Dear Anonymous:
You made some good points in your comments posted last Friday.
I am willing to publish your comments if you are willing to identify yourself. It's only fair - you know who I am. I deserve the same courtesy of knowing who you are.
Anne
For more information on Anne, visit www.anneschwab.net For more information on Authentic Woman Magazine TM, go to: http://authenticwomanmagazine.com/
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Saturday, July 3, 2010
Our Government Can't Limit How Much Profit My Business Makes! Or Can it?
If we do a good job at the business we run, we should expect to make a profit. No where in our constitution is the power granted to Government to limit how much profit a business can make. Or does it?
In the new health care bill signed into law this past March, insurance companies are required to meet a medical-loss ratio. The medical-loss ratio is the amount the insurance company must pay out in claims versus the premiums they collect. Regardless of how well an insurance company ran its business in the past, they must now pay out at least 80% of what they collect in premiums towards medical claims.
I am no fan of medical insurance companies. This law, though, effectively limits how much profit the companies can make.
If such laws can be implemented against one industry, what is to stop the government from implementing comparable laws against your industry? Is there no limit to the government's power?
On this Independence Day weekend, Thomas Jefferson's words in the Delcaration of Independence are poignant:
"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. ... to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed."
Have we, the governed, consented to granting the government to limit our profits?
For more information on Anne, visit www.anneschwab.net.
For more information on Authentic Woman Magazine TM, go to: http://authenticwomanmagazine.com
In the new health care bill signed into law this past March, insurance companies are required to meet a medical-loss ratio. The medical-loss ratio is the amount the insurance company must pay out in claims versus the premiums they collect. Regardless of how well an insurance company ran its business in the past, they must now pay out at least 80% of what they collect in premiums towards medical claims.
I am no fan of medical insurance companies. This law, though, effectively limits how much profit the companies can make.
If such laws can be implemented against one industry, what is to stop the government from implementing comparable laws against your industry? Is there no limit to the government's power?
On this Independence Day weekend, Thomas Jefferson's words in the Delcaration of Independence are poignant:
"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. ... to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed."
Have we, the governed, consented to granting the government to limit our profits?
For more information on Anne, visit www.anneschwab.net.
For more information on Authentic Woman Magazine TM, go to: http://authenticwomanmagazine.com
Thursday, July 1, 2010
How Potato Parable Can Teach Us About Abundance
As a child I was pretty inquisitive. When I got a toy, it wasn’t unusual for me to take it apart to see how it worked. I remember when I got my first doll with moving arms and legs – I pulled the doll’s arm out of the socket to see what allowed it to move.
So it shouldn’t surprise you that as a child I once planted a potato in the ground to see what would happen.
Click here to read what happened: http://www.mydigitalpublication.com/display_article.php?id=298379
For more information on Anne, visit http://www.anneschwab.net/. For more information on Authentic Woman Magazine TM, go to: http://authenticwomanmagazine.com/
So it shouldn’t surprise you that as a child I once planted a potato in the ground to see what would happen.
Click here to read what happened: http://www.mydigitalpublication.com/display_article.php?id=298379
For more information on Anne, visit http://www.anneschwab.net/. For more information on Authentic Woman Magazine TM, go to: http://authenticwomanmagazine.com/
Friday, September 11, 2009
DuPage Woman Newspaper nominated for American Express Shine a Light Award! Your Endorsement is Needed
DuPage Woman needs your help! We have been nominated for the Shine a Light award by American Express, a recognition program where the winner will receive $100,000 in grant money.
To be considered however, we need at least 50 endorsements. Endorsing us is easy – simply click on the link below that brings up our profile, then click on “Endorse Now”. Note: After clicking on Endorse Now, below those words will appear a request to login or register. Registration is very simple: setting up a user name, password and contact information. The registration is required for the endorsement to be counted.
http://shinealight.ivillage.com/sbo-profile/?ProfileID=8060
Here is how we need your help:
1. We must have at least 50 endorsements by Sun. 9/13 at 11:59 pm to be considered. Please visit the site and endorse us now – it will only take a couple minutes!
2. Please pass this email on to others and encourage them to endorse us as well.
Our heartfelt gratitude!
For more information on DuPage Woman Newspaper, go to:
http://dupagewoman.com/
To be considered however, we need at least 50 endorsements. Endorsing us is easy – simply click on the link below that brings up our profile, then click on “Endorse Now”. Note: After clicking on Endorse Now, below those words will appear a request to login or register. Registration is very simple: setting up a user name, password and contact information. The registration is required for the endorsement to be counted.
http://shinealight.ivillage.com/sbo-profile/?ProfileID=8060
Here is how we need your help:
1. We must have at least 50 endorsements by Sun. 9/13 at 11:59 pm to be considered. Please visit the site and endorse us now – it will only take a couple minutes!
