We, (some of) the people: Supreme Court case raises questions on electoral representation

This article was originally published in the Viet Tide on Jan. 1, 2016. It was written by Ness white and has been updated, edited accordingly.

Readers are probably aware that Republicans and Democrats have been historically and ideologically divided on a number of issues. What readers might not know is that a recently heard Supreme Court case could not only prove to keep that divide in tact, but it could pit the two parties more strongly against each other just in time for the scheduled 2022 mid-terms elections.

On Dec. 8, the U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments in the Evenwel vs. Abbott case regarding redistricting in Texas. Redistricting is done after the U.S. Census is taken every 10 years and is meant to ensure that local, state and federal voting districts are created for all Americans to be fairly represented as populations increase, decrease, shift and change. The plaintiffs -- Sue Evenwel and Edward Pfenninger -- are arguing that only registered voters should be considered when redistricting lines are redrawn, not the currently used total populations. They argue against the State of Texas that considering the total population when redrawing districts makes districts with large populations of non-voters more electorally powerful than districts with smaller populations of more eligible voters.

The case could impact urban cities, where Democrats tend to be localized, critics have said, as these areas tend to have higher populations of non-voters. If these districts were redrawn to reflect eligible voters rather than total population, could Republicans see some gains?

Who are the eligible voters? Are there ineligible ones?

Evenwel and Pfenninger argue that non-residents, undocumented immigrants and children are among those who should not be counted in redistricting tallies, as they are not eligible to vote. All others who are eligible to vote should be counted.

However, as media outlets have sporadically reported over the past few years, there are obstacles that can keep people from registering to vote -- which is required for anyone to become an eligible voter -- and obstacles that can keep people from remaining recognized as eligible voters. For example, registered voters in Indiana who are considered to be inactive are stripped from voter rolls; and in Tennessee, voters who have been deemed potential non-citizens by a database check are required to prove they are citizens in order to register to vote.

Obtaining the required documents for such proof can be costly, time-consuming and inconvenient --

similar to what critics have said about voter ID laws, which require voters to present state-issued, photo ID in order to vote. Several states, including Texas, have implemented such laws, which have been considered to disproportionately impact lower-income individuals who depend on public services and transportation -- namely people of color, language minorities, women, young people, the elderly and those considered disabled. These people also tend to be located collectively in larger, urban cities and vote Democrat.

Is the Evenwel vs. Abbott case currently awaiting decision in the Supreme Court an extension of the voter ID push that the Republican Party has been a part of since at least 2011? While Republicans -- including 2016 presidential candidates -- supporting the IDs have argued they decrease voter fraud, Democrats have argued they keep people who would otherwise be considered eligible from voting.

In other words, such laws could be considered to make certain voters ineligible -- therefore keeping them from being part of the eligible voter pool that would be counted if the plaintiffs in the Evenwel vs. Abbott case win.

But, do the plaintiffs have a case? Should marginalized groups of eligible voters have their voices silenced or not well heard because their representatives are working on behalf of a larger population that did not even vote for them?

The high court is not expected to decide the case for months, though the court of public opinion could begin ruling at any time.

Presidential presence: Are 2016 presidential candidates present?

This article originally appeared in the Viet Tide on Dec. 4, 2015. It was written by Ness white and has since been updated, edited accordingly.

It's become something of a catch phrase: being present.

Often the phrase is mentioned in spiritual circles that are focused on enlightenment, or even among people who are interested in health and wellness -- it usually means something along the lines of directing one's attention to whatever is happening in the moment. Rarely, if ever, is the phrase applied to conversations about politics and U.S. presidential candidates. Instead, mainstream news reports mention candidates' stage presence, pointing out which of them is commanding enough for voters to rally behind.

For example, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker and former Texas gov. Rick Perry, who have dropped out of the Republican presidential race with low poll numbers, were reported to have weaker stage presence when compared to former business mogul Donald Trump and former Hewlett-Packard CEO Carly Fiorina following the September presidential primary debate. Similarly, Democratic candidates U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders and former secretary of state Hillary Clinton have both been credited with having tremendous stage presence and have experienced the gap closing between them in public opinion polls.

