POLITICAL     OUTCOMES

Any solution to healthcare issues facing Americans today will necessarily include political differences as well as the actual health problems. The political situation could be labeled ‘the healthcare divide’. This divide needs to be addressed before a workable healthcare program can be implemented effectively. The divide is not just between the insured and the insurers, but is regional. An ongoing expression of this regional divide is found in the form of a lawsuit of Texas v. United States.

 

According to familiesusa.org the Texas Attorney General is leading a group of 18 Republican states attorneys general are asking a Federal District Court to strike down the entire Affordable Care Act. In opposition are 17 Democratic attorneys general along with several national organizations concerned with healthcare.  [The full Families USA article can be found at familiesusa.org/product/texas-v-united-states-latest-court-case-threaten-health-coverage-millions]

 

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To highlight this healthcare divide, the States whose attorneys general are asking for a “No” to the current ACA law are marked “N” on a map of the United States and States whose attorneys general are in support of the ACA law are marked “Y”. The map is colored according to voting in 2012 and 2016. Red States voted Republican in both elections and blue States voted Democratic in both elections. Light red or blue States voted predominantly Republican or Democratic, respectively. 

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The pattern of Yes or No is clearly partisan. It is the same pattern discussed in other articles presented in Political Outcomes. All those States supporting the healthcare law are blue states and all those opposed to the law are red states, except for Wisconsin which was split in the two elections. So the question boils down to why. Why are Republicans so universally opposed to the healthcare law? And why are Democrats so universally in favor of it?

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As author of this article it is my firm belief the difference is about money. It is also about power. With power comes the money. I go back to comments made herein that Republicans are the party of money; Democrats are the party of people. For Republicans the health issue is about the well-being of the insurers and their profits; for Democrats the issue is about the well-being of people – all of them. 

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In spite of these political differences, in managing the health of the nation it is necessary to at least identify the major health issues. Then with full awareness of the political framework, some solutions may be found, surprising ones at that. 

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The three greatest health issues for both health and healthcare are obesity, smoking and drug use. While there are a great many other health problems, a focus on these three will lead to clarity of the divisions and possible solutions. Obesity has become widespread in many economically advanced countries, but especially in the United States. The result is greatly increased heart disease, diabetes and stroke. But first, it is useful to view the sudden increase in obesity itself. By sudden, it is meant changes over the a recent twenty year period. 

 

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From the maps shown here it is easy to see the dramatic increase all over the country, but especially in the South and Midwest. More than one-third (35.7) of adults are obese; the rate has tripled in fifty years since 1960. So a question arises: if obesity has increased dramatically as shown in these data, has there been a corresponding increase in heart disease, diabetes and stroke? If they are well correlated then obesity might well be a primary issue of healthcare.

 

According to the Center for Disease Control (CDC), there are 25.8 million people with Type 2 diabetes. Overweight people do not necessarily have diabetes, but more than 90% of people with diabetes are overweight or obese. 

 

Pre-diabetes has become prevalent among Americans of all ages. About 79 million people (35%) of people 20 or older and 50% of adults over 65 have pre-diabetes. For children younger than twenty, a rise in diabetes is attributed to a rise in obesity, which has tripled since 1980 and affected 17% or 12.5 million. These numbers are indicators of a bleak future for many Americans. 

 

This is the first segment of a series on health and healthcare.