2. Please pass this email on to others and encourage them to endorse us as well.
Our heartfelt gratitude!
For more information on DuPage Woman Newspaper, go to:
http://dupagewoman.com/
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Should the proposed health care reforms scare you to death?
Everywhere you turn, the buzz is about the proposed health care reforms. Much of the buzz is about the details. What is true? What isn’t true? Will it be good for us, or will it make things worse? If legislation is passed later this year, only the passage of time will answer those questions.
Many details of the proposed legislation have been brought to light and are being debated. The main question, though, is do we need to overhaul the entire medical system? As someone who has been in health care administration and as a Certified Financial Planner, my opinion is that a total overhaul of medical care is akin to tearing down the entire house because you want to remodel the bathroom and kitchen. I believe we can cure what ails the system without a massive overhaul.
Because of the sheer magnitude of the proposals, it is impossible to address all the issues in one article. So in this article, I want to focus on the aspects of the proposed reforms that should scare you. In my next article I’ll focus on some of the cures for what currently ails the system without having to do major surgery.
1. A 1,000+ page document written in legal terms is scary!
The bills currently being considered are about 1200 pages in length. This is the equivalent of an instruction manual for medical care. And have you looked at it? It’s written in legal terms that even with an MBA I have difficulty following.
How many Congressmen and Senators have every read a 1,000 page book! Yet they expect medical providers and insurance companies to not only read but also to implement the provisions of this massive document. Wouldn’t you rather have your medical professionals boning up on current trends in health care instead of boning up on the law?
How long will you have to wait while your doctor or insurance company finds the appropriate passage in the law when determining whether you are eligible for a particular treatment? Do you really want to know how long it would be?
2. Add 45 million to the health insurance rolls AND reduce costs?
If 4 people were added to your family, what would happen to your food expenses? What would happen to your utility bills? What would happen to your medical costs?
The two objectives are a physical and fiscal impossibility. The primary method being proposed to reduce costs is by paying doctors, hospitals, therapists and technicians less – in effect, a pay cut for doing the same amount of work. What would you do if the government reduced your pay check? Would you be able to live in your current lifestyle? Would you stay in your job or look for other employment? (By the way, over the last two decades, the primary way that our government has reduced medical costs was to reduce payments to medical providers.)
So why would doctors be different? Or what if doctors were paid less than what it costs to provide the service (which, by the way, is already happening)? There already are doctors developing their exit strategies.
And how could hospitals stay in business if their incomes are less than their expenses? And what will happen when there are fewer doctors? And fewer hospitals?
The overall effect will be fewer doctors, less hospitals which translate to greater scarcity – basic economics! Do medical care shortages scare you?
3. What would health care look like under a government run system?
Would it be run like the IRS, the Post Office, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the banking overhaul, the $787 billion stimulus package, General Motors, the EPA …. ? If that doesn’t scare you, nothing will!
4. Do you trust politicians to avoid using their influence to benefit a family member or friend over your needs?
The University of Illinois admissions scandal, the bribes required to get a permit to build medical facilities (the focus of the Blagovich and Rezko scandals and indictments), congressmen and senators steering business to their favored constituents (a la Barney Frank saving auto dealerships in his district from losing their contracts). If government has primary control of the medical care system, will you need to petition your Congressman or Senator for a heart bypass procedure? Or for a hip replacement? Or for cancer treatment? Do we really want to concentrate so much power and decision making in the hands of so few? Does it scare you that your choices will not be yours to make?
5. To truly understand the direction in which reforms are being steered, it is imperative to become familiar with the writings and opinions of the people providing advice.
Presidential appointee Dr. Ezekiel Emanuel, an oncologist and brother to Rahm Emanuel, President Obama’s Chief of Staff, is already an influential advisor. As I read about his beliefs and writings, my entire body shivered.
A Wall Street Journal editorial on August 27, 2009, reports that Dr. Emanuel’s beliefs include:
· True reform must include redefining doctors’ ethical obligations. He admonishes doctors for focusing only on the needs of their patients and believes that medical students should be trained to “provide socially sustainable, cost-effective care”.
· To ensure that medical resources will be allocated in a way that keeps society going, he suggests that those individuals who ensure healthy future generations with full and active citizen participation should have services socially guaranteed as basic. Those who are prevented from being or becoming participating citizens are not basic and should not be guaranteed, he argued. An example he used was that health services should not be guaranteed to patients with dementia.
