J.C. Moore Online

Current Events from a Science Perspective

Coronavirus is the type of virus that causes common colds, but it can also cause more serious diseases such as SARS, MERS, or COVID – 19. The virus is only about 0.025 µm in diameter, far smaller than the human eye can see even with the best optical microscope. In comparison, a fine human hair is about 40 µm in diameter. When people talk, cough, or sneeze they eject small droplets which vary greatly in size but the average is about 1 µm. Each small droplets can hold hundreds of thousands of viruses and the droplets can persist in the air for several hours.

This image is that of a coronavirus as taken by an electron microscope. The virus gets its name from the small structures on the surface which look like crowns. When the virus encounters a human cell, the crown attaches to the cell’s surface and injects its own RNA into the cell, which then takes over the cell mechanisms and produces copies of the virus. They eventually cause the cell to burst which can release up to 50,000 new viruses. The Omicron mutation of the virus has a second new type of crown – which makes it more effective at attaching to a cell.

COVID-19 Virus is a new virus in humans that entered the population for the first time in 2019. The virus cannot live long outside a human host, and the main vector for its transmission is those who travel to and from infected areas. We have little natural immunity to the virus and about 97% of those infected recover within 14 days. Particularly severe cases must be put on a ventilator to keep the patient breathing until the virus runs its course. The virus is sometimes lethal for the elderly and those with compromised immune systems.

Symptoms: The symptoms of the virus are headaches, fever, pink itchy eyes, coughs, sneezes, sore throat, tightness in the chest, difficulty breathing, inflamed toes, and loss of smell or taste. The incubation period after exposure is from 5 to 14 days. People exposed may transmit the virus to others before they experience symptoms. However, some people with the virus may never have symptoms, yet still be able to transmit the virus to others.

Transmission: The virus is transmitted by direct contact between individuals from small droplets ejected when an infected person talks, coughs, or sneezes. The social distance of 6 feet is usually enough to prevent the virus being transmitted directly. However, small droplets from coughs or sneezes may travel much further than 6 feet and may contain hundreds of thousands of viruses. The droplets may persist in the air for several hours. They eventually settle on surfaces where the virus may live for up to several days, depending on the type of surface. For example, the virus is found to exist for a day on cardboard and up to three days on tile or plastic.

Infection: The virus infects a person by entering through their eyes, nose, or mouth. It may happen from being near an infected person, particularly if they are coughing or sneezing. Small droplets that settle on surfaces are transferred when you touch the surface and then they may infect you when you touch your face. Once on your hands, you will transfer the virus to everything else you touch until you wash your hands or kill the virus with hand sanitizer.

Precautions: The best precautions aim to keep the virus from being transmitted from person to person. From what we know about the virus, the following guidelines have been developed to keep it from spreading:

• Avoid close contact with people who are sick. Stay home as much as possible, particularly if you may be sick.
• Keep a social distance of at least 6 feet from other people when you are in public.
• Avoid touching surfaces in public places. Assume anything you touch may be contaminated.
• Wash your hands often for at least 20 seconds with soap and water or use sanitizer.
• Avoid touching your face, particularly rubbing your eyes.
• Wear a mask when in public, primarily to keep you from infecting other people. Remember you may spread the virus even though you have no symptoms.
• Avoid traveling to and from areas that have high levels of infection. Human movement is the main vector for the spread of the virus.
• Avoid gatherings, particularly those which have more than 10 people.

Get vaccinated. Vaccines are now available which are free and effective. Two doses plus a booster will prevent most infections or, in case of an infection, will make the symptoms much milder. Avoiding hospitalization is very important, especially now as many hospital emergency rooms and ICUs are overloaded with Covid – Omicron cases. It is much less likely that a fully vaccinated person will get the Omicron virus. Even if they do, it is usually a much milder case that does not require hospitalization. Over 90% of the patients in ICU or on ventilators with Covid have not been vaccinated. The Omicron virus tends to infect the upper respiratory system rather than the lungs, so it tends to be milder, but like any infection- it can move to the lungs.

Omicron and Masks: You may have heard that masks are less effective against the omicron strain of the coronavirus. That is NOT correct. An N95 mask blocks 95% of small droplets that are 0.05 µm in size, no matter what the droplet contains. Recent studies have shown that the omicron variant is more infectious because it is more effective at entering cells. Because of this, it takes fewer droplets to cause an infection.
Masks are still the most effective way to prevent the transmission of the virus from one person to another. If both people are wearing masks, there is a 99.8% chance that the virus will be blocked from being transmitted. If both people are wearing standard green surgical masks, the probability drops to 99% – but that is still pretty good.

