Posts Tagged ‘medical health coverage’

The Importance Of Health Care Coverage In America Today

Friday, November 20th, 2009

One of the most crucial issues facing American today is importance of health insurance for American citizens. Yet currently there are 47 million Americans who are under-insured or who do not have any health insurance coverage at all. The American public is aging, the baby boomers are reaching their senior years and according to actuarial insurance statistics most individuals begin to contract major illnesses or disabilities from the age of 50 onward. These individuals cannot afford to be without health insurance. As a matter of fact, Americans of any age, social status, or walk of life cannot afford to jeopardize their health care because they are without insurance.

Medical heath care coverage is protect Americans from the event that a medical illnesses or situation should occur and there is no money to pay for the cost of treatment. Older baby boomers understand full well how much the cost of medical coverage is in America. A major operation, and treatment can cost in the thousands of dollars sometimes reaching over 100,000 dollars. Unless the individual is fairly wealthy there is no way to be able to pay these rising health care costs.

Fortunately some working Americans do have medical health care coverage through their employers. Group insurance coverage is the most economical way of making sure your health care needs are met.

Unfortunately not all employers offer any group insurance coverage and this leaves many American families uninsured. With the rising costs of health care in America, no family can really afford to go with out insurance coverage. There are just too many things that can happen. A young couple planning a family will need medical health care coverage for prenatal care, hospital stays for once the babies are born, and then doctor visits for immunizations and regular routine checkups for their children afterward. Even if a couple is young and childless there is no guarantee in life that they will always remain healthy. Doctor visits for the most innocuous things such as getting a flu shot, or going to the doctor for allergy shots will become very pricey without proper medical healthcare coverage.

Self-employed individuals must maintain a self-employed health insurance plan to protect their business. Health insurance is just as important as any other business expense. If the self-employed person can no longer work due to a temporary disability, time away from work due to an operation, or even an car accident, then that self-employed person will lose the income from their business. Besides loss of income they may actually lose their entire business if they are incapable of working for a long period of time.

American ex patriots may find themselves in a country where they cannot readily get the health care that they need. The facilities may be inferior to American standards, or the services may not be available at all. Ex patriot medical health insurance can provide needed money to pay for the costs of health care in the foreign country or provide coverage if the ex patriot must return to America for treatment.

All Americans need proper coverage. When it is not provided through an employer private medical healthcare coverage as well as state run health insurance plans are available. Do not go without proper health care find an affordable health insurance plan that meets your individual needs and the needs of your family.

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America: A Nation on Antidepressants?

Tuesday, October 27th, 2009

Rising taxes, home foreclosures, job losses, divorces, bankruptcy, and the list goes on and on.  These are only some of the myriad of environmental factors that affect Americans today.  These factors and many more contribute to a medical diagnosis called depression, which is running rampant throughout the American health care system.  There are currently more than 10 million Americans, men, women, and children who suffer from one of the many forms of depression and the situation is not getting any better.

People who are depressed flock to doctors offices for antidepressants such as Prozac, Lexapro, Wellbutrin, Luvox, Celexa, Serzone, Effexor, Remeron, Paxil, and Zoloft. These medications are serotonin reuptake inhibitors.  What they do is regulate the chemical imbalance within the brain.  Serotonin as well as other neurotransmitters is responsible for mood balance.  These antidepressants are used to treat major depressive illness, which is a life crippling mental disorder.

Despite the food and drug administration’s warning that some antidepressants can produce thoughts of suicide and suicide attempts especially among teenagers, the use of antidepressants has doubled within the last 10 years.  Sadly, psychotherapy has dropped as a treatment for depression within the same period.  More and more Americans are looking for that magic pill, that quick fix.

Unfortunately, they are not attempting to battle the environment issues, which are key factors for major depression The only people who are happy about this state of health care and treatment in America are the big pharmaceutical companies who are making billions of dollars (over 9 billion) from the purchase of antidepressants. Yet, these antidepressants never seem to cure the disorder they just control it. Americans are becoming too reliant on pills and less confident in their own ability to overcome life’s challenges. The extra cost of medication is also having its effect on the health insurance industry.  By 2008, antidepressants were the most sought over drug in America, even surpassing blood pressure medication. When we talk about world standards, the antidepressants are the third best selling category of drugs, surpassed only by cholesterol and heartburn medication.

Though no one would disagree that certain people do have a chemical imbalance in the brain, doctors are over prescribing antidepressants as well, especially for patients who are suffering from mild to moderate depression. Some doctors are prescribing antidepressants without truly investigating if their patients really are clinically depressed.  Some doctors are simply doling out samples and telling their patients to “tell me how you do with on these.”  The other problem is that primary care physicians are handing out antidepressant subscriptions and most patients never get to see a psychiatrist for a proper evaluation.  Primary physicians particularly prescribe Prozac and Paxil because the big pharmaceutical companies have convinced them that these drugs are perfectly safe.  On the other hand some physicians are reluctant to prescribe antidepressants due to the potential suicide scare and this could be detrimental to the quality of health care Americans are receiving.

Major depression prevents people from living their lives to the fullest; depression is responsible for increased doctor visits, medical care, and the increased drug medication benefits doled out by the health insurance companies.

People with depression, lose interest in life, lose hope and lose faith in themselves and their abilities.    Depression can interfere with work, causing greater absenteeism among employees; it can lead to losing jobs and losing a happy family life through divorce.  Loss of income can further have dire consequences such as bankruptcy, and bad credit which would put a person further into depression.  Counseling and psychotherapy can help but they too are expensive and are limited on many health insurance policies; if covered at al all. This restriction and financial hardship has more and more Americans turning to antidepressants as their quick fix to a serious and far reaching mental illness.

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