Guide to Understanding the Cost of Health Care

Patients utilizing healthcare today are being asked to take on a new role with a whole new set of responsibilities: Informed Health Care Consumer.

 This poses a challenge to patients accustomed to a health care market where price information often isn't known until after the service is rendered, and the patient simply receives a bill a month later.

 Price is one of the predominant factors in an informed consumer's purchasing decision, and to be an informed health care consumer means you now have to do your homework before purchasing health care services.

 With the dramatic increase in patient cost-sharing over the last three to four years, it's more important now than ever to understand price transparency and how to get the most out of your plan coverage.

What is price transparency?

Something to wine about: Wine and chocolate make a perfect pair any time of the year

Just because Valentine's Day has passed doesn’t mean wine drinkers can’t continue to enjoy what is arguably the perfect complement to a bottle of wine: a box of chocolates.

 

At first, pairing wine and chocolate might seem challenging. But have fun with it. If you know what wine you like and what chocolates you like, start from there.

One of my favorite pairings is Duck Walk Blueberry Port with dark semi-sweet chocolate. It's something the Long Island winery does for visitors to its two East End tasting rooms, and is a huge hit.

First you take a bite of chocolate and then a sip of wine, letting the wine flow over the chocolate in your mouth. The combination is intoxicating.

Income Inequality is the Leading Destroyer of American Families- says Marriage Therapist

This year's election has become a circus of fools and folly.

On the Republican side we have a reality TV star and a posse of human rights bandits manipulating a desperate and angry crowd.

On the Democratic side it's not much better. There are candidates who talk of the most important issue facing our nation — income inequality — but one's used her position of power to feather her own family's nest and the other speaks of income inequality in a polarizing voice.

America is not a socialist nation. It's a nation whose excellence was built on the hopes and dreams of a capitalistic system, a system where every citizen regardless of race, religion, gender and socioeconomic position can achieve a better life for herself and her family.

Doctor says increased public awareness of premature ejaculation issues can’t come soon enough

If you were born before 1980, you probably remember the often-mocked Viagra commercials from the late 1990s.

In the ad, 75-year-old Bob Dole explained how it took courage to discuss erectile dysfunction (ED), and even more courage to do something about it.

Well, as Bob Dylan would say, the times they are a changin’. It doesn't take much courage to discuss ED anymore.

However, it's not just ED causing problems for millions of men across America. There's another, lesser known but more prevalent issue of male sexual dysfunction called premature ejaculation (PE). Experts say PE may impact up to one-third of men.

This begs the question: How can an issue so prevalent be discussed so little in mainstream society?

First, it doesn't stop procreation. Unlike ED, couples can still have intercourse with PE; it just may not be as sexually satisfying.

Mentoring expert details how to build confidence in teens

“My name is Levar and I stand in front of you as a product of the foster care system,” a young professor from Morehouse University starts.

 

And so it begins, a gut-wrenching speech about poverty, adolescence and a non-profit called Summer Search, an organization that offers low-income teenagers opportunities to participate in fully funded summer programs and ongoing mentoring.

At every Summer Search fundraiser, a current high school student or alumni stands before a crowded room willing to unearth their remarkable story, revealing dark secrets, raw emotions and becoming vulnerable.

As founder of Summer Search, I am often asked how students who have clearly struggled with adversity can speak in such intimate ways about their life to a crowd of hundreds of people. 

Real estate expert's five tips for first-time homebuyers

Ready to take the plunge and buy your first home?

Purchasing your first property can often seem like a daunting task. Having a better understanding of the process and making sure you have a qualified professional agent by your side will help you navigate your first foray into real estate ownership with confidence.

 

Here are five key tips to keep in mind:

1. Get preapproved