A new report out highlights the economic threat the current health care system creates for American cities, which are typically ignored in the discussion about health care reform. The report, put out by Families USA—a nonprofit and nonpartisan national organization that advocates for high-quality, affordable health care for all Americans—found that, “…cities are profoundly affected by the rising number of uninsured Americans and the rising cost of providing coverage for their own employees. These problems have an impact on all city residents, regardless of their health insurance status, and they affect cities’ ability to fulfill other municipal functions as well.”

“Our cities face the dual challenges of assisting a rising number of uninsured Americans and providing increasingly expensive health coverage for their own employees,” Ron Pollack, Executive Director of Families USA, said on Monday.

Pollock’s statement summarizes the key findings of the report, which concluded that cities have been overlooked and left to manage local health care crises on their own, which poses a risk to the budgets of other city services, such as police and fire protection, schools, parks, and the repair of city streets and other infrastructure.

“Today’s report makes crystal clear what many of us in cities across America—who are faced with the spiraling costs of health care both for our employees and our citizens—understand all too well,” said Philadelphia’s Mayor Michael A. Nutter. “It’s threatening our economies, our families and our futures. It is time for Washington to stop the excuses and fix our broken health care system.”

The report is based on extensive surveys and research of thirteen cities nationwide, which all had consistent results. Immunizations are one of the largest burdens on cities.

Other key findings include…

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If I stop and think about it, it really alarms me that I am a mere seven years older than the toxics law in this country, a clunker that has so few teeth it doesn’t control many substances at all, despite being named the Toxic Substances Control Act. I’ve dreamed of overhauling the clunker and ranted about bisphenol-A.

But rather than resorting to trashing more dangerous products from our pantry, we can get on board with the Kid Safe Chemicals Act, an excellent piece of federal legislation recently introduced by three U.S. Representatives (NY and CA, all Dems, natch). This bill could really and truly help with the explosion of toxic products everywhere. we. turn. And all we have to do, mamas, is help pass the thing.

Nothing to it! ‘Cause all you need to do for now is know about this excellent bill. Read about this excellent bill. Talk about this excellent bill. And, when it moves (and with us behind it, it will), when a floor vote is on the horizon, let’s be at the ready to pick up the phone, send that e-mail, make that in-person meeting to tell your Congressional delegation - loud and clear - how very much this matters to you. To us. To all parents everywhere. Read the rest of this entry »

by Ann Bibby

I have always been amazed by my kindergartener’s hardiness. Long before the trees bud, she is clamoring for summer footwear which become the mainstay of her wardrobe until long after the same trees are bare again in the fall. Perhaps the shoe fetish gene skips generations, but Crocs and flip flops proliferate in her closet and in the both the front and back entry ways of our home.

But when she woke me at 3 A.M. this morning, complaining yet again of “growing pains” in her ankles and lower leg, my thoughts returned to a Newsweek article this week about a recent study conducted on the perennial favorite of warm weather footwear. It seems that free-wheeling summer foot wear is more than just a good way to stub a toe or skin a knee (or two). Read the rest of this entry »

Recently, the Coca-Cola company decided to stop selling food products (read breakfast cereals, snacks and drinks) in the UK that contained artificial dyes. Bravo Coca-Cola and to all the other companies that decided to do this! Bravo for listening to the hoards of consumers in the UK who decided to fight back and won! Here is the glitch though, despite knowing that consumers do not want these dyes in their food and the harm they can do these companies, like Kraft and McDonald’s, still continue to produce these items for us folks here in the US.

Mad now?

I am.

Why should you fight back?

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Despite my strong opinions on most things (no!) and apparent urge to share them, I continue to surprise myself by failing repeatedly to attend protests. I also don’t post political signs in my yard. Not for any good reason I can think of - or recall, anyway. Recently, though, I’ve been considering changing my ways - mostly to allow my children to experience protesting, to let them see how it can feel to strongly object to something the larger society supports, to stand up for their beliefs, and to exercise a freedom that I don’t appreciate nearly enough.

I thought about it some more one morning this week when we noticed peace supporters waving anti-war signs (OK, giant bed sheets) about a local peace protest. It took my 4 & 1/2-year-old son less than 10 seconds to start pumping the questions: Mama, why are those people holding those signs? What do they say?