While having stage presence is considered a valuable resource, especially to voters, various writers and experts have revealed how invaluable being present is. For example, in a recent Huff Post blog, Karen Trepte, international businesses coach, wrote that being present has significant benefits -- among them is managing stress. After citing a few spiritual teachers, including Thich Nhat Hahn, she shared that it is wise to live in the present moment, as that is all we truly have.

"Getting carried away with thoughts of the past or the future only serves to stir up our emotions," Trepte shares. "Regardless of the nature of the emotion, thoughts like this remove us from the present moment and what is truly going on for us.

"When a negative emotion is triggered by them, these thoughts take us out of what is emotionally true for us in that moment, too.

Trepte's words might remind our readers of what we reported in a recent article, "A breath of fresh air? None of the presidential candidates are even close," where we explained that presidential candidates might not be relieving voters' stresses, but might instead be creating more stress for them by using fear-mongering tactics. When watching the presidential debates, our readers might notice that the candidates speak heavily about what they will do to tackle issues in the future and what they have done to solve problems in the past, usually mentioning the present moment only to discuss what is wrong with it -- again, something that will be fixed when they are elected … in the future

We have also made a connection between the importance of breathing -- particularly when it comes to easing stress -- and the fact that none of the mainstream presidential candidates discuss this necessary aspect of daily life on the campaign trail. It is interesting to note that Trepte relates being present with stress relief and breathing.

"So much of the time, especially when we are feeling stressed and overwhelmed, we are wracked with worry or thinking ahead, which can create emotions that feed the stress," Trepte says. "If we would only pause, take a breath, and look out the window, we'd see we were actually feeling fine before those thoughts rolled in."

Our readers who have watched the debates, or who might have interacted with the candidates firsthand, can answer for themselves whether they believe the candidates are fully present on stage or in person. Further, do the candidates' words take us out of the present moment?

It might behoove us to be present ourselves as we witness the candidates talk and gesticulate during debates, rallies and news interviews. Then, we might determine for ourselves which ones are present, on stage or not.

We might also have a better understanding of whose presence matches our own.

A breath of fresh air? None of the presidential candidates are even close

This article originally appeared in the Viet Tide on Nov. 20, 2015. It was written by Ness White and has since been updated accordingly.

Along the campaign trail over the past few months, some of the mainstream presidential candidates from either side of the aisle have been called a “breath of fresh air.” Let’s take a look at that word “breath” for a moment.

Recent mainstream news articles have looked at the importance of breathing in our everyday lives, particularly highlighting how we breathe. For example, a Yahoo health article published in November detailed how breathing is one of the most important things we can do, yet most of us do it wrong — when stressed we tend to breathe quickly and shallowly from our chest, which actually increases the stress, rather than taking slow breaths through our abdomens and calming ourselves down — and don’t focus much of our attention on it during our day-to-day activities. Another article published on AOL news takes a different approach on breathing, focusing more on the fact that people who work in stuffy office settings aren’t breathing enough oxygen and are therefore not able to use their brains to capacity.

What does any of this have to do with the presidential election? Well, if breathing — particularly the way we breathe in what has often been called a “high-stress” American culture — is as important as it is, why are none of the candidates talking about it? Shouldn’t such an important topic be a campaign platform? If breathing correctly can make such an impact in our lives, shouldn’t our candidates be helping us figure out how to do it? Are they even able to do it themselves?

And what about the candidates’ campaign staffs that help the candidates make critical decisions — like which platforms the candidates should focus on? Are they stuck in offices most of the day unable to get adequate air and thus not thinking as effectively as they could? And what about the stress the staffs and their candidates might be under during campaign season? Are the staffs and their candidates able to regulate their breathing as to remain calm and not perpetuate the stress they encounter?

Going even further than the candidates and their campaign staffs, what about the stress candidates cause among voters? A Truth Media article published earlier this month details how candidates tend to focus on issues that arouse fear and anger in voters. Studies have shown that fear can trigger the fight, flight or freeze stress responses that can have detrimental effects on our health if prolonged. These responses are characterized by quick and shallow breathing, among other effects. While fear is one of the triggers of stress, it is also considered one of the ingredients to get people to the voting booth where they will vote for the candidate who promises to alleviate their fears and, therefore, their stresses — helping voters to breathe a bit easier, we might say.

