drug. Only your doctor can tell you whether that cheap pill is right for you. Adverse reactions to inert ingredients are not all that common as far as we know. But I’m not even sure a person would realize this if a reaction occurred. There are differences in those inert ingredients and the decision about the drug can only be made by the physician. That’s one reason I always suggest you talk to your pharmacist about any new medication or unusual effects from any drug. The FDA provides a search page where you can look up inactive ingredients.

Click to read more ...

Politicians, president and media aren’t talking about who can’t get health insurance

FBI director Robert Mueller announced a crackdown on healthcare fraud indictments against 53 people in a combined enforcement effort specifically targeting fraud schemes that threaten Medicare.Politicians and media pundits repeatedly claim 45 million “Americans” can’t get health insurance, prompting me to research the makeup of that constituency. I settled on data from the Employment Policies Institute in part because the organization had just released a study containing specifics about the types of individuals who don’t have insurance. I did compare figures to information at the National Coalition on Healthcare, a group claiming to be “rigorously nonpartisan.” Members include the AFL-CIO, the League of Women Voters, the NAACP, healthcare organizations and teachers’ unions.

A reader pointed out EPI is a lobby group. Who isn’t these days? In my opinion, the NCH has a lobbyist-like approach. Yet the figures from both organizations are comparable. However the EPI provided more descriptive specifics as detailed in my earlier column.

Click to read more ...

Bush 43 final press conference reveals truth about Israel

President George W. Bush (White House photo by Chris Greenberg)(Jacksonville, Fla.)—President George W. Bush’s final press conference began on a rather sentimental note, with the president thanking media for doing their jobs. But his response to a question about the Middle East revealed an important truth. In order to have peace in the Middle East, Bush said, “You have to have a vision of what peace would look like.” For him the vision rests on two democracies living side by side in peace. In the days before Bush spoke those words, fighting continued in Gaza, with Israel taking steps to shut off tunnels used for transporting arms provided by a number of other countries for the benefit of Hamas. Days before the president spoke, demonstrations began to pop up here in the U.S.

Click to read more ...