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Mummy I’m Bored

Sound familiar? Many mothers I know pack their kids’ days with activities from the time that they wake up to the time that they fall asleep. And while there is certainly some logic to keeping kids busy, like adults, they too need a break. Downtime is critical not only to help kids recharge their batteries, but also to teach them survival skills. As a child I remember telling my mother that I was bored only to receive the standard reply “Only boring people can be bored.” At some point it occurred to me that I should probably figure out ways to keep myself busy rather than bugging my mother to do it for me. How can parents nurture creativity in a child who’s imagination is not given the opportunity to create his or her own pastime? How will that translate to creativity skills in adulthood? Read the rest of this entry »

If you haven’t yet seen Jenny McCarthy and Jim Carrey speaking live at the Green Our Vaccines March, please check out this awesome video that made the hair on my arms stand up. I’m so thrilled that people are continuing to speak out on this topic and Jenny is a great example of a MOM SPEAKING UP!!!!!

When I first got word about the Green Our Vaccines March, I was curious to see just how much media coverage there would be on the issue.  ABC News has a front page link to the story, under “Celeb Causes”.  There is a video from the morning’s interview on “Good Morning America“. 

As of a few minutes ago there was over a 140 comments, and folks are letting their opinion be known.  The mainstream medical community keeps saying the same thing.  Read the rest of this entry »

Kids might love Disneyland but the irony about the ‘Happiest Place on Earth’ is that a natural grove of orange trees was destroyed to build an artificial land that has successfully seduced generations of kids with its media. Regardless of your personal feelings about Disneyland, the reality is that it was created out of 160 acres of orange trees and it continues to have a massive carbon footprint. Yet Disney provides the very frame of reference for kids’ media.

Like many parents out there, I am hungry for positive kids’ media and by that I mean media that is positive in what it portrays, in what it teaches and in its ultimate impact on kids. Easier said than done, finding positive media for your kids has got to be one of the hardest challenges of parenting. You might say Why worry? It’s not like my kids are exposed to a lot of the media out there. Truth be told, it might not be in their face but chances are that they will get to it. Even if you do not own a TV or even if you abstain from a certain magazine subscription, most children know (or will know by some point in their childhood) how to find just about anything on the internet.

Given all of this, I was thrilled with the release of “Gorilla in the Greenhouse,” an environmental themed web animation that inspires kids to take real-world steps towards a healthy planet. The pilot episode is about The Great Pacific Garbage Patch (also known as The North Pacific Gyre), a growing collection of plastic waste in the Pacific Ocean. More than just a seven minute animation, this show and the green gorilla website includes interesting tidbits such as information about the gyre, the case for eco-friendly re-usable bags, actions that kids can take in their communities and of course, downloads of some great ‘Jack Johnson’ type music.

What I love about Green Gorilla is that it actually gets kids into action. Having seen the show, my eight-year-old has developed an ardent dislike for plastic waste. He is in the process of gathering all the plastic bags he can find…from the neighbors to create what he calls a “Mega Ball.” He has learned from Green Gorilla that a family of four consumes about 1,000 plastic bags each year. “We don’t need more in the Gyre!” says my son when we go to the grocery store. My ten year old daughter has teamed up with three other kids in the neighborhood to create a poster that encourages the use of re-usable bags. They have been calling upon local grocery stores and libraries to ask permission to post their posters. Finally, some of the teachers in local schools have actually presented the show in their classrooms followed by an entire discussion relating to the issue of plastic waste. The Green Gorilla website (www.greengorilla.com) includes two curricula for teachers, specifically tailored to this issue of plastic waste.

National Geographic Kids, one of my all time favorite kids’ websites is the ultimate positive media guru. In addition to featuring a range stories, videos and interesting animal trivia, their website includes games and tips that get kids thinking about issues. For example, their Get Green tips that actually get kids thinking about issues like recycling and improving the outdoors. Their Car Wash Kit has not only peaked my kids’ interest in washing our car on weekends but it has also helped instill in them a genuine interest in keeping the car clean. As an international parent who is constantly faced with the challenges of multicultural parenting, I love their People & Places section, a relatively new addition to their website that focuses on various people and cultures.

Check it out and let me know your thoughts. I am sure you are hungry for positive media too.

Written by Reenita, a San Francisco based freelance writer, Ayurveda Clinician and mother of two. Check out her personal blog at www.reenita.com

by Ann Bibby

When I was teaching middle school back in central Iowa, I was expected to ensure the learning and safety of every child assigned to me regardless of how cooperative, charming or innately intelligent that child was, and I took that very seriously. I cannot honestly say I enjoyed every little soul I crossed paths with but I can say that there were only a handful of them that I couldn’t manage or that I didn’t coerce into learning.

The recent incident in a Florida elementary school, where a kindergarten teacher had her students vote to remove a disruptive classmate after allowing them the opportunity to tell the boy what they didn’t like about him, got me thinking about some of the reasons I left the classroom and will probably never return. Read the rest of this entry »