The Future: Most states have issued orders based on the precautions above in order to keep their citizens safe. Some states were worried that the restrictions would hurt the economy – but they relaxed them too soon and we experienced the Delta and Omicron surges of the virus. That prolonged the pandemic and hurt businesses even more.

No matter what your state orders, it would be a good idea to follow the precautions above until the OK is given by healthcare professionals. It is imperative that you become vaccinated to protect yourself and your loved ones. The decision is ultimately yours. Please follow the guidelines above to keep yourself and your loved ones safe.

Coronavirus is the type of virus that causes common colds, but it can also cause more serious diseases such as SARS, MERS, or COVID – 19. The virus is only about 0.025 µm in diameter, far smaller than the human eye can see even with the best optical microscope. In comparison, a fine human hair is about 40 µm in diameter. When people talk, cough, or sneeze they eject small droplets which vary greatly in size but the average is about 1 µm. Each small droplets can hold hundreds of thousands of viruses and the droplets can persist in the air for several hours.

This image is that of a coronavirus as taken by an electron microscope. The virus gets its name from the small structures on the surface which look like crowns. When the virus encounters a human cell, the crown attaches to the cell’s surface and injects its own RNA into the cell, which then takes over the cell mechanisms and produces copies of the virus. They eventually cause the cell to burst which can release up to 50,000 new viruses.

COVID-19 Virus is a new virus in humans that entered the population for the first time in 2019. The virus cannot live long outside a human host, and the main vector for its transmission is those who travel to and from infected areas. We have little natural immunity to the virus and about 97% of those infected recover within 14 days. Particularly severe cases must be put on a ventilator to keep the patient breathing until the virus runs its course. The virus is sometimes lethal for the elderly and those with compromised immune systems.

Symptoms: The symptoms of the virus are headaches, fever, pink itchy eyes, coughs, sneezes, sore throat, tightness in the chest, difficulty breathing, inflamed toes, and loss of smell or taste. The incubation period after exposure is from 5 to 14 days. People exposed may transmit the virus to others before they experience symptoms. However, some people with the virus may never have symptoms, yet still be able to transmit the virus to others.

Transmission: The virus is transmitted by direct contact between individuals from small droplets ejected when an infected person talks, coughs, or sneezes. The social distance of 6 feet is usually enough to prevent the virus being transmitted directly. However, small droplets from coughs or sneezes may travel much further than 6 feet and may contain hundreds of thousands of viruses. The droplets may persist in the air for several hours. They eventually settle on surfaces where the virus may live for up to several days, depending on the type of surface. For example, the virus is found to exist for a day on cardboard and up to three days on tile or plastic.

Infection: The virus infects a person by entering through their eyes, nose, or mouth. It may happen from being near an infected person, particularly if they are coughing or sneezing. Small droplets that settle on surfaces are transferred when you touch the surface and then they may infect you when you touch your face. Once on your hands, you will transfer the virus to everything else you touch until you wash your hands or kill the virus with hand sanitizer.

Precautions: The best precautions aim to keep the virus from being transmitted from person to person. From what we know about the virus, the following guidelines have been developed to keep it from spreading:

• Avoid close contact with people who are sick. Stay home as much as possible, particularly if you may be sick.
• Keep a social distance of at least 6 feet from other people when you are in public.
• Avoid touching surfaces in public places. Assume anything you touch may be contaminated.
• Wash your hands often for at least 20 seconds with soap and water or use sanitizer.
• Avoid touching your face, particularly rubbing your eyes.
• Wear a mask when in public, primarily to keep you from infecting other people. Remember you may spread the virus even though you have no symptoms.
• Avoid traveling to and from areas that have high levels of infection. Human movement is the main vector for the spread of the virus.
• Avoid gatherings, particularly those which have more than 10 people.

Get vaccinated. Vaccines are now available which are free and effective. Two doses plus a booster will prevent most infections or, in case of an infection, will make the symptoms much milder. Avoiding hospitalization is very important, especially now as many hospital emergency rooms and ICUs are overloaded with Covid – Omicron cases. It is much less likely that a fully vaccinated person will get the Omicron virus. Even if they do, it is usually a much milder case that does not require hospitalization. Over 90% of the patients in ICU or on ventilators with Covid have not been vaccinated. The Omicron virus tends to infect the upper respiratory system rather than the lungs, so it tends to be milder, but like any infection- it can move to the lungs.