But after the voting is done, does our stress go away? Do the promises our candidates make actually come to fruition or do we still have the same fears — or more, worse ones — as before they took office?

During the upcoming presidential debates, let’s see if we can observe the candidates and how they’re breathing. Before talking, do they take quick, shallow breaths to respond to a question or do they appear to pause and become calm before responding? While responding, do they give themselves enough time to breathe in between words and phrases or are they talking too quickly for a breath to sneak by?

Further, let’s observe our own breaths as we listen to the candidates’ words. Are we becoming more stressed or are we calming down? Maybe this exercise can help give us a better idea about which candidate(s) can actually help us breathe a bit easier.

That is, if any of them can.

Abuse under health coverage plans amid upcoming high court decision

This article was originally published by the Viễn Đông on May 21, 2012. It was written by Vanessa White.

http://www.viendongdaily.com/nhung-vu-lam-dung-ke-hoach-bao-hiem-y-te-gay-ton-kem-cho-tieu-SP2TkqN7.html

WESTMINSTER, California—A patient might be given a year’s worth refill on medication and sent away, told it is unnecessary to return for another visit in a month.

The doctor, then, might go on a vacation.

Or, a doctor might have a sicker patient visit monthly, receiving more money than if the patient were healthy and visited less.

It all depends on the plan, Garden Grove’s Tran Pharmacy Pharmacist Thư-Hằng Trần told the Viễn Đông in a 12 May 2012 phone interview explaining some of the differences between increasingly pushed managed care health coverage plans and fee-for-service health coverage plans. Aside from having a doctor as a close family member, Pharmacist Trần said that her knowledge on health coverage plans was gained from her own research and experiences.

After a “very bad” accident that put her in the hospital ten years ago, she said, she had to wait for approval from her health maintenance organization (HMO) each time she needed to see a specialist for follow-up treatment. An HMO provides or arranges managed care health coverage plans.

Fortunately, she added, her HMO quickly approved the requests and referrals that her family doctor wrote. Though, not all patients are so fortunate, she continued, adding that there are times when HMOs will take too long to approve a referral or request, upon which she advises the patients to demand approval.

“For some patients, if you don’t fight you don’t get the service,” she said.

ACA, Managed care vs. fee-for-service

Under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA), awaiting a June or July 2012 U.S. Supreme Court decision on its constitutionality, Medicaid will expand coverage to uninsured Americans who will be required to have health insurance by 2014. Medi-Cal is California’s version of Medicaid, which covers lower-income families with children, seniors, foster children, pregnant women, and people with specific diseases including breast cancer and HIV/AIDS.

The Viễn Đông has learned that the upcoming court decision could extend managed care plans to more patients, as more states are reportedly moving towards these types of plans. Such managed care plans are private, with the state paying the private HMO a fixed monthly payment.

When doctors actually receive payment for their services, they get about $120-130 monthly, even if their patients do not visit the doctors, Pharmacist Trần told the Viễn Đông.

Pharmacist Trần said that she generally likes the idea of managed care plans because they can save the state money if a patient’s care is adequately managed. Though, she has a problem when the health care system is abused.

For example, Pharmacist Trần said that HMOs can take advantage of the system by denying certain patient referrals and requests for services or choosing the route that costs less, regardless of the patient’s need. For example, if a patient feels in need of a wheelchair, an HMO might approve a $500 manual wheelchair for the patient instead of a $5,000 electric powered wheelchair.

Pharmacist Trần added that under managed care plans, doctors also will sometimes withhold services from patients who really need them because the doctors will have to spend more time and energy providing the services, while feeling like they are losing out on money they might have made from fee-for-service payments. With fee-for-service health coverage plans, doctors are paid per service.

Under Medicaid fee-for-service health coverage plans, Pharmacist Trần continued, patients can abuse the system by claiming to need an earlier mentioned $5,000 electric powered wheelchair or other treatment and medication that stay at the patient’s home, unused.

Or, she added, a patient might go to one doctor that prescribes a medication or treatment the patient does not want, so the patient will go to a different doctor. That doctor might prescribe another medication the patient does not want and the cycle continues, all the while costing the state money.

