By Dr. Ada Fisher

As a physician of more than thirty years I get concerned when I see the emphasis put on race and economics as the sole cause of health care disparities. High cholesterol comes not just from diet, but lipid or fat disorders and also has a genetic component as deceased tennis great Arthur Ashe’s life demonstrated. Obesity correlates with diet, lack of exercise and sometimes genetics. Diabetes reflects obesity, diet, and genetics.

High blood pressure results from intrinsic poorly understood likely genetic etiologies in 90%+ of the cases; however, the influence of diet, diabetes, and obesity cannot be discounted. Lead exposure on an inner city street where polluting paint and fuel inefficient cars may travel hurt as much as the lack of trees for pollution filtration. Asthma reflects environmental exposures, smoking, and genetics. Lack of access to physicians is often the result of where you live, how much money you can pay for your care and your level of understanding about your health.

My father told all of us children that who you marry and chose to have your children with are the most important decision you will make. No one wants to talk about genes and their impact on our lives. Don’t expect public policy to undo all that ones genes bring to the table.

Lifestyle choices are the most critical piece in decreasing the cost of health of health care and the one most difficult to change. We need to provide better preventive care, but we are deceiving ourselves if we belief that funding this without massive lifestyle changes will have the desired results. These are issues that public policy alone may not be able to solve.

Do we have a right to say what people may charge for their services? Are lawyers willing to represent citizens free to the same extent that we are proposing legal assistance for those illegally in this country? As long as health providers are reimbursed below their cost, highly skilled people will not want to work for free. Health care may indeed be a right, but do you have a right to make people serve you for nothing?

In all the complaints about socializing medicine in this new administration, people are spending a lot of time, energy and discussion on who is going to get what share of the health insurance pie rather than what are the parts of health care that need immediate attention and how can we pay for it all without burdening the few remaining folks with jobs.

Dr. Ada M. Fisher is A physician,Licensed School teacher, former county Board of Education member, as well as the NC Republican national Committee Woman. Contact her at P. O. Box 777; Salisbury, NC 28145; telephone (704) 223-2321. DrFisher@Fishernchousedistrict77.com