American Poor
The effect of poverty on a person’s health is spelled out in a stark way by data compiled by the Kent County Health Department, Grand Rapids. Those who live in the poorest parts of the county are far less likely to live a long life – whether because of illness, accidents or injury.
Epidemiologist Brian Hartl tallied the years of potential life lost for those who died before the age of 65. In census tracts where 60 percent live below the poverty level, the rate is 375 years per 1,000 people. In the areas where less than 5 percent live in poverty, the rate is 100.
. One in five children in Kent County live in poverty. In Kent County, black babies are far more likely to die before they reach their first birthday than white babies. The black infant mortality rate is 17.3 per 1,000 live births, compared with 4.4 for white infants. The white infant mortality rate in Kent County is higher than the rate in 32 countries – including the Czech Republic and South Korea, according to the Central Intelligence Agency World Factbook.
“Sometimes, the most unfair thing we can do is treat everyone the same,” said Dr. Renee Canady, a medical sociologist with the Ingham County Health Department. She is a former Michigan State University professor whose research focus is on infant mortality. “We may have to offer certain interventions targeted to certain communities. We’ve got to do improvements for everybody,” Canady said. “But we’ve got to do faster improvements for some. It’s a complex situation. We’re trusting the community to come together and say, ‘We want everyone to do better. “
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Colombia Poor
More than a third of the close to 46 million Colombians are living in poverty or destitution, conditions particularly oppressive in small towns and rural areas, according to a study released in Bogota by the government statistics service.
According to the report, last year in Colombia the poor and destitute numbered some 19.98 million people, of whom some 15.24 million were poor and another 4.74 million destitute.
Colombia's national poverty index stood at 34.1% (urban poverty 30.3 percent, while in rural areas 46.1 percent)
According to the World Bank, Colombia suffers more economic inequality than any other country in the region except Haiti.
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Cancer Reality
Cancer too often translates into a financial meltdown. Ads offer people second mortgages to help with the costs of being sick. Ads that offer to help people cash in their life insurance policies before they died.
If the cancer doesn’t kill you, the medical bills might. People go bankrupt because of the cost of cancer treatment. Or, they forgo treatment they need because they can’t afford it.
For all the talk of “medical costs,” there is too little talk about the personal financial toll that cancer takes. Premiums are rising; co-pays are rising. Incomes? Not so much. Last month, a six-year-old boy in Texas opened a lemonade stand to raise $10,000 for his Dad’s chemo. In 2010, a little girl in Colorado also opened a lemonade stand to help pay for her leukemia treatment.
Even if the medical bills are paid, what about all the other costs that still add up when you’re sick? Your rent or mortgage? The parking at the hospital? Your food? The extra help you may need?
A survey done in the UK, where they have a National Health Service, found that two-thirds of cancer patients still face financial stress because of the extra costs associated with being sick. One in six was forced to cut back on essentials, like food, because of medical costs. Nearly a third had spent some, or all, of their savings. In the United States, 40 years after the National Cancer Act launched the War on Cancer, one of the biggest battles is figuring out how to afford being a cancer patient.
Source
The effect of poverty on a person’s health is spelled out in a stark way by data compiled by the Kent County Health Department, Grand Rapids. Those who live in the poorest parts of the county are far less likely to live a long life – whether because of illness, accidents or injury.
Epidemiologist Brian Hartl tallied the years of potential life lost for those who died before the age of 65. In census tracts where 60 percent live below the poverty level, the rate is 375 years per 1,000 people. In the areas where less than 5 percent live in poverty, the rate is 100.
. One in five children in Kent County live in poverty. In Kent County, black babies are far more likely to die before they reach their first birthday than white babies. The black infant mortality rate is 17.3 per 1,000 live births, compared with 4.4 for white infants. The white infant mortality rate in Kent County is higher than the rate in 32 countries – including the Czech Republic and South Korea, according to the Central Intelligence Agency World Factbook.
“Sometimes, the most unfair thing we can do is treat everyone the same,” said Dr. Renee Canady, a medical sociologist with the Ingham County Health Department. She is a former Michigan State University professor whose research focus is on infant mortality. “We may have to offer certain interventions targeted to certain communities. We’ve got to do improvements for everybody,” Canady said. “But we’ve got to do faster improvements for some. It’s a complex situation. We’re trusting the community to come together and say, ‘We want everyone to do better. “
Source
=======================================================================
Colombia Poor
More than a third of the close to 46 million Colombians are living in poverty or destitution, conditions particularly oppressive in small towns and rural areas, according to a study released in Bogota by the government statistics service.
According to the report, last year in Colombia the poor and destitute numbered some 19.98 million people, of whom some 15.24 million were poor and another 4.74 million destitute.
Colombia's national poverty index stood at 34.1% (urban poverty 30.3 percent, while in rural areas 46.1 percent)
According to the World Bank, Colombia suffers more economic inequality than any other country in the region except Haiti.
Source
================================================
Cancer Reality
Cancer too often translates into a financial meltdown. Ads offer people second mortgages to help with the costs of being sick. Ads that offer to help people cash in their life insurance policies before they died.
If the cancer doesn’t kill you, the medical bills might. People go bankrupt because of the cost of cancer treatment. Or, they forgo treatment they need because they can’t afford it.
For all the talk of “medical costs,” there is too little talk about the personal financial toll that cancer takes. Premiums are rising; co-pays are rising. Incomes? Not so much. Last month, a six-year-old boy in Texas opened a lemonade stand to raise $10,000 for his Dad’s chemo. In 2010, a little girl in Colorado also opened a lemonade stand to help pay for her leukemia treatment.
Even if the medical bills are paid, what about all the other costs that still add up when you’re sick? Your rent or mortgage? The parking at the hospital? Your food? The extra help you may need?
A survey done in the UK, where they have a National Health Service, found that two-thirds of cancer patients still face financial stress because of the extra costs associated with being sick. One in six was forced to cut back on essentials, like food, because of medical costs. Nearly a third had spent some, or all, of their savings. In the United States, 40 years after the National Cancer Act launched the War on Cancer, one of the biggest battles is figuring out how to afford being a cancer patient.
Source
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