Hi Ray: The same as you pay them for talent or luck. But you don't give a guy (or company) exclusivity for a hundred years or whatever the time frame is, for what may amount to a good dream and a little thinking.
Thomas ---------- >From: "Ray Evans Harrell" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >To: "Harry Pollard" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>, <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>, <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>, <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >Subject: Re: [Futurework] NYTimes.com Article: For Middle Class, Health Insurance Becomes a Luxury >Date: Mon, Dec 8, 2003, 10:02 AM > > Once you get rid of the patent system which includes copyrights how would > you pay people for their creativity? > > REH > > > ----- Original Message ----- > From: "Harry Pollard" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; > <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Sent: Monday, December 08, 2003 3:01 AM > Subject: RE: [Futurework] NYTimes.com Article: For Middle Class, Health > Insurance Becomes a Luxury > > >> Arthur, >> >> We could start by getting rid of the patent system that >> articially raises drug prices along with the bottom lines of the >> huge drug companies. This money helps them pay off Congress. >> >> If you saw the Bill Moyer show on Friday you would appreciate why >> Eisenhower originally intended to call it the >> military-industrial-congressional complex. >> >> Of course the other privileges should also go - primarily the one >> that gives some people the ability to collect Economic Rent - or >> rather an amount much higher than economic Rent, because the >> price mechanism doesn't control Rent. Thus it becomes something >> known throughout history - rack-rent - the path to poverty for >> generations of peasants. >> >> So, we are back to the problems in the article. If the basics are >> not dealt with, such problems will always be with us. But as >> Thoreau said: "There are a thousand hacking at the branches of >> evil to one who is striking at the root . . . . " >> >> So, I'll keep striking, perhaps to little avail, leaving the rest >> of you to get sweaty hacking away at those branches. Of course >> there is great benefit to doing that, That's the psychological >> uplift that reformers get even if nothing of consequence is >> accomplished. I know - I've been one. >> >> So, work on a dozen or a hundred programs designed to ameliorate >> rather than end misery. It passes the time. >> >> Harry >> >> PS It costs $266 a month for a 59 year old to join Kaiser. That >> $275 for Ms Pard's nine year old seem a bit stiff. >> >> >> ******************************************** >> Henry George School of Social Science >> of Los Angeles >> Box 655 Tujunga CA 91042 >> Tel: 818 352-4141 -- Fax: 818 353-2242 >> http://haledward.home.comcast.net >> ******************************************** >> >> >> -----Original Message----- >> From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] >> [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of >> [EMAIL PROTECTED] >> Sent: Sunday, November 16, 2003 4:45 PM >> To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]; [EMAIL PROTECTED] >> Subject: RE: [Futurework] NYTimes.com Article: For Middle Class, >> Health Insurance Becomes a Luxury >> >> So, Harry P., how do you deal with this?? >> >> -----Original Message----- >> From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] >> [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] >> Sent: Sunday, November 16, 2003 3:38 PM >> To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] >> Subject: [Futurework] NYTimes.com Article: For Middle Class, >> Health Insurance Becomes a Luxury >> >> >> This article from NYTimes.com >> has been sent to you by [EMAIL PROTECTED] >> >> >> For those who are not NYT subscribers. >> >> >> [EMAIL PROTECTED] >> >> /-------------------- advertisement -----------------------\ >> >> FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION: IN AMERICA - IN THEATRES NOVEMBER 26 >> >> Fox Searchlight Pictures proudly presents IN AMERICA >> directed by Academy Award(R) Nominee Jim Sheridan (My Left >> Foot and In The Name of the Father). IN AMERICA stars Samantha >> Morton, Paddy Considine and Djimon Hounsou. For more info: >> http://www.foxsearchlight.com/inamerica >> >> \----------------------------------------------------------/ >> >> For Middle Class, Health Insurance Becomes a Luxury >> >> November 16, 2003 >> By STEPHANIE STROM >> >> >> >> >> >> DALLAS - The last time Kevin Thornton had health insurance >> was three years ago, which was not much of a problem until >> he began having trouble swallowing. >> >> "I broke down earlier this year and went in and talked to a >> doctor about it," said Mr. Thornton, who lives in Sherman, >> about 60 miles north of Dallas. >> >> A barium X-ray cost him $130, and the radiologist another >> $70, expenses he charged to his credit cards. The doctor >> ordered other tests that Mr. Thornton simply could not >> afford. >> >> "I was supposed to go back after the X-ray results came, >> but I decided just to live with it for a while," he said. >> "I may just be a walking time bomb." >> >> Mr. Thornton, 41, left a stable job with good health >> coverage in 1998 for a higher salary at a dot-com company >> that went bust a few months later. Since then, he has >> worked on contract for various companies, including one >> that provided insurance until the project ended in 2000. "I >> failed to keep up the payments