Stupid Blogger: Not So Stupid

Do Price Gouging Laws Apply To Doctors?

A friend saw an allergist last week: he spent one hour in the office and had an allergy test run. They submitted the visit to his insurance but apparently the company doesn’t cover allergy related issues.

This friend then received a bill for $1200.

So, let’s do the math. $1200 for an hour long visit is equivalent to $20 a minute or about $2,400,000 a year.

Now, let’s say this office has a doctor making $120k a year, and three staff members who make $70k, $45k, and $30k a year. Bear in mind I’m in South Carolina so these are fairly standard salaries for where I live: your cost of living may vary. Anyway, at these salaries we have a human resources cost of $132.50 an hour.

Where’s the extra $1067.50 an hour going? I understand that there are HR costs such as worker’s comp, social security, and benefits. I also undertand that there are overhead costs for the building, utilities, marketing, specialized equipment, etc. But do all those things add up to $2,135,000 a year?

And yes, I realize that there is supposed to be a profit involved in any business venture, that is the definition of ‘business’ (though my business accounts may tell a different tale…). However, there is a balance any business has to meet between profit and serving their customer. Not only is that good business practice, it’s also enforced by price gouging laws (which typically prevent businesses from taking advantage of specific situations in order to make exhorbitant and possibly unethical profits).

We’ve heard examples of price gouging laws being enforced, though typically in relation to gas prices after a disasster or food prices during an artificial shortage. These are price differences of a few dollars. But what about medical care? Can you recall an instance of price gouging laws being applied to medical care, where the differences can be in the thousands of dollars?

I can’t.

Use FriendFeed as a Twitter Client

I debated about which blog to post this too, as it really does seem obvious to me. However, I’ve seen so many people ask how to use FriendFeed as a Twitter client that it’s apparently not particularly obvious to anyone else.

1. Create a new room in FriendFeed, name it something like TwitterForUsername (since rooms can’t share the same name, you can’t just make it ‘TwitterClient’).
2. Make it private.
3. In your new room, feed in your Twitter posts.
4. Visit search.twitter.com and search for @TwitterUsername. Feed this into your new room.
5. Now your room includes your tweets and tweets to you. Your outbound Tweets will offer the ability to post back to Twitter. Tweets sent to you will not, but you can tell who sent the tweet to you by hovering over the link.
6. To post a new tweet, simply add a FriendFeed comment to one of your incoming tweets, making sure to check the box to post it to Twitter.

Is it ideal? No, obvoiusly not. Will it work as a standalone Twitter client? Yup.

Kinesthetic Learners: Why Old Media Should Never Die

As you may or may not know, I used to be a customer service trainer: I worked for a national telecommunications company until they were bought and our location closed in 2006. Working with adults is similar to working with children in some ways, and oh so very different in others. Not to mention that, as a 27 year old, it was sometimes hard to get a 50 year old trainee to take me seriously. It can be done, however, and I looked upon that as one of the interesting challenges of my job.

This company had a specific training course for its new trainers, and it has proven valuable to me both in and out of the classroom. It has helped me in meetings, interviews, and of course when teaching clients computer software or content management systems.

The two biggest things we dealt with in that class were personality types and learning styles. Learning styles are how you as a student best absorb information: are you visual, auditory, or kinestetic? Do you learn by seeing something, hearing something, or by associating the new information with a physical action?

It’s an easy trap to fall into the visual and auditory teaching environment. After all, that’s what so many of us remember from college, right? However, not only are you shutting out certain types of learners, you’re creating a boring learning environment for everyone.

Also, while the general population tends to be visual learners, that is certainly not the case for specific groups of people. Practicing lawyers, for example, tend to be auditory and kinesthetic learners. Makes sense when you think about what they do all day long, no? It also raises the interesting question of whether their learning style affected their job choice or vice versa, though that is a topic for another discussion.

As a trainer I took great care to involve my kinesthetic learners. We heavily emphasized hands-on use of the computer systems, we would make models of certain types of technology, and as a last resort I kept toys on the tables so they would have something to do with their hands during less hands-on activity.

Many classrooms, however, don’t offer this type of kinesthetic learning. The hands-on learner is left to fend for themselves and more often than not the only physical interaction they get is with the learning matieral itself.

