Getting in Shape

I've had the bike for five days and I've managed to travel 20 miles; eight of it yesterday. The flat landscape in Florida makes it less strenuous but the wind can be a problem. The bike's design keeps me upright and more visible to traffic but it also prevents me from getting into a more streamlined position. My torso makes a great sail. If I'm trying to maintain eight to 10 miles per hour in a 10 mile per hour wind, it takes some serious pedaling. We get a steady wind here and it adds to the challenge so I welcome it. Getting in shape for the Ride will take some time. Traveling an average of 30 miles per day will require some serious conditioning. It would be a little easier without arthritis but it's not an impossible goal.

The Ride

This is the bike I'm riding on the trip to Tallahassee. There are some changes on the timing of the Ride; more on that later.

Universal Health Care and an Increase in the Cigarette Tax, Needed Why?

The state of Massachusetts has universal health care and it's costing them a lot more than expected. One of the reasons is that a lot more people are signing up for the subsidized Commonwealth Care insurance than anticipated. The anticipated number was 140,000 and as of December, 169,000 signed up. The enrollment is expected to increase to 225,000 by June 2009.

I was born and grew up in Massachusetts. I know about the problems the state has experienced when the politicans have done the right thing in providing for their citizens. My experience in the past has been that when the state passed legislation to assist the poor and disadvantaged, the number of people signing up for the benefits far exceeded the anticipated numbers.

I wonder how that happens. Does the population of poor and disadvantaged citizens in Massachusetts suddenly increase? Did the politicians underestimate the numbers to make the math work so that the populace would accept the legislation? I would think that someone would want to find an answer to these questions. Personally, I know of former citizens of Massachusetts who have moved south to enjoy the sun and use a relative’s address in Massachusetts so that they could enjoy the benefits of being poor or disadvantaged in Massachusetts.

We all know that there will be a certain amount of fraud but how much is there in Massachusetts? Doing the right thing is frowned upon by so many because they believe that too many will take advantage. Doing the right thing is for the suckers the weak. I think it's about time the politicians in Massachusetts accept the responsibility of finding out why the number of enrollees in the Commonwealth Care insurance is so much greater than anticipated before considering more taxes.

Take a moment and read the article. It appears that the politicians in Massachusetts have found a group of citizens that can be gouged without creating uproar. This is important because we will all be considering universal health care as an option in the United States and if Massachusetts is used as an example of why it's a bad idea, we need to know why it's not working as anticipated.

The $4,284 Monthly Premium

The title to this post is the title to an article at Consumer Reports. You would enjoy the article. The following excerpt is a sample of the exciting information you'll get.

"Companies also control their risk by using a maneuver known as closing a block or book of business. They stop accepting new customers in a plan, which kicks off a process known as a "death spiral."

I love the use of the word death when referring to health insurance. Enjoy the read and relax in the knowledge that insurance companies are truly working on our behalf.

Wana Buy a Car?

Consumer Reports magazine has a great series of articles about health insurance. One of the articles starts with the following.

Imagine that shopping for a new car worked like this: If you really didn't need the auto and lived two blocks from work, any dealer would sell you a car for a song. If the commute was 50 miles, much too far to walk, no one would sell you a car at any price. You wouldn't get to see a full contract until you plunked down your cash. Your monthly car payment would go up 20 to 30 percent every year, and, by the way, the steering wheel might be extra.

If you don't recognize this, thank your lucky stars but be aware that it might be short lived.

A Second Opinion on U.S. Health Care Costs

Here’s another great article from the New England Journal of Medicine. It’s titled Market-Based Failure — A Second Opinion on U.S. Health Care Costs. There are many assumptions about why our medical coverage is so expensive. This article suggests some other reasons that we all suspect.

The article talks about something that I find very repulsive, people in leadership positions that abuse the trust they have been given. The article talks about companies and industries that are responsible but we forget that its people in leadership positions in the companies and industries that make the decisions, determine policy, and establish the standards.

When you take a leadership position and have the power to affect lives, you accept a responsibility; you are entrusted with the welfare of other people. That’s stewardship. You can choose to be a good or a bad steward. How many leaders do you believe are good stewards? Often being a good steward takes a lot of courage. That might be a characteristic that’s lacking.

Are You Really Covered?

I thought this article Are you really covered? was very interesting. I especially enjoyed the comment following the article. Of course, the article is asking whether our health insurance covers us when we need it. I found that the article is composed of excerpts from several articles in Consumer Reports. I think we can trust the source.

Give it a read.

Which System Has the Lowest Health Care Administration Costs?