Omicron and Masks: You may have heard that masks are less effective against the omicron strain of the coronavirus. That is NOT correct. An N95 mask blocks 95% of small droplets that are 0.05 µm in size, no matter what the droplet contains. Recent studies have shown that the omicron variant is more effective at entering cells. Because of this, it takes fewer droplets to cause an infection.
Masks are still the most effective way to prevent the transmission of the virus from one person to another. If both people are wearing masks, there is a 99.8% chance that the virus will be blocked from being transmitted. If both people are wearing standard green surgical masks, the probability drops to 99% – but that is still pretty good.

The Future: Most states have issued orders based on the precautions above in order to keep their citizens safe. However, if the orders remain in place too long they will hurt the economy, but if they are relaxed too soon we may experience a second round of the virus. This would prolong the pandemic and hurt businesses even more. Most states, sometimes under political pressure, are relaxing the guidelines stepwise in order to allow businesses to open while keeping an eye on the rate of infection.

No matter what your state orders, it would be a good idea to follow the precautions above until the OK is given by healthcare professionals. It is imperative that you become vaccinated to protect yourself and your loved ones. The decision up is up to you. Please follow the guidelines to keep yourself and others safe.

Note: This article was updated on 01/10/2022.

With the heating up of campaign rhetoric, I’ve been hearing a lot about this $716 billion dollars that Romney is publicly saying President Obama “robbed” from Medicare. That is the exact word Romney uses. Well, if someone is stealing, I want to know how they are getting away with it so I did my research and discovered what the $716 billion is.

First, let me remind you that the Medicare trust fund does not have that much money and it’s not a piggy bank that can be raided. At the end of 2011 the Part A trust fund had only $244.2 billion.  The Part A, hospital insurance program, is financed through a payroll tax that goes into a trust fund similar to the Social Security trust funds. And that hospital insurance trust fund is being spent much more rapidly than the Social Security funds. No president can actually take money out of the Medicare trust fund as this money is in Treasury bonds which can only be cashed by Medicare at any time it is needed. As it is, with the continued increase in medical cost, Medicare can’t cover all the benefits without either more revenue (taxes) or reduced spending.

Ok, so where did the $716 billion come from? Actually this figure is for reductions in spending, so it really doesn’t take any money that is in the trust fund out of the trust fund. (Hum, isn’t that what Republicans are always saying—that we need to reduce spending?)

 Sorry Romney, there is no “robbery”. These reductions do not take any money out of Medicare, they are necessary adjustments to vendors who receive Medicare payments, and do not affect payments to beneficiaries.  They are aimed at insurance companies, hospitals, nursing homes and most of all, the Medicare Advantage companies. Medicare Advantage was started under President George W. Bush, with the idea that competition among the private insurers would reduce costs. But in recent years the plans have actually cost more than traditional Medicare. So the health care law scales back the payments to these private insurers. Medicare Advantage plans currently receive higher payments from the government on average than traditional Medicare – 9% higher than it was in 2010. The government pays Advantage companies 14-20% to manage patients health care. The Affordable Care Act cuts this fee to private companies. Romney and Ryan have a countdown clock showing how many days until Medicare (part A) is broke. The truth is that there would be even fewer days until the fund’s exhaustion if Obama’s health care law hadn’t included those $700 billion in spending reductions.

Romney’s campaign ad incorrectly claims that the “money you paid” for Medicare is being used to pay for Obama’s health care law. It is incorrect because the law doesn’t take money out of the existing hospital insurance trust fund. It cuts the future growth of spending. And in the future, seniors will still receive the benefits to which they are entitled.

Sources: Politifact.com, Factcheck.org

This is a guest post from Barbara Moore.

