Social Security

Formulary Time: Parody of Auld Lang Syne and Invitation

by: nightowl724

Tue Jan 01, 2008 at 08:50:46 AM PST

Now that Medicare Part D Season is winding down, it's time to prepare for the next health insurance holiday - formulary time! Like every other aspect of healthcare in the US, formularies mean big business and big profits. They are lists of drugs approved by health insurers for partial or full payment under the terms and conditions of the coverage. Each company has its own formularies, which change every year on January 1 based as much or more on monetary concerns as on medical ones.

Auld Lang Syne is at least 250 years old, so some of the lyrics do sound a bit "peculiar" to the modern ear. My parody, Formulary Time, follows the same odd patterns and rhymes as its inspiration. After a "cup 'o kindness" or two, however, it makes nearly as much sense as the original!

Should old prescriptions be forgot,
And never brought to mind?
Should old prescriptions be forgot,
At formulary time?

Wander across the auld fold to be educated and entertained and to share your formulary stories.

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Medicare Part D Christmas Medley

by: nightowl724

Mon Dec 10, 2007 at 18:06:10 PM PST

For Medicare recipients, it's not just Sparkle Season, it's Medicare Part D Season. By December 31, they must enroll or re-enroll in their Medicare Part D insurance plans to attain or modify coverage, reduce premiums, or avoid stiff and permanent penalties. I urge you to pour yourself a nice hot cup of cocoa or a good stiff eggnog and then to study some selected sites and sing some snarky songs.

Wait. Did I just say study? Don't I know that it's the holidays and that you already have countless things to do? Yes, I do. However, millions of people will be making these daunting decisions while making their holiday plans this month.

If nothing else, at least you will be more prepared when it comes time to help a loved one (or yourself) choose a policy, if this convoluted program remains in its current monstrous form.

Here's a little something to hum while you fix that drink...

Hark! It's Medicare Part D!
Glory to the new drug kings!
High net worth and earnings wild.
Record profits they have filed!

Dash through the snow with me for some facts and fun...

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The US is no longer the greatest nation - what will we do?

by: teacherken

Sat Aug 11, 2007 at 19:09:32 PM PDT

crossposted from dailykosat the request of Anjali

Hubert H. Humphrey told us

It was once said that the moral test of government is how that government treats those who are in the dawn of life, the children; those who are in the twilight of life, the elderly; and those who are in the shadows of life, the sick, the needy and the handicapped.

I have reluctantly come to the conclusion that we live in a nation whose government fails all three criteria of that moral test. As a teacher I have wrestled with aspects of how we deal with our children. Last night, belatedly, my wife and I saw "Sicko." I have no choice but to conclude that we also fail our elderly and those in the shadows. Shall we say that the implications of that conclusion are shattering, requiring radical reorientation of my thinking?

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"Health is Dignity and Dignity is Resistance"

What is health justice? How are health & human rights fiercely connected to the wellness of our neighborhoods? How do we reframe policy debates? How do we continue dreaming and building instead of just reacting & surviving? And how do we support each other in our healing?

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