Poor people lose 8.2 healthy years

[steven johnson]

Being unemployed is more than an inconvenience.

Poverty appears to trump smoking, obesity and education as a health burden, potentially causing a loss of 8.2 years of perfect health.

In a new study, researchers looked at health and life expectancy data from the National Health Interview Surveys and the Medical Expenditure Panel Surveys and came up with various behavioral and social risk factors that affect quality of life, then used a formula to estimate the quality-adjusted years of life that would be lost.

The average person whose income level is below 200% of the federal poverty line (the bottom third of the country's population) would lose an estimated 8.2 years of perfect health, smokers 6.6 years, high school dropouts 5.1 years and the obese 4.2 years. Binge drinking and being uninsured were at the bottom.

Risk factors were determined by previously published literature and from the information provided in both surveys. Behavioral risk factors included smoking, being overweight or obese, and binge drinking. Social risk factors included socioeconomic status, race (non-Latino black versus non-Latino white), absence of health insurance and education (fewer than 12 years of school versus more than 12 years).

Poverty shortens healthy years

[Sarah Ibarruri]

1. We need social programs out the wazoo, but FIRST we must do 3 other things:

1) Stop the right wing ideology that took hold during Raygun and which has not been fought until now.

2) Destroy any church that supports political ideas by charging it tax.

3) Take Europe as a model and begin borrowing from EVERYTHING they do (not just social programs, but also how their cities are designed all tight and close up so transportation becomes a possibility, etc.)

[Warpy]

3. Actually, we need two things more than that

First, force the rich to invest in this country by bringing back the progressive income tax and make it confiscatory on the super rich.

Second, cut the Pentagon budget 10% per year until it's in line with what other countries around the planet spend.

Until and unless we do those things, we will not be able to do anything else.

Oh, and do tax churches that try to insert their dogma into civil law.

[Sarah Ibarruri]

4. OH MY GOD YES! Thank you! That should've been #1 on the list

I agree totally. Since Raygun, the rich have been living off the rest of us here. Time that ended.

[dkf]

2. Didn't I read that cheap food causes obesity?

Kind of a chicken and egg thing.

[Donnachaidh]

5. probably has to do with high fructose corn syrup being used in virtually EVERYTHING

pre-packaged.

[juno jones]

6. A lot has been said blaming the poor for 'bad lifestyle habits'

Not much is said regarding the work we do.

Physical repetitive labor in industries that will throw you out get a new body thru the door the moment you drop. Injuries due to work are inadequately treated, the full range of therapies, surgical, PT and drug aren't generally availible to the poor, and heavens forbid we give them real medicine for their pain, because they are junkies waiting to happen, dontcha know? The lack of concern from both employers and health care establishment is apparent.

Yep. It's gotta be something we ate. Dumb poor people don't know how to eat right. Not to say diet isn't a factor, but we got the proverbial gorilla in the room on this one.

I know people who go to work with cracked spines that won't heal. With pinched nerves and joints that crack and pop painfully from repetitive motion injuries such as carpal tunnel. Who are losing the use of their hands from carpal tunnel, etc. With cheap braces wrapped around knees, elbows and wrists, staviing off the inevitable day when they will no longer even be able to get out of bed, let alone work. Retrain? SSI? Maybe, if you can get thru multiple hearings in a system set up to deny your needs. Maybe, if you can stop afford to stop working long enough to press those suit thru. Maybe, if you're willing to give up your savings, house, etc to get it. Having to eat rice and beans is adding insult to (very real) injuries.

I for one will be happy not having an extra 8 odd years of life to have to worry about money and whether my body will make it since I'll be working long past most people's retirements if I don't want to live in a cardboard box to recieve my $300 a month pittance from SS (if indeed it is still there when I need it).

[postulater]

7. And when people do get hurt at work

the work comp insurance prevents proper care.

With single payor coverage it wouldn't matter if you were hurt at work or not, you would get treatment regardless.

[juno jones]

8. That's if you are injured on the job.

Workman's comp does nothing to cover you if you just get worn out by repetitive motion. Believe me, someone very close to me is living this reality. Sad thing is, he retrained 15 years ago and took on a shitload of student loan detritus for jobs that are now almost impossible to find in this country due to outsourcing. He's had to go back to manual labor in the only field he knows-besides the defunct one that he still owes money for- and is slowly crippling himself.

Workman's comp doesn't guarantee continuity of care beyond the acute phase. This same person also has an unhealable cracked vertebrae in his spine. It was treated by workman's comp originally , but he has had no long term care availible. Lack of primary follow-up care combined with the reluctance of clinics in the US to prescibe medicineto uninsured people that is sold OTC in other countries, he lives in constant pain and has problems sleeping. In the end, workman's comp only goes so far.

You cannot sue for injury with this stuff for the most part, there being no 'incident' (other than years of work) to pin it all on. Many like myself are itinerant journeymen, we don't have 10 years at any particular employer to point to as a cause. Besides, I know people who are crippled from actual accident/incident injuries who are still trying to get compensation and SS 10 years later, people you would think couldn't be turned down. The system is set up to work against us, plain and simple.

I think you probably know most of this, but I spell it out for those who have no personal experience of such things.

And yes, I agree with you. this is exactly why I and most working class heroes of my aquaintance want single payer. We want parity of care and coverage regardless of economic class. So it doesn't matter what your injury is or where you got it, they are all treated to the best of modern medicine's ability. It doesn't seem to be too much to ask, considering we do society's heavy lifting.

[postulater]

9. Well said.

"It doesn't seem to be too much to ask, considering we do society's heavy lifting."

[juno jones]

10. ...

:toast:

Here's to the salt of the earth:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VGO-YrfLsPQ


Happy holidays!