So H1N1 Is Declared A NATIONAL EMERGENCY But 122 Dead Americans Every Day Is NOT?!!

[Orwellian_Ghost]

Why Isn’t 122 Dead Americans Every Day a National Health Emergency?

by Donna Smith

Why does H1N1 call for a Presidential designation as a national emergency while the preventable deaths of 45,000 Americans every year (122 every day) is not?

Swine flu leads the news. You can die from swine flu, or should we say H1N1, even if you have no underlying health conditions. Young people have died, and pregnant women are at risk. People are lining up to be vaccinated. Health professionals are at risk due to poor preparations at some health facilities. As many as 1,000 deaths have occurred due to this flu outbreak. It's scary out there.

But the swine flu is no match for the killing going on at the hands of the for-profit healthcare system in these United States. We bury kids, pregnant moms, babies, teens, young fathers, mid-lifers and older folks too without even batting an eye in the chambers of power in this nation.

Some have termed it the spine flu as they say it is the failure of our leadership to stand up to the money interests promoting and protecting this system. But it is worse than simply failing to stand up to the for-profit insurance industry, the big pharmaceutical companies, the large hospital conglomerates, the medical equipment profiteers and the financial service industry salivating at the prospects of more suffering and more want for healthcare in this nation.

...

http://www.commondreams.org/view/2009/10/26-5

[Billy Burnett]

1. Why do you hate America?

This is the price of freedom.

And this ...


:sarcasm:

[G_j]

2. they should build a memorial wall every year

But since it would be roughly the size of the Vietnam memorial,
I guess they'd run out of room...

[stray cat]

3. So the H1N1 declaration was to clear out excess paper work and restrictions

for example if a hospital chooses to designate a region outside the ER to screen influenza victims - this will allow them to still get reimbursed by Medicare and Insurance companies as without this declaration insurance companies and medicare could deny payment because the site is different ie not the ER that is stated on the paper work.

So exactly how would this type of thing help in Afghanistan or Iraq? Is our problem there really too much paperwork and prevents insurance companies from paying doctors? I don't see how this type of declaration helps our soldiers.

People really need to read what these declarations involve - its purpose has been very well described by Obama and others if you want to read about it instead of just posting declarations.

[uppityperson]

4. thank you for explaining what the declaration does.

[blues90]

7. Kind of like the declaration of war perhaps. nt

[Avalux]

5. Sigh.

Apparently some people don't understand changing our healthcare system is a very slow, laborious process that will take years and many steps; it isn't going to happen in a short amount of time.

And, apparently some people don't understand H1N1 is a highly communicable infectious disease with a lot of unknowns that may cause our overloaded emergency rooms/hospitals to get every worse. Without declaring a National Health Emergency, it's difficult for an overwhelmed facility to get the help they need, quickly.

Outrage for outrage's sake gives me a headache.

[Orwellian_Ghost]

8. Quick to give a bailout

slow to help the needy.

Tell it to the dead folk and their kin about the slow process.

[Avalux]

I am not arguing about it; the slow process is a sad reality in a corporate-run country.

My point was that it's OK to be outraged about the slow process; not OK to be outraged over declaring a National Health Emergency for an infectious epidemic.

[katandmoon]

6. I think you make a good point. Maybe because swine flu doesn't have a lobby.

[DemBones DemBones]

9. Here's what a declaration of national emergency means:

"Federal law provides a variety of powers for the President to use in response to
crisis, exigency, or emergency circumstances threatening the nation. Moreover, they
are not limited to military or war situations. Some of these authorities, deriving from
the Constitution or statutory law, are continuously available to the President with little
or no qualification. Others—statutory delegations from Congress—exist on a stand-
by basis and remain dormant until the President formally declares a national
emergency. These delegations or grants of power authorize the President to meet the
problems of governing effectively in times of crisis. Under the powers delegated by
such statutes, the President may seize property, organize and control the means of
production, seize commodities, assign military forces abroad, institute martial law,
seize and control all transportation and communication, regulate the operation of
private enterprise, restrict travel, and, in a variety of ways, control the lives of United
States citizens. Furthermore, Congress may modify, rescind, or render dormant such
delegated emergency authority."

That's from a pdf at the US Dept. of State:

http://fpc.state.gov/documents/organization/6216.pdf

I think this declaration is a bit premature since there is no emergency at this time and this gives the federal government powers it could abuse.

[BrklynLiberal]

10. A question we should all be asking....

and what about the number of American..and other troops AND CIVILIANS being killed every day in Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan.

Isn't that a national emergency as well?

[druidity33]

11. doesn't the regular flu

kill upwards of 30,000 people a year in this country? I've heard estimates that the swine flu may kill 90,000 this flu season... anyone know if that's true?

:shrug: