Who ASSUMED that we were ready for an Ebola Pandemic?

I am totally confused as to who thought the United States was ready for an Ebola pandemic! I'm a serviceman with twenty years of experience in providing protection for myself and my shipmates in the event of a Biological or Chemical attack! The fundamental procedures utilized to decontaminate my ship, shipmates, and myself are an established protocol that we practice quarterly to be 'PREPARE' in the event we are exposed to a NBC (Nuclear, Biological, or Chemical) attack. 

Furthermore, these same procedures would meet the minimum requirements to protect individuals in harms way from any pandemic such as Ebola! So what the hell went wrong in Dallas; how can we be fully prepared to protect the populous of the United States, if we only have four or five hospitals that have isolation units to support the influx of no more than eight or ten people! We are so not prepared for a pandemic in these United States!

Here is a recent worst case scenario that supports my position... a plane arriving from Belgium experienced an incident of vomiting by a man that came from Liberia! Vomiting is one of the alerts to Ebola! The plane lands and 'all' passengers and the crew disembark from the plane and join the people waiting in the airport for flights, people waiting for arriving passengers! Later, when cognizant authorities are made aware of the incident on the plane in flight, a public announcement is made via the airport public announcement system. The announcement instructs passengers on that flight to isolate themselves from others... if they are in the airport!

What occurred in this incident does all of the following:

1. Exposes everyone in that airport to Ebola!

2. Those that promptly left the airport are potential 'carriers' at-large, capable of infecting untold hundreds of others!

3. Those still in the airport can, in no way, be isolated to reduce the chance of spreading the disease because their is no area so designated and certified to contain an infected person, or persons suspected of being exposed to the disease!

4. There are no certified medical persons stationed at the airport to facilitate an event of Ebola exposure!

We are now learning that none of the people at the hospital in Dallas, TX were certified to protect themselves from a patient presenting with Ebola; in fact, the Ebola patient who requested to be admitted, was initially turned away... creating yet another scenario of mass exposure! The Dallas nurses charged with triage of incoming patients were not certified to perform triage on a patient presenting with Ebola; they did not even know how to protect themselves from expose to the disease!

In essence, we are no more prepared to protect the nation from a mass exposure than any of the three countries experiencing a pandemic of Ebola now! We all heard the officials from CDC stating emphatically that "We know how to contain Ebola; we have done it before, and we can do it again! That was a blatant lie, evidenced by the reactions of the people in that hospital in Dallas, and by the measures taken to protect everyone on the flight into Newark!

Add to that, the defunding of departments of health that would facilitate the gearing up to meet a demand of more than eight to ten patients presenting with symptoms of Ebola, and you can easily surmised that we are in deep trouble!

In a democracy, silence is not golden; it is condonance in the face of injustices; it is fear, where the thought of reprisal fosters control – Rodney A. Davis

Walk A Mile In My Shoes - Silence Is Not Golden

You spoke of Geraldo and how he is a different person when he begins to talk about race and the injustices done to minorities. You say that you do not understand why Geraldo, a person who has it all, should get so uptight. Geraldo is just like the rest of us, he is a minority first and a successful television personality second. He knows that all it takes is one racial bigot to make him feel like two cents in a lint-filled purse.

I know that you have heard the saying "You haven't lived until you have walked a mile in myshoes"; well, that is what seeps out no matter how much a minority tries to stay above the fray.

I joined the Navy in 1964 after the Department of Defense decided to allow Blacks and otherminorities to strike for other rates besides Cook and Steward. I had the brains and the determination to make a difference and I was determined to do so.

For the first twenty years of my life as I grew up in New Orleans, no one had ever called me a'N....'. Never knew that word, but I had seen the things that occurred because Blacks should know there place - can't use this bathroom, don't drink from this fountain, and we don't wantyou swimming in the same pool with us. Try growing up and experiencing that you are not human because of the color of your skin. Try to understand why a White person has a derogatory name for every other race on the face of the Earth and minorities can only call a White man a gringo, honkie, or whitey.

Whites, racially motivated Whites, think like that. You may not be the guy that ever thinks in that manner and that is good, but 'you' don't make a strong enough effort to put those in check that do. "In a democracy, silence is not golden; it is condonance in the face of injustices; it is fear, where the thought of reprisal fosters control" – Rodney A. Davis. Goggle that, you will find that I own it and it is true.