Both programs have their weaknesses and strengths, Pharmacist Trần suggested, with managed care plans being good for helping patients decide what care they need and fee-for-service plans allowing the patients a different level of flexibility in choosing services.

There are problems, she said, when the systems are abused.

Electronic prescriptions not federally mandated, local pharmacist says

This article was originally published by the Viễn Đông on May 19, 2012. It was written by Vanessa White.

http://www.viendongdaily.com/phone/chinh-phu-hoa-ky-khong-bat-buoc-bac-si-ke-toa-thuoc-dien-tu-h8xYnS8I.html

WESTMINSTER, California—A newer form of prescribing medication has been touted as helping reduce errors and speed up delivery time, though the Viễn Đông has learned that the process might be slower.

E-prescribe is a system that allows doctors to “electronically send an accurate, error-free and understandable prescription directly to a pharmacy from the point-of-care,” according to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) website. Included in the 2003 federal Medicare Modernization Act, e-prescribing has become considerably popular and aligned with the government’s plans to make medical records electronic.

Garden Grove’s Tran Pharmacy Pharmacist Thư-Hằng Trần told the Viễn Đông in a May 12, 2012 phone interview that the e-prescribe process involves a doctor inputting prescriptions into a laptop instead of using a notepad.

To some extent, the e-prescribe system does reduce error, Pharmacist Trần said. For example, if done correctly, the pharmacy will receive the prescription right away and the patient can pick it up sooner than if the patient had brought in the prescription.

Also, if a doctor has poor handwriting, Pharmacist Trần added, electronically submitting the prescription can ensure that the pharmacist reads the prescription correctly and does not make a mistake with the order. Though, aside from ensuring patients receive their prescriptions in a timely and accurate manner, Medicare gives doctors bonuses for using e-prescribe.

Doctors who do not use e-prescribe, Pharmacist Trần continued, experience a 1-2 percent reduction in payments, even though the program is not federally mandated.

E-prescribe myths

Pharmacist Trần told the Viễn Đông that some doctors who use e-prescribe will tell their patients that they can only send prescriptions to certain pharmacies that accept e-prescribe.

A common trick, she said, is for doctors to say that the patient must pick up a prescription from one particular pharmacy and nowhere else. Though in reality, the doctor might have a wife or brother-in-law operating that pharmacy and the doctor is helping to benefit others in the business, she added.

Pharmacist Trần suggested to the Viễn Đông that she is not one of those pharmacists with connections, as some doctors do not send her prescriptions right away. When the patient shows up looking for their prescription and she has not yet received it, she said that she calls the doctors and they tell her that there must be a problem with her receiver.

Some doctors even tell their patients not to go to her pharmacy, she continued, adding that she shares with her patients that some doctors offer misleading information.

Another e-prescribe trick involves pharmacists who do not give their patients the entire prescriptions, she said. For example, if a patient is to pick up 10 medications, some pharmacists will give the patients eight or nine, because the pharmacists might be short on medication or even because they might want to keep it for themselves.

Though, one of the most upsetting tricks or  “lies,” Pharmacist Trần said, is for doctors to tell their patients that because they are using e-prescribe, the federal government has mandated that they cannot write out a prescription for the patient. Not only is it misleading the patient regarding their prescription, she added, but it leads to a dislike toward the federal government.

“Many doctors take advantage,” she said.

Fight for the prescription

Pharmacist Trần told the Viễn Đông that patients have the right to ask their doctors for hand-written prescriptions. In fact, they should do so before leaving the doctor’s office, even if the doctor uses e-prescribe, she added.

With a handwritten copy of their prescriptions, she continued, the patient will know if the pharmacist is withholding medication or if the doctor has failed to electronically send the prescription to the pharmacy.

Some patients will have to fight for their prescriptions, she said, adding that this has been the case with some of her patients and she feels sorry for them having to fight for their right.

Medicare does not mandate that doctors and pharmacists use e-prescribe, she reiterated.