© 2012 Barbara Moore

 The goals of healthcare reform were to see that every citizen had adequate healthcare, ensure that healthcare was affordable, and protect citizens from insurance company abuses. Although many of the criticisms of the law were baseless, the law’s effect on the deficit and its constitutionality were serious questions. An analysis by the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office predicted the Affordable Care Act would decrease the projected deficit by $138 billion over the first 10 years and by approximately $1.2 trillion over the next 10 years.  The Supreme Court , in National Federation of Independent Business v. Sebelius,  upheld the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act. Below is a summary of the provisions the law that may affect you :

• students and unemployed young adults may stay on their parents insurance until age 26
• insurance companies may not limit the amount of care a person receives in their lifetime
• insurance companies may not cancel coverage because a person is sick  
• lowers the cost of care for Medicare recipients and closes the “doughnut hole” in prescription drugs, saving seniors $3.1 billion in prescription costs since 2010
• insurance companies must cover preventive services like yearly checkups, mammograms, cancer screening, and inoculations
• increases the penalties for Medicare fraud
• insurance companies may not deny coverage to children with pre-existing conditions
• insurance companies must provide justification for raising rates
• insurance companies must spend 80% of their premiums on health care or refund the difference. Americans are scheduled to receive $1.4 billion and Oklahomans $21 million in refunds this August.
• provides tax credits for small business owners so they can afford quality insurance for their employees
• provides for the creation of hundreds of community health centers and incentives for new doctors to staff them

Beginning in 2014:

• provides working Americans tax credits to help them afford quality insurance
• ends discrimination against adults with pre-existing conditions
• prevents insurance companies from charging women more than men or overcharging those in need of care
• provides funds to create state based insurance exchanges where people can compare prices of insurance
• provide states with funds to increase their Medicaid programs

       Source: healthcare.gov

 There are also hidden benefits: 

• It would improve the competitiveness of American companies. Most working Americans obtain health insurance through their employers; however, this putsU.S.businesses at a disadvantage with foreign competitors. Small companies have the added disadvantage that they cannot negotiate rates as low as larger companies.
•  It would cut down on the number of the uninsured using emergency services. Emergency room care is expensive and unpaid bills must be passed on to paying customers.
• It would reduce bankruptcies. A Harvard study found that about 50% of all bankruptcies in theUnited Statesare caused by illness and medical bills. Health providers, banks, businesses, and credit card companies who lose money in bankruptcies pass the cost on to the rest of us.
• It would improve everyone’s health. You and your family come into contact with many people each year. People without health insurance are less likely to receive immunizations and are much more likely to have untreated communicable diseases.

Research Credit: Barbara Moore

(C) 2012 J.C. Moore

 “Your family’s health and prosperity depends on that of everyone.”

The United States has just been through a recession that has left many Americans without jobs, financial security, and adequate healthcare. What could be a better time to see that every American has adequate healthcare? President Obama promised during his campaign to reform healthcare. His goals were to protect citizens from insurance company abuses, see that every citizen had adequate healthcare, and ensure that healthcare was affordable. It was up to Congress to write the details of the law.

For those who claim making law is like making sausages, the Affordable Care Act is more than an apt example. In the 1990’s, Hillary Clinton tried to reform healthcare – but attempts at reform stalled when Republicans came up with an alternate bill and the opportunity passed with no decision being made. In 2010, Congress used many of the ideas of the Republican bill to create the Affordable Care Act. Many of those ideas formed the basis of the Massachusetts health care bill that Governor Romney signed into law in 2006. The Affordable Care Act is certainly not ideal, but it came about as a series of compromises necessary to get it through Congress and avoid a filibuster in the Senate.

Controversies: Much of the controversy over the Affordable Care Act was about things that didn’t really exist in the law. It did not create death panels, provide public funds for abortions, provide payments to undocumented immigrants, take away fundamental rights, or threaten to bankrupt the country. Although there were many claims that the affordable care act will greatly increase the deficit, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office predicted the affordable care act would decrease the projected deficit by $138 billion over the first 10 years and by approximately $1.2 trillion over the next 10 years. However, the laws constitutionality was a serious question – and several states filed suit claiming that the federal government could not require citizens to purchase health insurance. The lawsuits reached the Supreme Court and in  National Federation of Independent Business v. Sebelius, 6/28/2012, the Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act. It ruled that the penalty for not purchasing insurance was a tax, and that Congress had a right to impose taxes.

