Bus. Week has an amazing cover story in the issue I got today:

[spooky3]

"What's Really Propping Up The Economy? Health Care Has Added 1.7 Million Jobs Since 2001. The Rest of the Private Sector? None."

Here's a link, but I believe a paid subscription is required to read the article.

http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/06_39/b4002001.htm?chan=top+news_top+news+index_businessweek+exclusives

Boy howdy, this Rethug economy is really booming, isn't it? And, oh yes, Business Week is not exactly a hotbed of liberal thought.

[AndyA]

1. Ann Coulter would say things are going "swimmingly."

Of course, she's a bitch so who cares what she has to say.

America is a sick nation, and getting sicker. I'm not surprised the health care industry is the one adding the jobs. It's too bad the cost is so high, and the care is so poor.

Yes indeed, yer doin' a heck of a job, Bushie.

[ktlyon]

4. we are also getting older

boomers that is

This increase in jobs was expected, and still we are not training the people needed to provide service for the elderly to come.

[AndyA]

5. What we need is compassionate care. So many elderly people

are not getting the care and respect they deserve. And that's a crime. I shudder to think what is ahead in the years to come if this isn't corrected soon.

[samsingh]

16. coulter is an evil bitch

[Uncle Joe]

2. Health care leading the way does not surprise me,

with so many people sick of Bush, I imagine it will set records over the next couple years.

[Deja Q]

3. Given the cost of medical care in other countries to the US,

someone in the US is inflating prices.

That's why people go to Canada to get their drugs.

Maybe the problem needs to be looked at -- at its source. That's not the government. That's the health care industry.

I also added emphasis on one line in particular, which is the real issue afoot - controlling wages. What you and I get for the hard, smart labor we do.

Ballooning government spending on health care is a major reason why Washington is running an enormous budget deficit, since federal outlays for health care totaled more than $600 billion in 2005, or roughly one quarter of the whole federal budget. Rising prices for medical care are making it harder for the average American to afford health insurance, leaving 47 million uninsured.

Moreover, as the high cost of health care lowers the competitiveness of U.S. corporations, it may accelerate the outflow of jobs in a self-reinforcing cycle. In fact, one explanation for the huge U.S. trade deficit is that the country is borrowing from overseas to fund creation of health-care jobs.

There's another enormous long-term problem: If current trends continue, 30% to 40% of all new jobs created over the next 25 years will be in health care. That sort of lopsided job creation is not the blueprint for a well-functioning economy. One solution would be to make health care less labor-intensive by investing a lot more in information technology. "Low productivity in health is mostly a product of low investment," says Harvard University economist Dale Jorgenson.

[bananas]

6. Subscription not needed; here's the cover - it's great!

Don't need subscription or registration to read the article,
there is also a podcast and reader comments.
The cover is great! It could be a campaign ad!
http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/06_39/b4002002.htm

[spooky3]

9. great, thanks for posting this!

[enid602]

7. layoffs

But wait a minute. I just read that here in the Phoenix metro area, 20% of all jobs are in construction and real estate maintenance. Not including the home mortgage industry, which is also huge here. So when these industries start laying off people, they lose their health benefits, which will ultimately cut jobs in the burgeoning health care industry. Sure hope the Administration figures out how to spin the situation before this scenario comes to pass.

[Greyhound]

8. Yep, 3 million people here and at least 1/3 of them are in the RE

and related industries. It is going to hit here hard, and that's why we're outta here.

(plus I just can't take the inundation of RW idiots that seem to be everywhere)

[KoKo]

10. Well with Ford and GM throwing folks out without healthcare maybe they

can all "Retrain" and become health care workers getting a discount from their doctors when they get ill.."professional courtesy." That's until all those Korean and Maylasian Nurses Bush wants to bring in with extended "Green Cards" arrive. :-(

[WePurrsevere]

11. It's amazing what living with high stress levels does to a person's health

Add to that the increase as baby boomers need increased medical care as they age, people need to fight diseases/disabilties and the baby boomers babies are coming of age and having children now as well.

[nuxvomica]

12. Where I live, the largest employer is the local hospital

It just keeps growing and taking over more and more of the town. I keep wondering how that can be a stable base for the local economy.

[filer]

13. I'm doing my share to "prop up the economy".

My out of pocket medical expenses exceed $27,000 over the past two years. My insurer has contributed at least four times that much more. But as I spend my way to poverty, this aging boomer can at least take solace in the fact that I'm putting people to work. Yippee!

[bvar22]

14. Health Care and "BORROWED" money.

Injecting BILLIONS in "BORROWED" money through the WAR MACHINE (MIC) and "TAX CUTS" (not really cuts, but tax payments deferred until a Democratic administration) will give a superficial appearance of "good economy".

It is like an adolescent with a new credit card. The new stereo and new clothes give the appearance of prosperity......until the bills come due. The bills for the Bush Economy will come due under a Democratic Administration. The Republicans did the same thing under Reagan. I was surprised the could sell the same old shit under bush*. They didn't even change the package.

The part that gets me SCREAMING MAD is that the connected will make a fantastic ONE TIME KILLING (like the S&L Crooks under Reagan), and just walk away with their ill gotten booty.
Your children will pay for TODAY'S Criminals in Washington, Democrats and Republicans.


The Democratic Party is a BIG TENT, but there is NO ROOM for those
who advance the agenda of THE RICH (Corporate Owners) at the EXPENSE of LABOR and the POOR.

[LUHiWY]

15. Good care?

http://www.lef.org/magazine/mag2006/aug2006_report_death_01.htm


"Something is wrong when regulatory agencies pretend that vitamins and nutritional supplements are dangerous, yet ignore published statistics showing that government-sanctioned medicine is the real hazard.

Until recently, Life Extension could cite only isolated statistics to make its case about the dangers of conventional medicine. No one had ever analyzed and compiled all of the published literature dealing with injuries and deaths caused by government-protected medicine.

A group of researchers meticulously reviewed the statistical evidence and their findings are absolutely shocking.1-4 These researchers have authored the following article titled “Death by Medicine” that presents compelling evidence that today’s health care system frequently causes more harm than good.

This fully referenced report shows the number of people having in-hospital, adverse reactions to prescribed drugs to be 2.2 million annually. The number of unnecessary antibiotics prescribed for viral infections is 20 million per year. The number of unnecessary medical and surgical procedures performed is 7.5 million per year. The number of people exposed to unnecessary hospitalization is 8.9 million per year.

The most stunning statistic, however, is that the total number of deaths caused by conventional medicine is nearly 800,000 per year. It is now evident that the American medical system is the leading cause of death and injury in the US. By contrast, the number of deaths attributable to heart disease in 2001 was 699,697, while the number of deaths attributable to cancer was 553,251."

[fuzzyball]

17. Most new jobs here in SW Washington state were in construction

since housing has been booming here.