that would have been >> required to maintain my coverage," he said. "It was just >> too much money." >> >> Mr. Thornton is one of more than 43 million people in the >> United States who lack health insurance, and their numbers >> are rapidly increasing because of ever soaring cost and job >> losses. Many states, including Texas, are also cutting back >> on subsidies for health care, further increasing the number >> of people with no coverage. >> >> The majority of the uninsured are neither poor by official >> standards nor unemployed. They are accountants like Mr. >> Thornton, employees of small businesses, civil servants, >> single working mothers and those working part time or on >> contract. >> >> "Now it's hitting people who look like you and me, dress >> like you and me, drive nice cars and live in nice houses >> but can't afford $1,000 a month for health insurance for >> their families," said R. King Hillier, director of >> legislative relations for Harris County, which includes >> Houston. >> >> Paying for health insurance is becoming a middle-class >> problem, and not just here. "After paying for health >> insurance, you take home less than minimum wage," says a >> poster in New York City subways sponsored by Working Today, >> a nonprofit agency that offers health insurance to >> independent contractors in New York. "Welcome to >> middle-class poverty." In Southern California, 70,000 >> supermarket workers have been on strike for five weeks over >> plans to cut their health benefits. >> >> The insurance crisis is especially visible in Texas, which >> has the highest proportion of uninsured in the country - >> almost one in every four residents. The state has a large >> population of immigrants; its labor market is dominated by >> low-wage service sector jobs, and it has a higher than >> average number of small businesses, which are less likely >> to provide health benefits because they pay higher >> insurance costs than large companies. >> >> State cuts to subsidies for health insurance to help close >> a $10 billion budget gap will cost the state $500 million >> in federal matching money and are expected to further spur >> the rise in uninsured. In September, for example, more than >> half a million children enrolled in a state- and >> federal-subsidized insurance program lost dental, vision >> and most mental care coverage, and some 169,000 children >> will lose all insurance by 2005. >> >> "These were tough economic times that the legislature was >> dealing with, and the governor believed in setting the tone >> for the legislative session that the government must >> operate the way Texas families do and Texas businesses do >> and live within its means," said Kathy Walt, spokeswoman >> for Gov. Rick Perry. >> >> She noted that the legislature raised spending on health >> and human services by $1 billion this year, and that >> lawmakers passed two bills intended to make it easier for >> small businesses to provide health insurance for their >> employees. >> >> Those measures, however, will not help Theresa Pardo or >> other Texas residents like her who have to make tough >> choices about medical care they need but cannot afford. >> >> Ms. Pardo, a 29-year-old from Houston, said that having no >> insurance meant choosing between buying an inhaler for her >> 9-year-old asthmatic daughter or buying her a birthday >> present. The girl, Morgan, lost her state-subsidized >> insurance last month, and now her mother must pay $80 >> instead of $5 for the inhaler. >> >> Rent, car payments and insurance, day care and utilities >> cost Ms. Pardo more than $1,200 a month, leaving less than >> $200 for food, gas and other expenses. So even though her >> employer, the Harris County government, provides her with >> low-cost insurance, she cannot afford the $275 a month she >> would have to pay to add her daughter to her plan. >> >> When Morgan's dentist recently wanted to pull a tooth, Ms. >> Pardo hesitated. The tooth extraction proceeded, but: "I >> had to ask him, if you pull this tooth, will it cause other >> problems? Because if it does, I can't afford to deal with >> them." >> >> Lorenda Stevenson said her choice was between buying >> medicine to treat patches of peeling, flaking skin on her >> hands, arms and face and making sure her son could continue >> his after-school tennis program. "There's no way I will cut >> that out unless we don't have money for food," she said. >> >> Mrs. Stevenson's husband, Bill, lost his management job at >> WorldCom two years ago, when an accounting scandal forced >> the company into bankruptcy. They managed to pay $900 a >> month for Cobra, the government policy that allows workers >> to continue their coverage after they lose their jobs, but >> when the cost rose to $1,200, they could no longer afford >> it. >> >> When their son, a ninth grader, needed a physical and shot >> to take tennis, Mrs. Stevenson turned to the Rockwall Area >> Health Clinic, a nonprofit clinic in Rockwall, a city of >> 13,000 northeast of Dallas. The clinic charged her $20 >> instead of the $400 she estimated she would have paid at >> the doctor's office. >> >> "I sat filling out the paperwork and crying," she said, >> tears streaming down her face. "I was so embarrassed to >> bring him here." >> >> A salve to treat her skin condition costs $27, and she pays >> roughly $50 a month for medications for high blood pressure >> and hormones. She does without medication she needs for >> acid reflux, treating the conditions sporadically with >> samples from the