Benefits: Now that the Affordable Care Act has been declared constitutional and will become law , below is a checklist from Whitehouse.gov  that summarizes what the affordable care act might mean for you:

The Future: There is still concern that the Affordable Care Act does not do enough to control the insurance costs or reduce the cost of care. The healthcare exchanges should provide more competition, and the 80/20 rule means that at least 80% of the premiums must be paid out in healthcare services.  There are also some intangible benefits to health care reform that may materialize in the future: 

• It would cut the unpaid bills for emergency services. Currently, emergency rooms are required by law to treat everyone, and those without medical insurance often use them for medical care when they cannot pay. Emergency room care is expensive and those costs must be passed on to paying customers.
• It would improve the competitiveness of American companies. Most working Americans obtain health insurance through their employers; however, this puts U.S.businesses at a disadvantage with foreign competitors who do not provide health insurance for their workers. Small companies have the added disadvantage that they cannot negotiate as low rates as larger companies.
• It would reduce bankruptcies. A Harvard study found that about 50% of all bankruptcies in the United States are caused by illness and unpaid medical bills. Bankruptcies affect everyone because the health providers, banks, businesses, and credit card companies who lose money in the bankruptcy pass the cost on to the rest of us.
• It would improve everyone’s health. Your family’s health depends on the health of everyone. You and your family will likely come into contact with thousands of people during this next year. People without health insurance are less likely to receive immunizations and are much more likely to have untreated communicable diseases.

 More information:  Here is some additional information from Whitehouse.gov with links to the topic: ”

• Insurance companies no longer have unchecked power to cancel your policy, deny you coverage, or charge women more than men. 
• Soon, no American will ever again be denied care or charged more due to a pre-existing condition, like cancer or even asthma.
• Preventive care will still be covered free of charge by insurance companies–including mammograms for women and wellness visits for seniors. 
• By August, millions of Americans will receive a rebate because their insurance company spent too much of their premium on administrative costs or CEO bonuses. 
• 5.3 million seniors will continue to save $600 a year on their prescription drugs. 
• Efforts to strengthen and protect Medicare by cracking down on waste, fraud, and abuse will remain in place.
• 6.6 million young adults will still be able to stay on their family’s plan until they’re 26.

A major impact of the Court’s decision is the 129 million people with pre-existing conditions and millions of middle class families who will have the security of affordable health coverage. 

We should also remember that under today’s ruling, having health insurance is and will continue to be a choice. If you can’t afford insurance or you’re a small business that wants to provide affordable insurance to your employees, you’ll get tax credits that make coverage affordable. But if you can afford insurance and you choose not to purchase it, the taxpayers will no longer subsidize your care for free.” 

 

Research Credit: Barbara Moore

(C) 2012 J.C. Moore

Many who are successful attribute it to their ability and hard work. That is often true, but most Americans also owe their success to the opportunities, education, and resources that our country provides us – and also to good fortune. Our country provides safety nets so that no matter how fortunate or unfortunate a person is in their life, they will receive healthcare and not be destitute in old age. Those safety nets are often called “entitlements programs “, and that is true. We all pay to support those programs through taxes and contributions and we are all entitled to the benefits. Those who do not need the safety nets, or who do not wish to pay their share, often want to reform them in ways consistent with their self-interest.

 In the Tulsa World article, “Social Security, health care reform needed”, John Brock lays out a plan to remove government from managing retirement funds, Social Security, workers compensation, and health care. Mr. Brock says “the solution to our government’s problems is to empower people to manage their own affairs.” Though empowering people sounds good, the article is based upon questionable assumptions.

 The first assumption is “that the government is controlling our lives more and more.”  That is a common theme in politics these days, but hardly true. We democratically elect our representatives and leaders, and we have much more control over our government than probably any other country in the world.

The second is “having a government manage these necessities is risky. “ He points out that Greece, Spain, and a number of state and local governments are having financial problems. That’s true, but is not necessarily because of their entitlement programs. Many of the problems stem from the fact that the wealthy have found ways to reduce or avoid paying taxes. He goes on:  “For decades governments have been taking on future obligations without making provisions to cover the costs.” However, in many cases, provisions were made to cover the cost but later tax cuts reduced the expected revenues. Then, there are many who do not think that teachers, policeman, fireman, serviceman, and other government employees are worth the retirement funds provided them.

The next assumption is that Social Security “will default in the near future”. The Social Security trust fund is adequate to pay benefits through 2023, and raising the FICA cap could extend it through 2080. The Social Security Trust Fund is invested in US Treasury bonds, which earn interest and are as solid as theUS government. We are lucky that Social Security was not privatized in 2006, as the recession would have wiped out much of our retirement savings.

The final assumption is that we all have the time and the expertise necessary to deal with the work that Mr. Brock’s plan would require. Those who are wealthy and lucky would certainly profit from managing their own accounts, but those who lack expertise or are not lucky may end up with no medical care provisions or retirement funds.