· Establishing “priority life curves” on which individuals from roughly ages 15 to 40 receive the most substantial opportunities, while services to the youngest and oldest are diluted. The Jews were not the only ones annihilated by Nazi Germany – also sent to death camps were the disabled, the weak, the old: anyone who was not able to contribute to society. This may sound harsh, yet a close reading of his views begs the comparison. Under these proposals, it could be your mother who is denied cancer treatment because she has dementia, or your fiver year old denied treatment for leukemia.
What should be done? There is no question that some aspects of our current medical and the related insurance systems need to be reformed. I do question though the need for a top to bottom overhaul, especially with such draconian measures.
I believe we can cure what ails the system and that there are ways that that can be accomplished without increasing costs (aka taxes). What is needed is a thoughtful, deliberative look at the consequences of this legislation and to shape reform so that it is for highest good of all. Look for some of my reform suggestions in the next newsletter.
In the meanwhile, continue to educate yourself about what is being proposed and make your opinions known to your elected leaders. We should not be rushing through such an important and life altering legislation.
Many details of the proposed legislation have been brought to light and are being debated. The main question, though, is do we need to overhaul the entire medical system? As someone who has been in health care administration and as a Certified Financial Planner, my opinion is that a total overhaul of medical care is akin to tearing down the entire house because you want to remodel the bathroom and kitchen. I believe we can cure what ails the system without a massive overhaul.
Because of the sheer magnitude of the proposals, it is impossible to address all the issues in one article. So in this article, I want to focus on the aspects of the proposed reforms that should scare you. In my next article I’ll focus on some of the cures for what currently ails the system without having to do major surgery.
1. A 1,000+ page document written in legal terms is scary!
The bills currently being considered are about 1200 pages in length. This is the equivalent of an instruction manual for medical care. And have you looked at it? It’s written in legal terms that even with an MBA I have difficulty following.
How many Congressmen and Senators have every read a 1,000 page book! Yet they expect medical providers and insurance companies to not only read but also to implement the provisions of this massive document. Wouldn’t you rather have your medical professionals boning up on current trends in health care instead of boning up on the law?
How long will you have to wait while your doctor or insurance company finds the appropriate passage in the law when determining whether you are eligible for a particular treatment? Do you really want to know how long it would be?
2. Add 45 million to the health insurance rolls AND reduce costs?
If 4 people were added to your family, what would happen to your food expenses? What would happen to your utility bills? What would happen to your medical costs?
The two objectives are a physical and fiscal impossibility. The primary method being proposed to reduce costs is by paying doctors, hospitals, therapists and technicians less – in effect, a pay cut for doing the same amount of work. What would you do if the government reduced your pay check? Would you be able to live in your current lifestyle? Would you stay in your job or look for other employment? (By the way, over the last two decades, the primary way that our government has reduced medical costs was to reduce payments to medical providers.)
So why would doctors be different? Or what if doctors were paid less than what it costs to provide the service (which, by the way, is already happening)? There already are doctors developing their exit strategies.
And how could hospitals stay in business if their incomes are less than their expenses? And what will happen when there are fewer doctors? And fewer hospitals?
The overall effect will be fewer doctors, less hospitals which translate to greater scarcity – basic economics! Do medical care shortages scare you?
3. What would health care look like under a government run system?
Would it be run like the IRS, the Post Office, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the banking overhaul, the $787 billion stimulus package, General Motors, the EPA …. ? If that doesn’t scare you, nothing will!
4. Do you trust politicians to avoid using their influence to benefit a family member or friend over your needs?
The University of Illinois admissions scandal, the bribes required to get a permit to build medical facilities (the focus of the Blagovich and Rezko scandals and indictments), congressmen and senators steering business to their favored constituents (a la Barney Frank saving auto dealerships in his district from losing their contracts). If government has primary control of the medical care system, will you need to petition your Congressman or Senator for a heart bypass procedure? Or for a hip replacement? Or for cancer treatment? Do we really want to concentrate so much power and decision making in the hands of so few? Does it scare you that your choices will not be yours to make?
5. To truly understand the direction in which reforms are being steered, it is imperative to become familiar with the writings and opinions of the people providing advice.
Presidential appointee Dr. Ezekiel Emanuel, an oncologist and brother to Rahm Emanuel, President Obama’s Chief of Staff, is already an influential advisor. As I read about his beliefs and writings, my entire body shivered.
A Wall Street Journal editorial on August 27, 2009, reports that Dr. Emanuel’s beliefs include:
· True reform must include redefining doctors’ ethical obligations. He admonishes doctors for focusing only on the needs of their patients and believes that medical students should be trained to “provide socially sustainable, cost-effective care”.