You’ve seen them before. Sometimes, it’s a student whose fingers trace the words as they read them. Or the highlighter: the student who makes a colored mosaic of their text as they try to physically interact with the material. Even note-taking is a kinesthetic activity. In a variety of subtle ways, the kinesthetic learner can physically interact with their learning material.

Now, imagine these same students trying to physically interact with ‘new’ media. The method of consuming learning material is physically no different than consuming entertainment material. Your fingers and eyes make the same motions, there is no easy way to physically differentiate material, much less to physically interact with it.

Obviously, there are ways that new media can be superior. Video offers the best chance to reach all learning types. For example, a step-by-step video of a science experiment caters to visual and auditory senses while leaving the hands free to actually perform the experiment.

But for straight information consumption, new media leaves the kinesthetic learner out in the cold.

The Meaning of Christmas and the 50¢ Gift

I grew up poor. Not dirt poor, mind you: our bills were paid and we were always clean and fed. In fact, my sister and I both played in the orchestra, took dance lessons, and were involved in school clubs and sports. Those, however, were the only real extravagences in our family. Our clothes were clean and well kept, but were either second hand or bought at a discount store. Our food was healthy and filling but was homemade from generic brands. The television had two network stations and our cars were always old.

But Christmas… Christmas was always an absolute joy and wonder. We strung popcorn and cranberries for the tree and hung a hodge-podge of ornaments: our own handmade creations intermingled with discount baubles and my great-grandfather’s antique oraments from Germany. On top would be one of the tree-toppers my mother collected.

I remember when my sister and I were three and five, sneaking into the front hallway and seeing the footprints Santa left behind in magical, non-melting snow. The next year my sister and I each received a set of doll furniture: my mother made wooden chairs, couches, and beds and tiny foam cushions. Mine were uphosltered in green, my sister’s red. It wasn’t Barbie™furniture, but we didn’t have actual Barbie™dolls either.

There were many other such gifts, the kind lovingly made in the spirit of what my family calls ‘a heartfelt Christmas’. The homemade comforter sets for our twin beds, the huge personalized stockings that were large enough for us to stand in, the baby-doll hand puppets with blankets (light hair and blue eyes for mine, brown hair and eyes on my sister’s). I still have all three of those gifts.

As I grew up I became more and more aware of the schism between my family and those of the children around me. On one level this made me extremely uncomfortable, that classic teenage angst about not being like everyone else. At the same time, though, I couldn’t help but notice that no one else had ever received gifts like I had. They had the latest toy (sometimes more than one of them), but none of them had been immortalized in a hand puppet, the only one like it in the world.

It was during these teen years, trying to reconcile the need to fit in with the disdain I had for those same children, that I started truly buying gifts. Before then, it was always my mother having us pick out something for her and my father at the store and adding it to the cart with everything else. Now, though, my sister and I were each given $25 to buy our gifts for friends, teachers, each other, and our parents.

One such holiday season, my sister and I were in Goodwill. My mother was at work at the art store down the street and we were keeping ourselves busy until it was time to go home. Unlike most teens we actually browsed through the housewares area: we both have collections of antique dishes that were started by our grandmother with her yard sale finds. Mine is the Fireking ‘golden shell’ pattern.

While checking for our dishes, we found a dusty box on a shelf marked 50¢. Out of curiosity we opened it and inside we found a glass tree-topper, an oblong silver ornament with blue accents. Underneath the cotton batting was the original sales receipt, dated December 1959, for $3.95. This tree topper had been bought by someone just in time for what had been my mother’s first Christmas.

It was the most perfect gift we had ever seen.

My mother cried when she opened it and found the receipt. She beamed when we told her how much we paid for it (as the story was too good to not share). And she almost knocked down the tree when she tried to put it on top of the already decorated tree.

Now that I am older and living the original American dream of a life that is more stable and secure than that of my parents, I try to keep in mind the things that have always made Christmas magical for my family. A hand-made puppet that looked at me with my own eyes, baking and cooking for the Christmas Eve feast with my extended family, and a 50¢ gift that made my mother cry with joy.

For me, that is the meaning of Christmas.

Shopping For Thanksgiving? Try This Trick To Help The Hungry.

Thanksgiving is this Thursday in the United States, and many of us are creating a lengthy shopping list. If that’s the case, this week’s buy one get one free (aka BOGO) sales could make for the easiest donation you’ve ever made.