 The idea of insurance is to spread risk and the larger the population, the less expensive and more reliable insurance is. Spreading the risk over every citizen increases the efficiency and provides a safety net for everyone. We are lucky to live in a country where we enjoy the benefits that self governance and cooperation affords us. We should resist efforts to remove programs which provide our safety nets from government management, particularly if it makes them less reliable or managed by those who desire to profit from them.

(c) 2012 J.C. Moore

                     “Good regulations make good citizens.”

 You would not think that if you read George Will’s article “Obamacare: Regulatory state’s war on business”. He tells how Carl Karcher built his hotdog cart business up to Carl’s Jr. Restaurants, now CKE Industries, a multibillion dollar business. However, Mr. Karcher passed on in 2008 and Mr. Will has written an anecdotal story based upon quotes from CEO Andy Puzder.  He claims that “CKE’s health care advisers, citing Obamacare’s complexities, opacities and uncertainties, said it would add between $7.3 million and $35.1 million to the company’s $12 million health care costs in 2010, unless CKE converted many of its full-time employees to part time.“ He felt it would be necessary to do that to avoid providing them with the health insurance required by Obamacare. The article goes on, blaming Obama’s policies for the poor economic climate, the high cost of fuel prices, and for creating “ multitudes of regulators who regard business as the enemy” and are conducting a “regulatory state’s war on business”.

 Although the healthcare bill is called Obamacare, Mr. Will should remember that what we have is not the universal health care that President Obama wanted. It is the half-a-loaf that remained after the compromises necessary to get the bill through Congress and overcome the Senate’s plan to filibuster it. Had universal care been enacted, CKE and other businesses would not be responsible for providing health care for their workers. Mr. Puzder apparently also missed the point that even now Obamacare requires that insurance companies use 80% of the premiums collected to pay for healthcare. In many cases, this will mean lower premiums and rebates to the insured *. The affordable health care act was passed requiring universal coverage, but Congress weakened the restrictions on what insurance companies can charge. The problems CKE has in covering employees with health insurance is more the fault of Congress than of the administration.

There is also an ethical problem that Mr. Will passed over. Most of CKE Industries’ employees work for near minimum wage and are covered by the company’s “mini-med health care program”. If that program does not meet the requirements of Obamacare, is it adequate to cover their needs if they have a serious health problem? Mr. Karcher is not here to speak for what he would do, but Mr. Puzder apparently sees it as a trade-off between job creation and providing adequate health care for his employees. He is apparently willing to convert many employees to part time in order to cut costs on their health care. In 2007, before the company went private, CKE Restaurants, Inc. earned revenues of approximately $1.5 billion. Is it possible that Mr. Puzder is making a trade-off between his employees’ healthcare and the company’s bottom line? Perhaps Mr. Will should look into that issue.

* Note: Under the Affordable Health Care Act, health insurers must pay 80% of the premiums collected for medical expenses or return the difference. Here is a list, by state of the amount expected be refunded under this provision.

Would people be more likely to avoid unhealthy foods if they received a tax incentive to do so? A few countries think so, and have enacted laws to increase taxes on fat, sweet and salty foods. The outgoing conservative Danish government has passed a “ fat tax” on foods high in saturated fats. Hungary has also introduced a new tax popularly known as the “Hamburger Law” that involves higher taxes on soft drink, pastries, salty snacks and food flavorings.  

Denmark now has a life expectancy much lower than other surrounding countries. “Higher fees on sugar, fat and tobacco is an important step on the way toward a higher average life expectancy in Denmark,” health minister Jakob Axel Nielsen said, because “saturated fats can cause cardiovascular disease and cancer.”  The “fat tax” would help curb the country’s obesity problem and estimates are that it will increase the average life expectancy of Danes by three years over the next 10 years.

 Denmark’s and Hungary’s efforts to tax unhealthy foods might not be such a bad idea. While it seems that many people will not act to protect their own health, they might be a little more likely to eat healthy foods if they receive a financial incentive to do so. I doubt that the United States would ever have the political will to raise taxes on unhealthy food. We will just wait and pay the health costs. However, perhaps we could do it by lowering taxes.

Since many state legislatures have exhibited a passion for cutting taxes, they could encourage people to live longer and lead healthier lives by removing the sales tax on healthy foods. There are a number of resources such as Harvard’s Nutrition Source  that could provide the information that would be necessary to do that. Even without the financial incentive, it would be a good idea for everyone to become familiar with Nutrition Source, or even Dr. Oz’s list of 100 healthy foods.