You know why you see very few Blacks at these town hall meetings - those against the reform ofhealth care are so into the lies that they have been told that they are allowing racial hatred of the President, who is Black, to incite them to more racial hatred. We see it and know that any effort to represent is going to cause more grief for the Health Care reform.

When you have a person screaming at the top of their lungs that they don't want socialism only to find out later that they are on social security using Medicare... it lets you know that your original assessment of them was correct - they are ignorant. An ignorant person that thinks that he is in power is more dangerous than a man with a gun.

You have no idea how close to Civil War America is at this moment. If anyone tries to do harm to Obama, it will not be like with Martin Luther King; it will not be like with Malcolm X. America's silent majority, those that think as you need to be up front and vocal... NOW! You have a choice... you can keep a low profile or you can make a difference by sending a message that nothing is going to return to the days shortly after the first Civil War.

Read your history book and see how much of a difference Blacks were making right after the Civil War. Blacks were elected to office after the war; opening businesses, and then Rutherford B. Hayes made a deal with the Whigs to be President and Blacks were enslaved... never again!

Go goggle Black inventors, find out just how much 'the rest of the world' should be grateful to the minds of Black. Your refrigerator and air conditioner were invented by Blacks; the red light, blood transfusions were invented by Blacks. Charles Drew, the man that perfected the blood transfusion process died when he was involved in an accident in the South for lack of acceptance to the nearest hospital where he could have received a 'blood transfusion' and medical care

b e c a u s e he was B L A C K!

I hope that you never have to walk a mile in my shoes... you would never survive!

How Much Does It Cost?

What does your health care cost? Your office copay may be $15 or $20, but that’s just a sliver of what it actually costs to provide the care. Here’s a sample of common medical treatments and the average charge from hospitals or clinics. These are the charges prior to any discounts negotiated by a health plan or insurer and are calculated using 2003 charges.

