Chronic Illness Survey

After posting about my thoughts, experiences and sometimes comedic adventures living with Rheumatoid Arthritis, I was contacted by a publisher who thought that a book with such a perspective would really help some folks. I also got my 15 minutes with "Everyday Health", a website with millions of readers, I'm told. Click here to check it out (I feel very famous).

So ... I'm writing a book about living with chronic illness. Working title:

Living with Chronic Illness: 

When Your Body's Trying to Kill You, But Dinner Can't Be Late

If you'd like to HELP me write this book and you have a chronic illness, like RA (or any other form of inflammatory arthritis), Lupus, Fibromyalgia, diabetes or other chronic ailments that so many of us are living with these days, please participate with this survey to add your voice to those going through this diagnosis and management process: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/7VJD9KC 

I'm not selling anything. You can remain anonymous if you're prefer. I'm trying to develop some documentation that how things are for me is not at all unique. It's 10 questions. Maybe 10 minutes.

Obama's last State of the Union

Some of the speech I wish the President had made (please share if you agree):

My fellow Americans, the State of Our Union is “strong.” The State of Our Politics, however, is in critical condition.

In America this morning, a nurse and a teacher arose before dawn to go into work caring for our most vulnerable populations. Restaurants served their patrons. A cop walked the beat. A firefighter ran into a burning building. Americans are strong and more resilient than ever. The capacity of Americans to work for a better world is well established.

But in this chamber and across the various levels of the political spectrum, a poison is coursing through the veins of our body politic. It is fed by fear and isolationism. It is metastasizing across social media where vicious attacks become viral sensations. It destroys our good faith in the institutions of a civilized society. It helps and gives encouragement to our enemies.

Only Americans possess the ability to damage and undermine American values. We do this when we limit voting rights, stay home on Election Day and surrender to cynicism. We do this when we pull the ladder of progress up behind us and say “I’ve got mine, you stay out.” We do this when we argue for decades against ensuring that all citizens have access to quality healthcare. We do this when 20 first graders are brutally murdered in a public school and we do nothing about it.

Nothing.

Shame on us. Shame on all of us, without exception. The American people are getting up every morning and going to work to take care of themselves; to provide a better future for their children; to serve their communities. Why isn’t the Congress doing at least as much for kids as a cafeteria worker? Why does it take a campaign of shaming Congress to pass a bill providing medical care for 9/11 first responders? Why is it that the mass shooting of civilians on a regular basis is not the subject of official inquiry by a select committee?

Where would we be if the NYPD and FDNY behaved on 9/11 as you do today?

This can change and it can happen overnight. The people in this room can make that happen by making a choice. You can choose to elect citizenship over partisan rancor and you can do it right night now. You can decide that some things have to be handled without a political lens – things like security and infrastructure. You can do things for the good of the country, regardless of how it plays in your district, then you can explain that to you constituents. You can be leaders. And you know what? You SHOULD do that, because that’s what the voters sent you here to do.

One of these days, they’re going start measuring you against THAT standard – what’s good for the country, not just what’s good for keeping you in office. Will you be ready?

The Supremes

It seems that Chief Justice John Roberts actually does care about whether or not the Supreme Court considers cases of substance. Lately, it has felt like his court was being used as a bonus bite at the apple for GOP lawsuits that failed in the system. The ACA case prompted Roberts to instruct on the role of the Court. His interpretation is a conservative one: “Our duty, after all, is ‘to construe statutes, not isolated provisions.’”
And thus, health insurance made affordable for millions of Americans will remain so. Unfortunately, this also allows the GOP to continue to demagogue on the topic, crying for the repeal and reform of the law that is saving lives for some and improving its quality for all.
That's right--ALL. When the rise in health care costs and the accountability that comes with the ACA holds down costs, it benefits all Americans. If you're employer provides your coverage, the benefit costs are less, relative to the total cost of employing you. That means more cash is available for that raise you haven't had for years.
The dissent in the King v. Burwell case is what really tells the story. It says that Justices Scalia, Thomas and Alito are making up their minds on a political basis, not on the merits of the case or on strict interpretation of the law.  What a shame.