(c) 2011 J.C. Moore

Research Credit: Barbara Moore

Privatization. It is usually assumed that private enterprise will find efficient ways to do things and lower costs to the benefit of consumers and taxpayers.  That assumption is probably true when it comes to providing innovation and developing resources. The recent failure of some of our largest private companies have caused an  economic downturn which, along with tax cuts, have left the federal, state, and local governments with financial problems. Privatizing public services and resources is being considered as a way to reduce costs and raise money.

City Services: As a way to save money, many small towns and cities are considering turning their basic services such as water, trash and sewer over to private companies. This has not always worked out well.  As an example, Coatesville, Penn decided to sell off its drinking water and wastewater infrastructure in 2001 and invest the money in a trust fund to be used for city services. But privatization hasn’t been the economic boon the city hoped.  The residents have seen their water and sewer rates jump 85 percent since American Water, the largest water corporation in the country, took the helm. Last year the company proposed a 229 % rate hike for sewer services, forcing the city to cobble together money for legal fees to fight back. (1) Privatization doesn’t always promote efficiency. The trash in Wichita, Kansas is collected by several private trash companies, and customers in any part of town can contract with any of the companies. The result is that several large trash trucks navigate most streets of Wichita each week, resulting in increased noise, wasted energy, more exhaust fumes, and damage to the streets, which of course, the city repairs.  Even though residents of Wichita pay 30 to 50% more than residents of comparable cities with public trash services, a measure to franchise the trash system was defeated amid criticisms of “government control” and “loss of freedom to choose”.

CompSource. The state of Oklahoma gave its wealthiest citizen a nice tax cut in 2004, which, with the economic downturn,  has left the state government strapped for cash. One proposal to raise money was to sell CompSource Oklahoma, which has been providing workman’s comp to state workers for 76 years – apparently successfully. State Rep. Dan Sullivan pushed for privatization of CompSource because: “It’s a fundamental issue of what is the proper function of government . Is it to compete with private enterprise? We think not.”  He also claimed the increased competition would lower rates. That sounds good, except an expert in comp insurance pointed out it would cost more to insure state employees and 40% -70% more to insure workers in high risk categories, such as volunteer firefighters, oil field workers, and farm workers. The plan fell through, for the time being, when it was discovered that the state might not get the proceeds from the sale and that the politicians pushing the matter had ties to the insurance companies who would profit from the sale. (2)

Medicare and Social Security. Privatization of Government services for ideological reasons often fails as a practical way to lower costs. While privatizing Medicare was ostensibly done to reduce costs, the Medicare Advantage Plans created have increased the cost to the government by 14% and decreased the long term stability of the program. Also, to reduce costs, the plans created the infamous “donut hole“ that costs seniors an additional $25 billion annually. (3) The cost created by privatizing is not a mystery, as the VA and Medicare  have a 3-5% overhead while private insurance companies have an overhead of 15% or more. That is something that should be considered when thinking of health care reform.

Social Security is one of the most effective and popular government programs. It provides a safety net so that no matter how fortunate or unfortunate people are in their choices and investments, they will not be destitute when they retire.  The recent attempts to privatize SS would have been a boon to the financial services industry and money poured in for promotion and campaign donations. After the recent economic downturn, we should all be grateful that the plans to privatize Social Security failed. Some private pension accounts lost as much as 40%, while Social Security paid reliably. The idea that SS is going broke, part of the PR created to try to justify privatizing SS, still lingers on. (4)

Public Service: Our public servants, teachers, firefighters, police, military personnel, and the myriad employees that run our country, actually serve us well. Their pay is usually determined by their responsibilities, experience, and education, as in the GS ratings of federal employees that determine their compensation. Public servants seldom receive bonuses and sometimes little appreciation for doing their job well. The government does not make a profit so their services can be provided at lower cost. And, while we have little say about what goes on in the boardroom, our elected representatives are in charge of public employees.  While it may not be the role of government to compete with private industry, it is certainly not the role of government to make policies that favor private companies over the needs of our citizens. Certainly, privatization for purely ideological reasons is a bad idea that should not override practical considerations.

