Archive for April, 2011
Good news — for now — from the Supreme Court
The US Supreme Court refused this week to rush through a lawsuit by Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccineli that would declare the madate to buy health insurance unconstitutional. With just 11 words: “The petition for a writ of certiorari before judgment is denied,” the court sent the suit back to wind its way through the [...]
H115 still alive, but not passed
I drove to Raleigh yesterday to testify against NC House Bill 115, which would give effective control of the state’s health insurance exchange to insurance companies and their allies. When I got there, it looked as though those of us against the bill wouldn’t be allowed to testify, but in the end, a dozen of [...]
Trying to speak truth to power
I’m in Raleigh today to attempt to speak before the legislature before they pass this bill giving power of the health benefits exchange to the insurance companies. I don’t know what the logic is, aside from a system of you-scratch-my-back-I’ll-scratch-yours. The legislators who were elected to mind the interests of the people they represent are [...]
NC budget proposal is devastating for health care
The GOP-led NC House of Representatives released its proposed budget yesterday, and there’s really no good news. The cut to the state Department of Health and Human Services is almost 11 percent, almost triple the 4 percent Gov. Bev Perdue proposed in February. Some of the spending cuts would come from swapping out state dollars [...]
Gutting community health centers
Here in Asheville, as in most cities in the United States, people who have no insurance go to community health centers. They may have to wait awhile for service, but they at least get seen by a physician or nurse practitioner. For some, it’s a matter of life or death. Last year, one of Asheville’s [...]
Ryan’s folly
Rep. Paul Ryan, (R.-Wis.) chairman of the House Budget Committee, proposes letting seniors pay up to two-thirds of their own medical costs under a new model of Medicare that he unveiled the other day. He calls it asking people to help defray the rising costs of care. But under his plan, people who are under age [...]
And it only gets worse
After the NC Republicans pulled the bill that would give insurance companies control of the health benefits exchange, we health care advocates believed we had won a small battle. As it turns out, the bill, H115, was pulled so it could be amended in secret. Not a single advocate has been allowed to even see the [...]
In memory of Mike
I guess we can call it a tradition now. Each Mike Day (April 1), we dress in plaid and go somewhere to eat Cadbury Creme Eggs, and we leave one for Mike. The first anniversary, it was the mountaintop where we scattered his ashes; the next year it was next to a mountain river, and this [...]
Patient Pals & Family Friends
Life o' Mike has a peer support program for people with one or more serious or chronic medical issues or disabilities.
We aim to reduce isolation and fear among people who have conditions, including psychiatric illness, HIV/AIDS, diabetes, mild dementia or other cognitive disorder or disability, thereby reducing depression and complications as people learn to improve self-management of their medical conditions.
Patient Pals help alleviate feelings of isolation and frustration. They can help people develop a list of questions to ask the doctor and then accompany the person to the doctor to make sure all the questions are answered, taking notes to be sure the person understands the doctor’s answers.
Our trained volunteers also accompany their “Pals” to art exhibits, movies and walks outdoors, meet for coffee, call to check in and more.
Our Pals have experienced weight loss, improvement in diabetes, HIV, psoriasis, depression and more, just because they have someone who cares about them. Some relationships develop into longer-term friendships; other Pals move on to more independent lives.
Family Friends are there to help caregivers and other family members grow into their new role.
We need volunteers, who are asked to donate a minimum of one hour a week. Training is free and includes information on active listening, ways to help and when to know more help is needed.
And of course, we need funding.
To learn more, call Leslie Boyd at 828-243-6712 or e-mail lifeomike@gmail.com.
Start From Seed
Life o' Mike has a new program- Start from Seed (SFS).
SFS is a volunteer doula program aimed at providing non-medical, comprehensive support to low income, high-risk women and families of Buncombe County focusing on three areas:
1. We help new doulas with certification and training in return for their participation as a volunteer doula for SFS
2. We mentor volunteer doulas with their first few clients
3. Our volunteer doulas provide birth and postpartum doula services to low income, high risk moms, providing support and tools to empower them as a new parent.
A birth doula is a trained and experienced professional who provides continuous physical, emotional and informational support to the mother before, during and just after birth; a postpartum doula provides emotional and practical support during the postpartum period.
Start from Seed clients are referred to us from the Buncombe County Department of Health’s Nurse-Family Partnership Program, Western North Carolina Community Health Services, and Mission Hospital. The Program is intended and designed for growing clients’ inner strength and helping them gain empowerment to help them cope with the emotional, physical and mental challenges of childbirth, labor, and motherhood.
To learn more, visit www.startfromseed.org, or call Program Director Chelsea Kouns at 804-814-9946.