Haiti’s rainy season brings floods, more cholera cases amid U.S. efforts to feed

This article was originally published in the Viễn Đông Daily News on May 13, 2012. It was written by Bạch Vân.

http://www.viendongdaily.com/mua-mua-cua-haiti-gay-ra-lu-lut-dich-ta-lam-nhieu-nguoi-chet-VlDgx5by.html

PORT AU PRINCE, Haiti—The annual rainy season has begun, already causing floods that have reportedly killed a dozen and displaced thousands while damaging crops and soil in the Western Hemisphere’s poorest country.

Haiti’s rainy season, from May-October, has heightened concern since after the 7.0 earthquake that hit the country in January 2010. Aside from the more than 316,000 people dying as a result of the quake, according to disputed Haitian government figures, more than 1.5 million people were left homeless with little if any stable shelter from the rains or flooding.

Contributing to the concern, in October 2010 cholera broke out in the country, reportedly killing at least 7,000 people and inflicting more than 500,000 more. As cholera is known to spread through water, floods serve as a heavy breeding ground for the bacteria, described by the World Health Organization (WHO) as an “intestinal infection” that results in “watery diarrhea,” and vomiting, quickly leading to “severe dehydration” and death if not treated.

While mainstream news outlets report that cholera-related deaths have been decreasing, a Haiti-based media outlet, Haiti Libre, reports that Haiti’s cholera-related fatality rate is increasing along with the number of cholera patients. Treatment centers in some areas have reached capacity while some medical staff members have not been paid since January 2012, the outlet adds.

Haiti Libre continues, reporting that when the rainy season is over, the funding recedes and there is little, if any, emphasis on cholera prevention, leaving the population vulnerable when the epidemic begins again.

Inside tent camps, where nearly 500,000 people displaced by the 2010 earthquake still reportedly live, less than one third have adequate drinking water and 1 percent of them have received soap, Haiti Libre reports.

“It is worrying that the authorities are not better prepared and keep reassuring speeches that do not correspond to reality,” Haiti Libre quotes Gaëtan Drossart, head of the Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) humanitarian aid mission in Haiti. “There are many meetings between the government, the UN and its humanitarian partners, but few concrete solutions.”

Brief history of Haiti

Haiti is located in the Caribbean Sea, west of the Dominican Republic. Both countries share an island, which was called Hispaniola upon Spanish colonization.

The 1492 Spanish colonization killed off much of Hispaniola’s Taino Indigenous population by introducing foreign disease, warfare, and slavery to the island. To supplement the work of building a colony, the Spaniards brought Africans to Hispaniola as slaves.

The French also came to the western part of Hispaniola, breeding competition with the Spanish. In 1697, the island was divided in two: the western, or French, part of the territory was the area now known as Haiti, while the eastern, or Spanish, part is the area now called the Dominican Republic.

Uprisings among free and enslaved Blacks in the area now known as Haiti reportedly caused all French colonies to abolish slavery in 1794. While the French attempted to reestablish slavery in the area now known as Haiti, the country declared its independence in 1804, the French not recognizing the independence until 1825.

Part of France’s acknowledgement would mean that Haiti had to pay retribution to France for the French loss of “property,” including slaves, land, and equipment, etc.

While the retribution Haiti paid lifted a trade embargo placed on the country by France, Britain, and the United States, Haiti had to take out high interest loans to fully pay the retribution. This took the country until 1947 and Haiti is still plagued by perpetuated debt.

Help from U.S.

Upon the 2010 earthquake, humanitarian aid organizations from throughout the world rushed into Haiti, bringing dry foods, hygiene kits, school supplies and more.

Though, as Haiti was an impoverished country since before the earthquake, there were villages that were not hit by the quake yet the village people insisted otherwise so they could have access to aid they had needed for years, a Viễn Đông reporter learned from humanitarian aid organizations during a trip to Haiti in March 2010.

Before Fountain Valley’s Coastal Community Fellowship Pastor Kene Panas had heard of such stories, he was already helping to set up a food packing event for Haiti’s children through the organization Kids Around The World (KATW).

Pastor Panas told the Viễn Đông during an in-person interview that his congregation is one of many that is hosting such an event, contributing to 1 million packaged meals in May 2012.

The event will consist of a single two-hour shift, with about 200 people helping to package $25,000 worth of dried food stuff including protein and dehydrated vegetables,  Pastor Panas said. He added that the food will be packaged into bags that will go into boxes, each box holding 36 bags, enough to feed a single child for about seven months.