Medical Treatment	Description	Cost
A common cold, office visit	You feel rotten, go to the doctor and are told to go home, get plenty of rest and drink fluids.	$80
A common cold, ER visit	You feel rotten, and instead of going to your clinic during the day, you wait until midnight and go to the ER.	$181
Sore throat, office visit	Your throat hurts, you go to the doctor. Price includes visit with physician and Strep test. Test was negative.	$109
Sore throat, ER visit	It’s the middle of the night and your throat really hurts. You decide to go the emergency room. Includes ER charges and test for Strep. The test was negative.	$406
Ear ache, office visit	Your 2-year-old daughter is pulling on her ear. You go to the clinic. Office visit and exam. No infection is diagnosed.	$78
Ear ache, Urgent Care visit	Your 2-year-old daughter is pulling on her ear. You go to Urgent Care. Visit and exam. No infection is diagnosed.	$111
Ear ache, ER visit	Your 2-year-old daughter is pulling on her ear. You go to the emergency room. ER visit and exam. No infection is diagnosed.	$151
Tubes in ears	Your child has had chronic ear infections. The decision is made to insert tubes his ears. Price includes office visit 30 days before procedure and 30 days after, day surgery charges, antibiotics, drops and decongestants.	$2,719
Diabetes check-up	You have been diabetic for six years and your diabetes treatment has been going well. This is your annual trip to the clinic to see the doctor for a diabetes checkup, including cholesterol and blood sugars (HbA1c) checks.	$535
Chest X-ray	You go to the clinic with a bad cough. Your physician thinks it may be pneumonia and orders a set of X-rays to help make the diagnosis. Price includes clinic visit, X-ray and reading of the results.	$183
Diagnosis and treatment of Gonorrhea	The prevalence of sexually transmitted diseases is a public health concern. This price includes an office visit, test and treatment of Gonorrhea with an antibiotic injection or oral antibiotic.	$215
Allergy shots	You have been diagnosed with allergies and go to the clinic each week for a shot. The visit does not include seeing a doctor.	$64
Colonoscopy	Full, flexible colon scope test conducted by specialist on an outpatient basis. Includes test and reading of the results.	$1,985
GI Endoscopy	Conducted by a specialist. Scope exam of the gastro-intestinal track on an outpatient basis. Includes conducting the test and reading the results.	$1,398
Skin cancer diagnosis	A black, purple odd shaped mark on your arm requires a consultation with a specialist, biopsy and removal of skin lesion.	$1,533
Stress test	Your primary care doctor orders a stress test. This price includes a trip to the specialist, administering test, reading results.	$1,885
Eye exam	Exam by ophthalmologist.	$176
Allergic reaction to a bee sting	Price includes the ER visit and diagnosis, in addition to drugs to treat allergic reaction. Treatment could also include a hospital stay for a severe reaction.	$1,050
Broken ankle	You broke your ankle playing soccer. Includes trip to the ER, X-ray of ankle and applying short leg cast.	$1,386
Step on a rusty nail	You step on a nail while taking a walk. Price includes laceration on foot, ER fee, repair, tetanus shot or antibiotics if needed.	$1,030
Broken arm	Your child jumped off the swing set. Price includes ER visit, X-ray, simple cast.	$2,523
Tonsillectomy	Your child (under 12) needs her tonsils removed. This price includes a pre-surgical office visit, surgery at a one-day surgery and any related post surgical visits with in 30 days.	$4,875
Frostbite treatment for a hand	Your child loses her mitten on one of the coldest days of the year. You make an urgent care office or ER visit. The price includes diagnosis and treatment and excludes critical cases.	$321
Diagnose mono	Your teenager is run down, extremely tired. A trip to the clinic and Heterophile antibodies test shows mono.	$152
Therapy session	You see a licensed therapist. Does not include prescriptions drugs or psychiatrist evaluation.	$152
Outpatient chemical dependency treatment	You attend 21 to 30 days of alcohol- or drug-related chemical dependency counseling through a hospital’s outpatient program.	$4,487
Cut on the hand	You’re using that new knife and you slice into the tendon in your hand. Price includes an ER visit, complicated stitches, tetanus shot if needed.	$3,066
PAP test	Woman of childbearing age, includes exam by gynecologist, test and reading of results.	$229
Routine mammogram	Women 35 and older, includes the test and reading of results.	$125
Prostate cancer screening test (PSA)	Includes office visit for man age 50 or older, blood draw and PSA test.	$285
Having a baby	Price is based on “perfect” pregnancy, including routine prenatal costs, no risk factors to mother, uncomplicated vaginal birth.	$8,751
Hysterectomy	Simple hysterectomy, not caused by trauma, cancer, etc. Includes physician charges, hospital surgical and room and board charges and follow-up visit.	$21,686
General physical, charges vary by age: Exam of a person in good health. Simply a physical, not a problem-focused clinic visit.	Well-baby check	$134
	Age 5 to16	$232
	Age 18 to 39	$302
	Age 40 to 64	$371
	Age 65 and older	$323

Prescription Drugs

2005 Average Wholesale Price. Prices show difference between a prescription drug co-pay of $25, for example, and the retail price of the drugs received. Prices are based on common dosages for co-pay arrangements.

Drug	Description	Cost
Ortho-Novum	84, 1/35 tablet birth control pill, (standard three-month prescription with one co-pay).	$141
Prozac	30, 20 mg capsules, used to treat depression.	$129
Generic for Prozac – fluoxetine	30, 20 mg capsules	$32
Zyrtec	30, 10 mg tablets used to treat allergies.	$70
Lipitor	30, 20 mg tablets used to treat high cholesterol	$114
Adderall	60, 20 mg tablets. Used to treat ADD/ADHD.	$179
Generic for Adderall, D-amphetamine	60, 20 mg. tablets.	$82
Ritalin	100, 10 mg tablets used to treat ADD/ADHD.	$94
Generic for Ritalin, Methylphendidate	100, 10 mg. tablets.	$38
Concerta	60, 18 mg tablets used to treat ADD/ADHD.	$182

Source: Minnesota Council of Health Plans, 2005.

This document reflects Minnesota health plan commercial and government programs data, analyzed by Data Intelligence, LLC.

For information, contact: Eileen Smith smith@mnhealthplans.org

In a democracy, silence is not golden; it is condonance in the face of injustices; it is fear, where the thought of reprisal fosters control. – Rodney A. Davis