Your China Thoughts; Some Health Care Facts December 9, 2013 HEALTH CARE FACTS FOX HAS NOT STRESSED 129 million of us have a pre-existing condition and will no longer have to worry about losing or being unable to afford coverage 105 million Americans are paying less for preventive care 105 million Americans no longer have to fear lifetime limits on care 1 in 5 were denied coverage in the old individual market Health care costs are increasing at the slowest rate in 50 years 3.1 million young adults have been able to stay on their parents’ plans because they’re not yet 26 Pediatric care for your kids is covered, including vision and dental care Over 4 million Americans will gain coverage by 2016 in states that have expanded Medicaid coverage (out of 10 million who could if all states accepted federal Medicaid expansion funds) Any emergency room visits are covered Prescriptions are covered 8.5 million Americans are receiving money back because the law requires insurers to spend money on care, not profits 6.6 million seniors save $1000 a year on prescription drugs If you develop a chronic condition like asthma or diabetes — you’re covered YOUR CHINA THOUGHTS Ellen Peterson: “I was struck by your comments to a Chinese audience re the iPhone. I am sure you know that it was designed in the US by highly paid folks, then shipped over to Foxconn for production. The workers at Foxconn, prone to suicide due to their dire working conditions, were not part of your audience. To thank the privileged members of your audience for the iPhone is disingenuous at best. You chose to ignore the terrible situation of the workers at Foxconn and the equally awful result for American workers when all production jobs are shipped overseas to the cheapest possible labor pool available for corporate exploitation. Also, you failed to take a moment to mention Apple’s tax strategy, which holds billions overseas, contributing virtually zero to the country that protects its patents and intellectual property rights. And China’s destruction of Tibet and now the Uighurs is not encouraging. I regret to say that your text to your audience read more as pandering, than clear, honest speech.” Dana Dlott: “I was in Japan last February visiting colleagues in Kyushu, which is about 300 miles due East of Shanghai. The pollution was so bad that authorities told everybody to stay in their homes for a couple of days. It’s too bad the Chinese are poisoning themselves, but it’s outrageous that they are poisoning their neighbors. I want you to imagine if there was a country a couple of hundred miles from Manhattan sending so much airborne junk in the air that everybody had to stay indoors.” Noah Stern: “I have several Chinese coworkers and one of them, Steven (Yuquing) Wu is the best computer scientist I have ever worked with. I was so impressed by his abilities that I undertook a study of Mandarin and can speak a smattering. I also dug back into my Chinese history books and read up on China some more. A couple of books I recommend: Lords of the Rim by Sterling Seagrave (I cannot recommend this book enough). Outlaws of the Marsh (my favorite Chinese classic and the young boys in your network of family/friends will love it and you may too). Wu Da and Song Jiang are my favorite characters. Also: The USChinareport website contains news related to China and Chinese/US relations.” Andrew L.: “Having just returned from 3rd multi-week trip to China, I enjoyed your posts. (1) The too many banquets was a problem the first trip, as was the amount of alcohol and the smoking. Bring a note from your doctor saying you have asthma or breathing problems. Use jet lag/tiredness as an excuse not to constantly drink. You will need to drink some to avoid being being rude. I used the same excuse to say that I would rather be alert and work then be excessively ‘banquetted.’ This is possible with a regular working relationship but probably not while you are still the ‘honored guest.’ . . . (2) The contrast in infrastructure between India and China is striking. The characteristic of India is chaos. You need to enjoy chaos to enjoy an Indian city. Major Chinese cities have spectacular infrastructure. . . . “(3) I try not to inhale. I got lucky on this trip as I seemed to just miss the bad air. [I tried wearing a face mask but felt uncomfortable — and ridiculous. — A.T.] . . . (4) The “jing” suffix means capital city- Beijing, Nanjing, etc. . . . (5) Although I am not generally exposed to it, in 1-1 conversations, everyone spoke about the corruption. I was told that my (relatively small) payment would be held up as there had been arrests in the financial office due to corruption relating to construction projects. . . . “(6) I work in the area of vaccines, helping companies in India and China make affordable pediatric vaccines. In China, I work with a State owned biological institute. I am very unimpressed with the work ethic. I joke about the magic trick they do — at 5pm everyone vanishes. This is not normal in science companies. In discussions. I learned it is very hard to motivate — the director can’t fire anyone, promote or demote. Neither can he use career development or pay as an incentive. I was told private companies pay much better but work employees extremely hard. So the State institute ends up mostly with employees who will trade security for lower pay and end up with non-motivated employees. . . . “(7) I like working with scientists in China. Despite the general motivation problems, there are enough who are keen to learn and grow. . . . (8) I was told of ethical and quality issues in private industry. Given they are making vaccines for infants, this is a big concern. I learned of vaccines being approved based on ‘relationships.’ There is always pressure to get a product out the door. In the West, laws, ethics & the FDA provide a check. . . . (9) In my experience, Intellectual Property issues are a big issue for Chinese vaccine makers. I know of at least one Pfizer patent that has wreaked havoc. I was surprised it was awarded, as I did not consider it novel. Evidently a number of companies were surprised as well because they had to change their approach and start over.”