While Pastor Panas said that his church will think through their humanitarian aid plans more thoroughly in the future, he feels that packing up dry food and sending it to Haiti will help the people in his congregation and the general community to “think outside of themselves.”

He invites the community to the packing event on May 19, 2012 from 10 a.m.-12 p.m. at the Coastal Community Fellowship church lawn, located next to the Fountain Valley City Hall at 10460 Slater Ave., Fountain Valley, CA 92708.

Proposed Medi-Cal, Medicare partnership causing local confusion

*This article was originally published in the Viễn Đông Daily News on May 14, 2012. It was written by Vanessa White.

ORANGE, California—Orange County is among the first four California counties chosen to participate in a proposed demonstration project expected to integrate care for lower-income seniors and people considered to be disabled.

People eligible under both the state’s Medi-Cal program and the federal Medicare program, living in Orange County (OC), Los Angeles, San Diego, and San Mateo counties, could have coordinated care and services beginning on 1 January 2013, pending federal approval. The Viễn Đông has learned that California is among 15 others states that could participate in the proposed program.

Also part of Governor Jerry Brown’s Coordinated Care Initiative (CCI), the proposed project could include 10 other California counties aiming to improve health outcomes, promote more efficient health care, and allow more beneficiaries to stay in their homes and communities for as long as possible, according to an April 2012 California Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) press release about the project.

“Currently, most dual eligible beneficiaries access services through a complex system of disconnected programs that often leads to beneficiary confusion, delayed care, poor care coordination, inappropriate utilization and unnecessary costs, issues we are addressing with this proposal,” DHCS Director Toby Douglas was quoted in the press release. “The goal is to design a seamless system that helps dual eligible beneficiaries get the health care services they need and improve health outcomes in a more fiscally efficient manner.”

California has more than 1 million people enrolled in both Medicare and Medi-Cal, according to the press release, which adds that these people are among California’s “highest-need and highest-cost users of health care services” and account for nearly 25 percent of Medi-Cal spending.

Funded through the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA), which is pending a U.S. Supreme Court decision on its constitutionality, the proposed project is expected to save California more than $678 million during the fiscal year (FY) 2012-2013 and $1 billion in FY 2013-2014.

“We will build upon California’s existing structure of managed care health plans, county mental health programs and home- and community-based social services to achieve the financial and service integration necessary to accomplish this goal,” Mr. Douglas was quoted.

CalOptima managed care plans

Under the proposed project, OC’s public health plan, CalOptima, would receive a combined monthly payment from Medicare and Medi-Cal to provide their enrollees all needed services, according to the DHCS press release. Beneficiaries would have a single health plan membership card and one care team that will help coordinate their services.

All medical and long-term services and supports are expected to be integrated as managed care benefits, the press release continues, though adds that Medicare beneficiaries who do not wish to participate in the proposed dual eligibility project could opt out. However, beneficiaries who do not choose to opt out by 1 January 2013 would be phased-in throughout 2013.

Garden Grove’s Tran Pharmacy Pharmacist Thư-Hằng Trần told the Viễn Đông in a 12 May 2012 phone interview that beneficiaries will receive notices in the mail, informing them of the proposed changes in September 2012. Until then, she added, beneficiaries are not required to sign any forms regarding the proposed project.

Pharmacist Trần continued, saying that some doctors will try and have been trying to mislead their Medicare patients, telling them that they must fill out an “opt out” form right away. Really, she adds, the doctors are having their patients fill out managed care applications because doctors tend to benefit from that type of plan.

“I don’t like the way they lie to the patients,” she said. “It’s totally wrong.”

Under managed care, doctors receive a single fixed payment of $120-130 monthly, even if the patient does not visit the doctor, Pharmacist Trần continued. If a patient is healthy, doctors typically try to convince them to enroll into a managed care plan because the patient rarely visits and doctors profit by doing the least amount of work.

Pharmacist Trần said that she generally likes the idea of managed care plans if doctors adequately manage their patients’ care, though she has a problem when doctors, and even patients, abuse the system.

“Be careful,” she said.