Medicaid Recipients Most Likely to Suffer from Preventable Illnesses

A survey conducted by The Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index shows that those who rely primarily on Medicaid are far more likely to have preventable chronic illnesses than those who receive insurance from their employer, union, as part of a military or veteran's benefit package, and those who are uninsured. More than 1 in 3 recipients of Medicaid are obese compared to 27% of those who receive insurance from their employer or union. Those on Medicaid are also three times more likely to suffer from depression than those who receive their primary insurance from their union or employer, with 22% of the former suffering from depression compared to only 7% of the latter. Also concerning is the fact that 16% of Medicaid recipients suffer from asthma, compared to only 6% of those who receive insurance from an employer or union.
       Although these numbers are certainly cause for concern, it should be noted that recipients of Medicaid are usually living in poverty or are disabled, hence why they receive Medicaid. As Gallup notes, there is a strong correlation between poverty and suffering from poor health. Thus, these findings do not necessarily indicate that those on Medicaid are receiving poor quality care, but perhaps they are simply more likely to suffer from these conditions as a result of their poor socioeconomic status.

A Broken Visa System

        A recent article in The Economist argues that our current visa system is in desperate need of reform. Year after year, the government receives far more applications for H1B visas than the 65,000 that are allotted to American business. As The Economist notes, in 2007 the government exceeded the limit in one day and a year later it only took two days. This year, the government is expected to exceed it’s limit on April 5^th, five days after the start of the new fiscal year.

The author argues that the cap on visas is potentially hurting the economy since U.S. corporations are not able to fill jobs if their potential new employees are denied visas. Although those who oppose raising the cap on visas claim these foreign workers are stealing American jobs, Michael Clemens, who is an economist and currently works at the Centre for Global Development, notes that given the high cost and time consuming process of acquiring a visa, most companies would prefer to hire a U.S. citizen but often cannot find one that has the necessary job skills.

        Thus, the visa system must be reformed in order to accommodate U.S. businesses. Among the possible proposals, raising the cap from 65,000 H1B visas to 195,000 could help boost the economy. The government should also make reforms to the visa system that enable college students graduating with degrees pertaining to the sciences, engineering field, or mathematics to remain in the United States to work. And lastly, similar to programs already introduced in Canada, the United States should extend more visas to foreign entrepreneurs who have the necessary funds to start a business here in America. Perhaps such a program could combat the 10% decline in new businesses started in Silicon Valley.

Gender Gap in Well-Being among Veterans

According to a recent Gallup poll, female veterans of the U.S. military have a much better outlook on their lives than male veterans do. This finding comes from the survey of 353,561 Americans from Jan. 2 through Dec. 31, 2012 which is the basis for the data for the Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index . Among the general survey population, 48,690 respondents indicated they were a veteran, either retired from service or honorably discharged from the U.S. military. Female veterans were far more likely to rate their lives as "thriving" (54%) than their male counterparts (44%). While female veterans' life ratings are nearly on par with women in the general U.S. population, male veterans' ratings lag behind other men by a difference of eight percentage points.

The relationship between gender and well-being among veterans under the age of 65 is significant, even when controlling for employment status, income, race, education, geographic location, and whether or not one has children. Male and female veterans aged 65 and older are about equally likely to be thriving and they are just as likely to be thriving as their non-veteran counterparts. Among those aged 18 to 44, female veterans are 11 points more likely than male veterans to be thriving. And, while female veterans are just as likely as non-veterans to be thriving, men are significantly less likely than men in the general population of their same age group to be thriving.

Sharia Law

In a recent article in The Economist, a new study by the Pew Research Center reported on the different meaning that sharia law has in different countries. Sharia law is the moral code and religious law of Islam. The survey of 38,000 Muslims conducted in 39 countries examined the opinions that Muslims in predominately Islamic nations expressed on a number of issues related to sharia law, such as religious freedom, the use of religious judges, and the execution of those who leave Islam.

In Morocco 78% of respondents think that non-Muslims are free to practice their faith and 79% of those think this is “a good thing.” Yet 83% of this group wants sharia enshrined in their nation’s law. A majority of Thais (77%) and Pakistanis (84%) yearn for Islamic law too. But most also say that other religions are free to worship (79% and 75% respectively) and they agree that this is “a good thing.” Religious freedom, however, is a slippery term, with implications for individuals and for the collective practice of faith. Muslims in some countries both strongly approve of religious freedom and support the death penalty for apostates from Islam. Three-quarters of Pakistanis who favor sharia agree.  

Views vary over how sharia should be applied. Tunisian backers when asked about specific features of sharia law, support the use of religious judges (62%), but have far less appetite for executing apostates (29%). And those countries where most support sharia are not always its strictest followers, though around three-quarters endorse it in both Indonesia and Egypt. And 74% of Egyptians who favor sharia also think it should apply to non-Muslims, the highest proportion among polled countries. To read the full report, please visit The Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life.

Consumer Spending Increases

Despite the expiration of the payroll tax cut and the increase on Social Security taxes that began on the start of the new year, The New York Times reports that consumer spending rose by about 0.2% in March. According to the federal government, the increase that took place between January and March marks the fastest increase in consumer spending for over two years. This increase is partially due to the fact that March was unusually cold, leading American’s to spend more for heating. Thus it is important to note that although an increase in consumer spending is typically good, an increase which is the result of spending more on utilities does not necessarily indicate higher consumer confidence. Spending on other things, such as clothes, cars, household goods, and furniture would be more indicate of this. However, there is some room for optimism. The Commerce Department claims that the economy grew by 2.5% during the January-March quarter. This was 6 times higher than the rate recorded for the fourth quarter. Although this grow rate would be considered optimal in an economy with low unemployment, during a struggling economy this growth rate is not high enough to diminish unemployment.

