Glia
09-24-2012, 07:03 PM
Get money out of politics? Right. However, the good doctor is right -- our pay-for-play legislative system fueled by de-facto bribes is harming every aspect of our lives.
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Last week, in Part I (https://drhyman.com/blog/2012/09/06/money-politics-and-health-care-a-disease-creation-economy-part-i/) of Money Politics and Health Care: A Disease-Creation Economy, I outlined the issues that created this condition in our society. This week, in Part II, I will review a few strategies that could have the biggest impact on cost and outcomes. Creating Health: Getting Money Out of Politics
Send letters and e-messages to your elected representatives encouraging them to support the following health initiatives:
Reclaim Food Policy
Eliminate unhealthy foods from all schools, child-care and healthcare facilities, and all government institutions. The government must establish rigorous standards for school nutrition consistent with current science (through the USDA). Similarly, we need to create nutrition programs for other public and government-run institutions.
Support lobby reform. We must change campaign finance laws so that corporate political donations from entities like big food, big farming, and big pharma can no longer control the political process. Reverse Citizen’s United.
Subsidize the production of fruits and vegetables. Change the Farm Bill.Agricultural policies should support public health and encourage the production of fruits and vegetables, not commodity products like corn and soy.80 percent of government subsidies presently go to soy and corn that are used to create much of the junk food we consume. We need to rethink subsidies and provide more for small farmers and for a broader array of fruits and vegetables.
Incentivize supermarkets to open in poor communities. Poverty and obesity go hand in hand. One reason is the food deserts we see around the nation. Poor people have a right to high-quality food, too. We need to create ways to provide it to them.
Build the real cost of industrial food into the price. Include its impact on health care costs and lost productivity.
Tax sugar. We tax cigarettes and alcohol, which help pay for prevention and treatment programs. Sugar is at least as addictive, if not more. Scientists suggest a penny an ounce tax on sugar-sweetened beverages. This would reduce sugar consumption, obesity, health care costs, and provide revenue to support programs for the prevention and treatment of obesity.
Create a public health advertising campaign. Make being healthy cool and sexy supported by celebrities and sports icons to expose the subversive practices of big food, big farming, and big pharma that propagate disease and suffering for millions. Focus on kids, teenagers, and adults using the best advertising techniques that speak to the emotional needs and feelings of the consumer. Use industry’s best weapons against them like the successful campaign against teen smoking, Rage Against the Haze.
Reclaim Public Airwaves
...
read the rest at https://drhyman.com/blog/2012/09/12/money-politics-and-health-care-a-disease-creation-economy-part-ii/
* * * * * *
Last week, in Part I (https://drhyman.com/blog/2012/09/06/money-politics-and-health-care-a-disease-creation-economy-part-i/) of Money Politics and Health Care: A Disease-Creation Economy, I outlined the issues that created this condition in our society. This week, in Part II, I will review a few strategies that could have the biggest impact on cost and outcomes. Creating Health: Getting Money Out of Politics
Send letters and e-messages to your elected representatives encouraging them to support the following health initiatives:
Reclaim Food Policy
Eliminate unhealthy foods from all schools, child-care and healthcare facilities, and all government institutions. The government must establish rigorous standards for school nutrition consistent with current science (through the USDA). Similarly, we need to create nutrition programs for other public and government-run institutions.
Support lobby reform. We must change campaign finance laws so that corporate political donations from entities like big food, big farming, and big pharma can no longer control the political process. Reverse Citizen’s United.
Subsidize the production of fruits and vegetables. Change the Farm Bill.Agricultural policies should support public health and encourage the production of fruits and vegetables, not commodity products like corn and soy.80 percent of government subsidies presently go to soy and corn that are used to create much of the junk food we consume. We need to rethink subsidies and provide more for small farmers and for a broader array of fruits and vegetables.
Incentivize supermarkets to open in poor communities. Poverty and obesity go hand in hand. One reason is the food deserts we see around the nation. Poor people have a right to high-quality food, too. We need to create ways to provide it to them.
Build the real cost of industrial food into the price. Include its impact on health care costs and lost productivity.
Tax sugar. We tax cigarettes and alcohol, which help pay for prevention and treatment programs. Sugar is at least as addictive, if not more. Scientists suggest a penny an ounce tax on sugar-sweetened beverages. This would reduce sugar consumption, obesity, health care costs, and provide revenue to support programs for the prevention and treatment of obesity.
Create a public health advertising campaign. Make being healthy cool and sexy supported by celebrities and sports icons to expose the subversive practices of big food, big farming, and big pharma that propagate disease and suffering for millions. Focus on kids, teenagers, and adults using the best advertising techniques that speak to the emotional needs and feelings of the consumer. Use industry’s best weapons against them like the successful campaign against teen smoking, Rage Against the Haze.
Reclaim Public Airwaves
...
read the rest at https://drhyman.com/blog/2012/09/12/money-politics-and-health-care-a-disease-creation-economy-part-ii/