Make out your shopping list like you normally would. Now, take about 15 minutes to look over the sales papers for your local grocery store. Don’t worry if you don’t get the actual paper, most stores have their circulars available online. Make note of the non-perishable items from your list that are on sale buy one get one. For example, just one store in my area has the following on sale BOGO this week:

• Canned cranberry sauce
• Boxed cereal
• raisins
• Tea
• Canned vegetables
• Cake mix
• Instant potatoes
• Rice
• Chicken broth
• Mayonnaise
• Crackers

When you’re at the store, grab two items instead of one. Ask the bagger to kindly put all the duplicates into a separate bag, and drop the bag off at a local shelter or soup kitchen on your way home.

All it costs you is a few extra minutes with a sales paper.

Maintenance: New Theme and Disqus Comments

Eat Like You're Poor So the Poor Can Eat

Long story short: in 2007 12.2% of Americans were experienced what the USDA calls ‘food insecurity’. This means that during the year there wasn’t enough money (or puclic/private assistance) for them to “maintain active, healthy lives.”

The USDA Food Security Report (linked above) includes all the gory details, but I think this chart (right) does a good job of explaining things quite clearly. First thing to note: if you’re worried that your food might run out and you sometimes can not afford to eat a balanced meal, you can still be considered ‘food secure’. Let that sink in a minute: there are some people and families who cannot afford a balanced diet and the government still says they’re doing AOK.

Another thing that strikes me: what type of people and households might not be included the Current Population Study (CPS)? Does such a study include homeless people, or families living in shelters or cars? What about college students? I don’t know about you, but I was definitely in the low to very low food security group when I was in college.

And possibly worst of all: these numbers are from 2007. Before unemployment started to rise, before retirement plans started to crash, before the cost of gas (and therefore food) skyrocketed. What do you think the numbers for 2008 will look like?

Let’s put some real numbers behind this. The USDA Thrifty Food Plan is what the food stamp allotment in the US is based upon: it’s supposed to meet the caloric and nutritional needs for males and females of varying ages. If you’ve never seen the report, take a look at it because it really is an interesting breakdown. Something that you should take note of immediately, however, is that the TFP is designed for an omnivorous diet: meat, eggs, cheese, etc. While I haven’t run the numbers, I’m going to guess that the monthly cost of meeting dietary requirements would get higher and higher for vegetarian and vegan diets.

The September 2008 TFP allotment for a couple aged 19-50 was $363.90 for a month. For comparison purposes, the USDA’s “liberal plan” for that same couple was $711.70 for the month, almost twice as much. The TFP for each individual was $155.60 for a 19-50 year old female and $175.20 for a 19-50 year old male. This adds up to $330.80 so I’m confused where the extra $33.10 for the couple’s TFP comes from, but you know what they say about ‘gift horses’…

While $363.90 for two people doesn’t sound like a whole lot, it’s pretty doable. Also, the USDA site is actually a really good resource when it comes to “working” the TFP. Specifically, they have a really great recipe finder that counsellors use with food stamp recipients. You can search for recipes based on ingredients (great for when you find something on sale), nutrional needs, even cost. Take a glance at it, some of these look really tasty (like butternut squash and black beans). To give you an idea, there are 372 recipes that cost less than $1 per serving.

Alright, back on task: do think you can eat on $175 a month? If you’re in a couple, think you can do it for $360 a month? I know the holidays are upon us and it’s the time of dinners and baking and entertaining, so I’m not necessarily talking about right now. I’m speakin in general: could you do it?

Now that you’ve answered, I’m going to throw a challenge your way: could you eat like a poor person for a month? You could save a couple hundred bucks in that 30 day timespan. Would you do it? Even better: would you donate your savings for the month to charity? Your savings for one month could be enough to feed a family the next month.

Think about it, would you? I know I am. January is a time of new beginnings, resolutions, and tight pants from a month of gustatorial debauchery. What better time to make a change?

———

This post has a rather long inspiration chain, so thanks to Steven Perez at FriendFeed for posting Compassionate Conservawhat? I Couldn’t Hear You Over My Growling Belly which sent me to a Yahoo! News article on hunger which finally led me to the USDA’s Food Security Report for 2007.

Let's Get Depressed: Are You Ready For a Layoff in a Crappy Economy?

With the economy in a nose dive and the word layoff appearing more than “2.0” in all of our feed readers, perhaps you’re starting to wonder what would happen to you if the unthinkable happened: you get laid off.