Although taxes have increased, many believe this uptick in consumer spending could continue since American’s have reduced their personal debt, their home values have likely risen, and their stocks enjoyed some success further adding to their household wealth.

Since the recession officially ended in June 2009, growth has been weaker than usual after a severe downturn. The economy expanded just 2.4 percent in 2010, 1.8 percent in 2011 and 2.2 percent in 2012.

An Uneven Recovery, 2009-2011

A new report released by the Pew Research Center shows that the wealthy benefited the most from the recovery in 2009 to 2011. The wealthiest 7% saw their net-worth’s rise by 28% on average. This means that their estimated wealth rose from $2.48 million in 2009 to about $3.17 million in 2011. Unfortunately, the bottom 93% of the nation did not share in this prosperity. This group actually saw their net worth fall by about 4% from $139,896 in 2009 to $133,817 in 2011. As Pew Research Center explains, this difference between the bottom 93% and the top 7% can partly be explained by taking into account the role of stocks and bonds, which thrived during the recovery and the fact that wealthier Americans tend to invest more in both stocks and bonds. In contrast, the housing market remained in a poor condition during most of the recovery and for the bottom 93%, their home comprises the bulk share of their net worth. Not surprisingly, wealth inequality also rose during the recovery.

Pew also notes that the recent Census Bureau data indicates that the bottom 93% were also less likely to own stocks and mutual funds in 2011 than in 2009. In 2009, 16% of the less affluent directly owned stocks or mutual funds but by 2011 this figure dropped to 13%. Also, a small share of the less affluent had individual retirement accounts in 2011 than in 2009 but the number of affluent people with a 401(k) remained steady at 39% for both 2009 and 2011. A smaller share of the top 7% also owned stocks or mutual funds in 2011 than in 2009 but more owned IRA’s and had more in their 401(k) in 2011 than in 2009.

Overall, net worth per household in the U.S. in 2011 made up nearly all the ground it had lost since 2005—$338,950 versus $340,252 in 2005, the latest pre-recession data published by the Census Bureau. 

Child Care Costs Nearly Doubled in 25 Years

According to a report published earlier this month by the United States Census Bureau titled "Who's Minding the Kids? Child Care Arrangements: Spring 2011" the cost of child care nearly doubled from 1986 to 2011. In 1986, the average family with an employed mother spent $84.30 a week (in 2011 dollars) on childcare compared to $143 in 2011. Despite this dramatic increase in child care costs, the proportion of income spent on child care has remained relatively steady from 6% of the monthly family income spent on child care in 1986 to 7% in 2011. It is also important to note that the wage earned by full-time child care workers has not increased in the past 20 years. According to the United States Census Bureau, in 1990 the average full-time child care worker earned $19,680 (2011 dollars) compared to $19,098 in 2011. Interestingly, it seems the proportion of children cared for by a non-relative in the providers residence declined while the proportion of families who rely on day-care centers or fathers taking care of preschool children has increased. However, despite an increased reliance on organized day care centers, many children are still cared for by relatives. As of 2011, nearly 1 in 4 preschoolers were cared for by a grandparent, about 1 in 5 were cared for by their fathers while their mothers were employed, and 1 in 10 were cared for by a sibling or other relative. For more information on how the demographics of child care has changed, please read the full report at http://www.census.gov/prod/2013pubs/p70-135.pdf.

Blame Demography for American's Weak Economic Growth

An article recently featured in The Economist explores the ways in which demographic changes have stifled economic growth. Many politicians have noticed the lagging economic growth rate following the greatest recession since WWII and are concerned that this may be the new norm. As The Economist explains, in the past three years the average growth rate stood at 2.2%, which is only slightly more than half the 4.2% averaged after the seven previous recessions. Part of the reason for the slower growth rate is that American's are facing unprecedented levels of debt and businesses are reluctant to spend, but changes in demography are also to blame for the slower recovery.
       The prime working ages are between 25 and 54 however the share of the population under 25 and above 54 continues to grow, causing a decline in overall labor-force participation rates. A few possible solutions are identified in the article to counteract this decline in labor force participation.  These include allowing more immigrants into America, reforming disability benefits to encourage those who are between the ages of 25 and 54 to go back to work, and raising the retirement age to keep workers in the labor force longer.

The Best Places for a Working Woman

According to The Economist, the United States ranks 12^th out of 26 wealthy countries for a woman to work. The results were determined using five indicators including how many men and women who had secondary education, the percentage of women who participate in the labor force, the gap between the earnings of men and women, the proportion of women in high level positions, and the cost of child care compared to the average wage. 

 

New Zealand came in first place, followed by Norway, Sweden, Canada, and Australia. Although Finland placed 7^th overall, it performed the best on measures regarding education. In Sweden, 78% of women participate in the labor force marking the highest rate out of all 26 countries. In Spain, the wage gap was only 6%, the lowest among all the countries. In contrast, Japan and South Korea were ranked quite low because there are few women in the country who hold high level senior positions.