(1) http://www.alternet.org/story/149725/vision:_how_small,_mostly_conservative_towns_have_found_the_trick_to_defeating_corporations

(2) http://jcmooreonline.com/2009/10/01/will-privatizing-compsource-lower-costs/

(3) http://www.cbpp.org/cms/index.cfm?fa=view&id=2917

(4) http://jcmooreonline.com/2010/08/04/is-social-security-going-broke/

(C) 2011  J.C. Moore

Update on 10/26/2016: Here is another case of a privatized water system that didn’t work out well  that cities should  consider before privatizing.

Update on 10/7 /2021: Privatizing Kansas prisons has not worked out well. “For-profit Kansas prison an understaffed ‘hell hole’ of violence, death and drugs. “ … Report in Kansas Reflector

Fluoride is toxic at high levels but has health benefits  at low levels. Fluoride  is added to water at concentrations less than 1 ppm as it  helps to prevent tooth decay by hardening tooth enamel.  Tooth decay can allow bacteria to enter the bloodstream where they cause heart disease and other infections.  There are places where fluoride occurs naturally in water at ten times the concentration used to fluoridate water and there have been no long term effects except fluorosis, a brown stain on children’s teeth.

Fluoride is chemically about like chloride ion in the body – except that at high concentrations it forms a precipitate with calcium and ties it up. That’s the reason it is toxic at high levels. Fluoride can be used at fairly high doses to treat osteoporosis as it will keep calcium from leaving bones.  At 0.5 to 1 ppm, the amount usually used to fluoridate water, there have been no serious side effects. At above 1.5 ppm, fluorosis, a brown stain on the teeth may form in a few % of the population. There are places where natural sources of fluoride are as high as 10ppm and fluorosis is the only health effect found. Fluoride is toxic at high levels with an  LD50 of  125 ppm in rats and it is assumed to be about the same in humans. For comparison, the dose rate for aspirin is about 5 ppm  and the  LD₅₀ in rats is 200 ppm (1 ppm is 1 milligram per kilogram of body weight).

There are very few sources of fluoride in people’s diets except water or products where it is an additive. The source of the fluoride doesn’t really matter as most inorganic fluorides hydrolyze to form fluoride and bifluoride ion in water. Many toothpastes use stannous fluoride. Many countries add fluoride to salt or even to milk as tooth decay  is considered to be a much more serious health risk than fluoride exposure. The exposure from all sources should be kept below 1.0 pm so those who have fluoridate water or salt should not use other fluoridated products or toothpaste. If you are worried about fluoride in you water, there are water filters that remove it from drinking water and it is easy to avoid it from other sources.

Update, 3/14/2011: The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is announcing a proposal to change the recommended fluoride level to 0.7 milligrams per liter of water. The standard since 1962 has been a range of 0.7 to 1.2 milligrams per liter. There was no health risk at the higher level, but fluorosis has been observed in kids teeth, particularly those who may get fluoride from other sources.

Update, 11/13/2012  Poor oral health, dental disease, and tooth pain can put kids at a serious disadvantage in school, according to a new Ostrow School of Dentistry of USC study. “The Impact of Oral Health on the Academic Performance of Disadvantaged Children,” appearing in the September 2012 issue of the American Journal of Public Health, found that  73 percent of disadvantaged kids in Los Angeles have dental caries, the disease responsible for cavities in teeth. Children who reported having recent tooth pain were four times more likely to have a low grade point average—below the median GPA of 2.8—when compared to children without oral pain. Poor oral health and dental problems also cause more absences from school for kids and more missed work for parents. Treating tooth decay is prohibitively expensive for some and tooth decay has been implicated in a number of later health problems, even heart disease.

Update, 04/11/ 2014: Some people are concerned, not about the toxicity of the fluoride, but of arsenic in the fluorosilic acid that is used to fluoridate most city water supplies. The fluorosilic acid from fertilizer manufacture, used to treat most water supplies, comes as a 20% solution and one source was analyzed to contain about 3.3 ppm of arsenic. By the time the solution is diluted to 1 ppm of fluoride, the concentration of arsenic is diluted to about 1 part per trillion. That is about 10,000 times less than the EPA standard for drinking water, which is 10 parts per billion (ppb) arsenic. It is difficult to see how that can be a health risk.

For perspective, some lakes near older coal-fired power plants have been found to have upward of 200 ppb of arsenic in the water. If I were concerned about arsenic in my city’s water supply, I would look at the concentration in the water from the lake, if that is the water source.

(C) 2010 J.C. Moore

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