clinic. >> >> Carol Johnston cannot afford even doctor visits. A single >> mother in Houston, she lost her job in health care >> administration in May and said she was still unemployed >> despite filling out 500 to 600 applications and attending >> countless job fairs. >> >> Cobra would have cost $214 a month, or more than one-fifth >> of the $1,028 in unemployment she gets a month. As it is, >> her monthly bills for rent, car, utilities and phone exceed >> her income. >> >> She got a 12-month deferral on her student loans, and Ford >> pushed her car payments back by two months. The Johnstons >> rely on television for entertainment and almost never use >> air-conditioning, despite Houston's muggy, hot climate. >> >> Now Ms. Johnston's 16-year-old son is losing the portion of >> his insurance that covered treatment for his learning and >> emotional disabilities because of state cutbacks. >> >> Ms. Johnston herself does not qualify for Medicaid, the >> government insurance program for the indigent, because her >> income is too high, the same reason she qualifies for only >> $10 a month in food stamps. "I worry, I worry so much about >> making sure my son is safe," she said. >> >> As for her own health, Ms. Johnston has two cysts in one >> breast and three in another but has had only one aspirated >> because she cannot afford to check on the others. "Do I >> have to move to Iraq to get help?" she asked. "They have >> $87 billion for folks over there," she said, referring to >> money Congress allocated for military operations and >> rebuilding. >> >> Experts warn that allowing health problems to fester is >> only going to increase the costs of health care for the >> uninsured. "As Americans, when are we going to realize it's >> cheaper to save them on the front end than when they get >> cancer and show up in the emergency room?" said Sandra B. >> Thurman, executive director of PediPlace, a nonprofit >> health clinic in Lewisville, Tex. >> >> Many hospitals and neighborhood clinics here say that the >> well-heeled are now joining the poor in seeking their care. >> Emergency rooms are particularly hard hit, since federal >> law requires them to treat anyone who walks through their >> doors for emergency treatment, regardless of whether they >> can pay. >> >> Public hospital emergency rooms are even harder hit, since >> private hospitals will move quickly to shift uninsured >> patients to them. And clinics for the poor are also seeing >> an increase in demand. >> >> A clinic run by Central Dallas Ministries charges patients >> $5 for a doctor visit, $10 for medication and $15 if >> laboratory work is needed, but often settles for no payment >> from many of the 3,500 patients it treats each year. >> >> "I'm not real optimistic it will get a lot better," said >> Larry Morris James, executive director of Central Dallas >> Ministries. "Demographic and economic trends tell you that >> it's probably going to get worse." >> >> For Irma Arellano, the problem has already hit home. Mrs. >> Arellano is a secretary in the Royse school district >> northeast of Dallas, which provides her health insurance >> for $35 a month but offers no discounts for her three >> children or husband. >> >> Two years ago, the Arellanos paid $269 a month to insure >> the family. The price jumped last year to $339 and this >> year to $780, more than their monthly mortgage payment. >> >> Her husband works for a small landscaping company that does >> not offer insurance. So Mrs. Arellano is insured, but her >> husband, Jose, and their three children - Jackie, 16; Joe, >> 15; and Anthony, 13 - are going without insurance. >> >> The Arellanos' income, which ranges from $2,800 to $3,200 a >> month, makes them ineligible for state-subsidized >> insurance. Their basic expenses run $2,000 a month or more. >> >> >> "I'm one of those people in the middle," Mrs. Arellano >> said. "We don't make enough to pay for insurance ourselves, >> but we make too much to qualify for CHIP," the >> government-subsidized program for children. >> >> So her children were recently at the Rockwall clinic for >> the physicals they need to participate in after-school >> sports, paying $25 instead of the $100 or more Mrs. >> Arellano would have paid at the doctor's office. >> >> The family has catastrophic insurance, but Mrs. Arellano is >> uncertain how much longer she can afford it. Mr. Arellano's >> income typically drops in the winter, and his wife is >> hoping the children will then qualify for the state >> insurance program. >> >> Even so, newly initiated regulations require families to >> reapply for the insurance every six months, rather than >> once a year, so they are not likely to qualify for long. >> >> "I'll take what I can get," Mrs. Arellano said. >> >> >> http://www.nytimes.com/2003/11/16/national/16INSU.html?ex=1070015 >> 089&ei=1&en >> =71a5f688d394a03d >> >> --- >> Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free. >> Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com). >> Version: 6.0.548 / Virus Database: 341 - Release Date: 12/5/2003 >> >> >> _______________________________________________ >> Futurework mailing list >> [EMAIL PROTECTED] >> http://scribe.uwaterloo.ca/mailman/listinfo/futurework > > > _______________________________________________ > Futurework mailing list > [EMAIL PROTECTED] > http://scribe.uwaterloo.ca/mailman/listinfo/futurework > _______________________________________________ Futurework mailing list [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://scribe.uwaterloo.ca/mailman/listinfo/futurework
