From Perri Peltz and Dr. Marc Siegel’s special program, Doctor Radio Reports on Swine Flu

The H1N1 virus will mutate and become more lethal!

FALSE. That’s based on a 1918 virus which did mutate and became much more severe while this H1N1 virus has been pretty stable so far.

If I get the H1N1 vaccine I will be more likely to get seasonal flu later in the year.

FALSE. It’s confusing, and there could be some crossover protection, but mainly H1N1 vaccines will protect you from H1N1 flu and seasonal vaccines will protect you from seasonal flu.

There’s a rumor that a cat in Iowa got H1N1 flu from its owner. Is that possible? TRUE, it’s possible, if only occasionally. But H1N1 is now a human virus — it does not pass from animal to animal and back to people.

You can get H1N1 from contaminated pork

FALSE. Cooking pork kills all flu viruses and it’s really not in commercially used pigs right now. Even if it were, you would not get it if you cook the pork.

You can get H1N1 from countertops.

TRUE. Flu viruses can live on surfaces and on water for over 24 hours so you need to be careful around people with the H1N1 flu.

Since the vaccine is just becoming available by the time most people get the vaccine it will be too late.

PROBABLY NOT too late. Pandemics come in waves. We’re in the second wave and it’s likely to come back. Get the vaccine and it will help slow the spread of H1N1.

You need two doses of the vaccine for it to be effective.

FALSE. Studies show one dose is sufficient. It works within seven days. For children under nine you may want them to get a booster shot a month later if it is available because their immunity is not fully fledged yet. Who are the high risk groups who should be getting the shot immediately?

MORBIDLY obese people, pregnant women, children and adults with chronic conditions such as asthma, diabetes and heart disease.

Should people be wearing masks?

NO. Masks are only useful if you have the flu or have been exposed to the flu. If people in the street wear masks they are going to spread fear. Fear leads to less precaution which leads to more virus. Only wear masks if you’re sick or in contact with the flu.

Host Dr. Billy Goldberg talked with Dr. Stephen Rennard, M.D. of the University of Nebraska Medical Center, who took his wife’s family chicken soup recipe into his lab and discovered that it did slow cold symptoms.

Print the Recipe *

*(note from Dr Marc Siegel, M.D, medical director of Doctor Radio: Do not add salt if you have been diagnosed with hypertension or heart disease!)

What does the idea of health care reform mean for those just now coming off their parents insurance plans? Hear Health Care Connect host Andrew Rubin examine the issue with Matt Murray, founder and CEO of the American Association of Young People and Shelby Holliday, graduate reporter for UWire.com.

They Didn’t Know It Was Broken

Expert, non-partisan information on the health care proposals working their way through congress.

By Andrew Rubin, host of Health Care Connect and Vice President of Clinical Affairs, NYU Langone Medical Center.

Q: What if I already have health insurance coverage and I’m happy with my coverage?

A: No, you will not lose your health insurance. However, there are provisions in the various bills that, over time, would require either your employer (who provides you healthcare insurance) or the insurance companies (if you buy insurance directly) to provide a minimum level of coverage and benefits. Meaning, there will be certain healthcare services across the country that will have to be provided for the insurance plan to be considered qualified. This would be phased in and is what is causing confusion with people saying “I would lose my health insurance” — in truth, it will change but it is worth noting that insurance coverage always changes.

Q: What if I don’t have health insurance?

A: The goal of healthcare reform is simple: cover all Americans. While the details of the bills are still be worked out, the plan is to cover everyone. There are concerns people will be left out, but that will depend on what bill is ultimately worked out in congress. Only then will we know the details. It is worth mentioning: People may not want insurance or may not want the minimum levels being mandated by the legislation. People who want the protection, however, should be able to have it in the future.

Q: Can I still obtain health insurance with a preexisting condition?

A: The most consistent piece of language in all the health reform bills from congress is the elimination of preexisting conditions — these words will be most likely be eliminated from the healthcare dictionary.

Q: How will my Medicare benefits be affected?

A: Right now, there is nothing to indicate there would be any changes to Medicare. There is discussion on reducing payments to physicians and hospitals but not levels of service on behalf of Medicare beneficiaries. What is causing confusion and fear is the need to reduce cost from the current Medicare system to be able to pay for all the newly insured Americans. Congress has not drafted the detail plans on how to reduce the costs beyond broad strokes. In the absence of concrete details, people assume services will be cut. Right now, that is not the case.

Q: What is a “death panel” and is it real?

A: “Death Panels” is the new hot phrase created to inject controversy into the healthcare reform debate. There is nothing in any bill or in the plan to create a panel that will decide at what point there will be NO funding available to pay for end of life care — “the death panel.”

The current bills have a new patient/physician visit type, whereby Medicare will now pay for physicians’ time when they discuss end of life care issues with patients. Currently physicians cannot specifically bill for the time he/she spends with a patient discussing this very difficult, yet important, topic. This provision was introduced as a way of facilitating the discussion between doctors and their patients and families on making important decisions on how much intervention they will want at the end of their lives. It doesn’t call for panels or denial of treatments because of a person's age or condition.


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