· To ensure that medical resources will be allocated in a way that keeps society going, he suggests that those individuals who ensure healthy future generations with full and active citizen participation should have services socially guaranteed as basic. Those who are prevented from being or becoming participating citizens are not basic and should not be guaranteed, he argued. An example he used was that health services should not be guaranteed to patients with dementia.
· Establishing “priority life curves” on which individuals from roughly ages 15 to 40 receive the most substantial opportunities, while services to the youngest and oldest are diluted. The Jews were not the only ones annihilated by Nazi Germany – also sent to death camps were the disabled, the weak, the old: anyone who was not able to contribute to society. This may sound harsh, yet a close reading of his views begs the comparison. Under these proposals, it could be your mother who is denied cancer treatment because she has dementia, or your fiver year old denied treatment for leukemia.
What should be done? There is no question that some aspects of our current medical and the related insurance systems need to be reformed. I do question though the need for a top to bottom overhaul, especially with such draconian measures.
I believe we can cure what ails the system and that there are ways that that can be accomplished without increasing costs (aka taxes). What is needed is a thoughtful, deliberative look at the consequences of this legislation and to shape reform so that it is for highest good of all. Look for some of my reform suggestions in the next newsletter.
In the meanwhile, continue to educate yourself about what is being proposed and make your opinions known to your elected leaders. We should not be rushing through such an important and life altering legislation.
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
Ignite Your Life: Women in Transition Career Symposium
The popular and well received Ignite Your Life: Women in Career Transition is coming back this fall!
Mark the date: Sat. Sep. 26th from 9:30 am - 2 pm.
Cohosted by DuPage Woman Newspaper and North Central College
at the beautiful new Wentz Concert Hall in Naperville!
Topics include:
Mark the date: Sat. Sep. 26th from 9:30 am - 2 pm.
Cohosted by DuPage Woman Newspaper and North Central College
at the beautiful new Wentz Concert Hall in Naperville!
Topics include:
- Morphing Crisis into Opportunties
- Effectively Networking for the Tranisition
- Re-invent Yourselfe:Identifying Transferable Job Skills
Wine & cheese reception at the end of the program to practice your networking skills!
Exhibit tables and sponsorship available - email IgniteYourLife@DuPageWoman.com
For event information and registration: http://www.northcentralcollege.edu/x48442.xml
For more information on DuPage Woman Newspaper, go to:
http://dupagewoman.com/
Attracting Abundance During a Recession: The Potato Parable
In a recession, it is easy to despair and focus on what's going wrong instead of what's going right. We fret about having enough money and how we're going to get by.
When the anxiety bug hits me, I remember my Potato Parable.
As a child, I planted a potato in the ground to see what would happen. After digging a hole, preparing the soil, putting the potato in the ground and covering it up, I stood back with arms folded across my chest, waiting for something to happen. After a few minutes, I began to think that maybe this would take longer than I thought.
Every day I checked on the spot where the potato was planted and watered it when it got dried. After a couple of weeks where nothing happened, I was ready to give up. Then one day, I saw a tiny little sprout where my potato had been planted.
I didn't know if it was connected to my potato but I didn't take any chances and nurtured the seedling all summer. By the fall, it had grown into a bushy healthy plant. I was curious, though, as to what happened to my potato so I dug up the plant. To my amazement, from my one little potato tubers had grown and produced about 18 more potatoes!
This parable teaches us:
For more information on DuPage Woman Newspaper, go to:
http://dupagewoman.com/
When the anxiety bug hits me, I remember my Potato Parable.
As a child, I planted a potato in the ground to see what would happen. After digging a hole, preparing the soil, putting the potato in the ground and covering it up, I stood back with arms folded across my chest, waiting for something to happen. After a few minutes, I began to think that maybe this would take longer than I thought.
Every day I checked on the spot where the potato was planted and watered it when it got dried. After a couple of weeks where nothing happened, I was ready to give up. Then one day, I saw a tiny little sprout where my potato had been planted.
I didn't know if it was connected to my potato but I didn't take any chances and nurtured the seedling all summer. By the fall, it had grown into a bushy healthy plant. I was curious, though, as to what happened to my potato so I dug up the plant. To my amazement, from my one little potato tubers had grown and produced about 18 more potatoes!
This parable teaches us:
- first you have to plant the seed; if no seed is planted, what grows may not be to your liking.
- have faith, even when you don't see immediate results.
- know that the "roots" are growing to provide a stable foundation even when you can't see what's happening.
- nurture what you've planted.
- eventually your seed will mature and provide more than you had expected.
Blessings to you on your journey.
Anne, the Metamorf Maven
This material is copyrighted and may not be used in any form with the express written permission of the author.
For more information on DuPage Woman Newspaper, go to:
http://dupagewoman.com/
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)