Which costs more, health care administration in the Canadian single payer system or the system we enjoy here in the United States? This article, Costs of Health Care Administration in the United States and Canada (click on title to read), published in the New England Journal of Medicine answers the question. On page 772 (the article, pages 768 through 775, is excerpted from the Journal) you will find a section labeled Discussion. Read that section to find the conclusion.

The Republican candidates are saying that free enterprise will drive down the cost of health insurance. In order for insurance costs to go down, I would think that administration costs are going to have to come down. Our health insurance industry has been operating in a free enterprise system for over six decades now. I would think that any influence the free enterprise system would have has happened. Of course, changes could be made such as passing legislation to allow insurance companies to operate country wide. That has been suggested.

Wouldn’t that be something? I have health insurance from Blue Cross Blue Shield of Florida. I could the buy it from Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts. Did you know that Blue Cross Blue Shield is a franchise? I wonder if Blue Cross Blue Shield of Florida would have a problem with other Blue Cross Blue Shield franchisees opening in their territory. There are 39 independent Blue Cross Blue Shield franchiseees in the United States. Does Blue Cross Blue Shield allow this in their contract with the franchisee?

As I hear it, more insurance companies operating in this country will mean more competition which will drive down the cost of insurance. That makes sense. Now that we have an agreement, please read the section labeled Discussion. Maybe I got it wrong.

New Blog Site Coming and Web Site to Follow

This week I sent out letters for donations to fund FYI the Truth, Inc. I'll let you know how successful we are in staying in business. Our next step is to post facts and questions relating to health care on our new blog site. The site isn't completed yet so we'll disclose the address soon. The biggest challenge we have right now is getting the web site for FYI the Truth, Inc. completed. Many of the developers who were available to us are busy. I have a contact that says he has several developers who are available. I’ll know next week. That’s one hurdle we’re looking forward to getting over.

Once we have the site under development, we have to film an introductory video to put on the site. Our first video will describe the vision and mission of the organization. The first video will not only be an opportunity to introduce ourselves, it will also be an opportunity to see who should be in the video. I might be the right choice just because I’m the founder but there are some people in the organization that look a lot better than I do and might sound better. We’ll test it with you. Stay tuned for that.

Vision and Mission Statements

The Executive Summary posted on the 6th needs a lot of work. Hopefully I have it done next week. I have been working on the Vision and Mission Statements. I like the Vision Statement but the Mission Statement still needs work. The statements are as follows.

Vision Statement

“To create a culture in America conducive to the values of honesty, respect, selflessness, and accountability.”

Mission Statement

“To educate the public on social issues by gathering and disseminating information relating to the issues, posing questions for discussion, and providing a forum for debate.”

Gone Too Long

I apologize for my absence. I have been sick for some time but I'm back. A lot has changed since I last posted. It all started months ago but I want to bring you up to date and tell you what will be happening over the next four months.

I have started a corporation named FYI the Truth, Inc. The following is the first draft of the Executive Summary of the corporation. Tomorrow I'll tell you more about the organization and give you a timeline of our activities up to our "coming out" awareness event.

The Issue
The prevailing culture in America is one of dishonesty, lack of respect, selfishness, and refusal to be accountable. It’s not the most prevalent, it’s the most dominant. We have politicians who spend large amounts of our money on projects that have no benefit other than to ensure their re-election while important social issues that need to be addressed languish. We have industry leaders who tell their employees that profits are up while they’re selling their shares knowing the company would soon be filing bankruptcy. Self interest and lack of courage has become the most common characteristic of leaders from the classroom to the boardroom.

The Solution
The vision of FYI the Truth is to create a culture in America conducive to the values of honesty, respect, selflessness, and accountability. The mission of FYI the Truth is to educate the public on social issues so that every American has the information they need to make informed, responsible decisions. We believe that presenting all the facts about an issue will create an atmosphere in which leaders feel compelled to consider the common good rather than their own self interests.

The Strategy
Our primary method of communicating with the public is our web site. The website will contain text and videos discussing all the facts relating to social issues affecting our population. The web site will be enhanced by awareness events, speaking engagements, and conventional media. The first awareness event will be a bike ride from Estero, Florida to Tallahassee, Florida. The ride will be completed using a hand cycle powered by Richard Willett, founder of FYI the Truth. Rich had polio as a child and must use a hand powered cycle.

We will publicize the ride to radio, TV, and newspapers in Southwest Florida. During the ride videos will be taken and posted on the web site. The videos will be of Rich discussing our first issue, health insurance. Before, during, and after the event speaking engagements will be scheduled to describe the organization and the issue of health insurance.