First and foremost, that really shouldn’t be the unthinkable. The fact that it seems like such a strange event is a “head in the sand” mentality, because the days of corporate loyalty are in many ways dead and gone. You are a resource, and as such you can be downsized, cost-cut, and obsolesced just like any other piece of equipment.

With that out of the way, we work on the assumption that we will at some point be unemployed. Pessimistic I know, but it’ll make getting prepared much easier.

So now the question becomes: are you ready to go six months without a job? That’s about how long people in the US are staying in the job market right now, so it’s not an unreasonable number. Could you do it?

The easiest way to prepare for such an event is also the hardest one for the majority of people: stash away an emergency fund. It’s so much easier to save for retirement (there’s a separate account!) or a specific purchase (the new car fund!). But an emergency fund? It just sits there like a rock, barely growing, and taunting you when shiny electronics go on sale.

However, it’ll be your best friend when the inevitable layoff happens, so you might want to get started on it now.

Sit down and figure out your monthly necessary expenses, the things that have to be taken care of every month for you be still keep your head above water. The obvious ones are housing, utilities, and food. Not so obvious might be prescriptions, minimum payments on debt, taxes and insurance, co-pays for scheduled doctor appointments, and job hunting costs like gas, dry cleaning, photocopies, etc. Multiply that number by six. It’ll be a big and scary number. Make things safer (and scarier) by adding in the deductibles for all your insurances to have a true Emergency Fund.

Sit there and stare at that number for a while. Cry if you have to.

Now, figure out a way to get there. If you’ve not already set aside an emergency fund you’re going to feel like it takes forever to create one, especially if you’re just kicking $50 towards it ever other month. For it to build, you’ve got to throw every cent you’ve got at it. I know you’d rather use that money to pay down debt or contribute to your 401k, but if you lose your job, will either of those steps keep you in your house an extra month? Will they feed your family? I didn’t think so…

Can a Hermaphrodite Get Married in California?

I had the strangest thought on the way home this evening: can a hermaphrodite get married in California? Stick with me, this logical walk actually makes some sense…

Let me preface this with the fact that I’m not familiar with the exact verbiage of Proposition 8 so I’m going to discuss some different versions for this exercise. I’m also aware that the proper term is ‘intersexed’, but for this exercise the dualistic imagery of a true hermaphrodite is helpful, so I’m going to use that term.

Let’s say Proposition 8 gets technical in its definition and says no one with a penis can marry anyone with a penis, and no one with a vagina can marry anyone with a vagina (which I know is unlikely, but bear with me). In this case, a hermaphrodite can’t marry anyone: they have all the parts and are explicitly kept from marrying. So, assuming someone is makes the argument Proposition 8 doesn’t infringe on anyone’s rights because a a gay man has just as much right to marry a woman as a straight man, we can refute that argument because given this definition a hermaphrodite can’t get married.

Now, let’s go with the more likely scenario where the verbiage is something more like “a man can only marry a woman and vice versa”. Well, which is a hermaphrodite? If we’re going by genitals they’re a bit of both and are still prohibited from getting married. And if we are going by genitals, who checks? Since that proposition is unwieldly at best, we’ll assume that the male/female roles will be defined by the gender each party claims for him or herself.

And here is where things get interesting. Granted, most hermaphrodites are raised a particular gender, but there’s nothing saying that the correct ‘gender’ was picked for them at birth and it’s entirely possible that they could choose to switch gender identity later in life. So, which role would this person put on the marriage license? The one assigned to them at birth? The one they’ve chosen later in life?

Let’s take it a step further, and consider someone who is a post-op transsexual. Say this person was born a he and is now a she, and wants to get married to a man. Can she? What determines the gender that is placed on the license: the gender on her birth certificate, or her new identity? How does the new identity receive its new gender, other than a name change and possible a one letter change on a driver’s license? What about someone who is pre-op but has already undergone their identity change, which gender would they be?

Here is where I get to the real purpose of this exercise: if marriage is defined as only applicable to a union of a man and a woman, how do they decide if it is in fact a man or a woman? No one is going to do a genital inspection when you apply for your license. I doubt they’re even going to check a birth certificate. Unless every applicant (straight, gay, bi, male, female, intersexed, and transsexual) required to come in with an affidavit from a medical professional about their gender, how is this even enforcable?