From a small village in Uttar Pradesh, laborer Shavan Kumar, has brought his 38-year-old wife to a government-run hospital New Delhi to be treated for a heart condition. But he worries that the $500 loan he has taken will not cover the cost of her medical care; although the treatment is free, he has to pay for medicines, tests and their stay in the city.

“I am scared about how I will repay the money I have borrowed. What can a man working on daily wages do? It is in God’s hands,” Kumar said.

The Indian government has announced it will implement what it calls the world’s largest public health insurance plan, offering coverages of about $8,000 to poor and low-income families. That could be a game-changer for the 63 million people like Shavan Kumar who are driven into poverty every year by “catastrophic” expenses on health care, according to the Health Ministry.

Dubbed “Modicare” in a reference of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the hugely ambitious scale of the project – which proposes to insure 500 million people – has caused a wave of optimism in a country where improving access to health services has never been a political priority.

However, in a nation where many government initiatives are hobbled with poor implementation, there are concerns about how it will work and how it will be funded.

Priya Balasubramaniam, a health specialist at the Public Health Foundation in New Delhi questions whether the $300 million earmarked this year will get the project off the ground. “While this has definitely come with a bang, I think for those of us who want to move to the next level, it is really about the fiscal space that the government has allocated for a scheme as ambitious as this,” she says.

Officials say the vast scale of the project will drive down insurance premiums to as little as $18 per year. That adds up to $1.7 billion – an outlay that the government plans to make with funds pooled by both the federal and state governments.

Closing rich and poor gap

Health experts also hope the insurance cover will improve the quality of care by opening the doors of India’s expensive private hospitals to the poor.

A massive gap exists between private and public hospitals. The former have state-of-the-art medical facilities but only the upper income groups can afford their steep costs. On the other hand, quality public hospitals such as the All India Institute of Medical Sciences where Shavan Kumar brought his wife offer free treatment, but are few in number, confined to the big cities and hugely overburdened.

That is the dilemma that Hari Singh, a New Delhi resident, faced when he broke his knee in a road accident three months ago. Having no savings, he first went to a government hospital, but left quickly and headed to a private hospital.

“The conditions were so miserable, the toilets were filthy, two patients were put on one stretcher and there was no system at all. I got very scared,” he says.

But to pay for his care he had to borrow $5,000 at a crippling interest rate of 5 percent a month. Now he does not know when he can return to his job as a driver or how to support his two young children.

Ashok Agarwal, founder of the Indian Institute of Health Management Research, hopes the new government project will change that. “For the first time poor people would have a choice to go to a center where they feel comfortable,” he says. “Once you have insurance which is willing to pay, then the load of the patients can go to the private sector also.”

He says it will also incentivize private hospitals to improve facilities to attract patients. “Imagine you can have 500 million customers at your doorstep. Which company would not like that to happen?”

Health professionals underline that the insurance initiative needs to go hand-in-hand with improved primary health services and point out that poor people often land up in hospitals because they cannot afford day-to-day medical care and medicines.

But most government-run medical centers “are dysfunctional, lacking equipment, medicines and even qualified staff,” says Balasubramaniam, the health specialist at the Public Health Foundation in New Delhi. “You are focusing on the top of the pyramid while the foundations are still very shaky.” For example Shavan Kumar may never have needed to head to a hospital in New Delhi if his wife’s condition had been diagnosed earlier.  

But in a country where government spending on health care is among the lowest in the world – just 1 percent of the GDP – the project has sparked hope. “What the government has done in one stroke is to look at 500 million at the same time. I have no doubt it will take a few years to come on the ground and be stabilized, but the intent is very good,” says Agarwal.

 
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From: MeNeedIt

U.S. President Donald Trump’s threat to impose steep tariffs on steel and aluminum imports sparked concerns of a trade war Friday, with emerging markets trading lower and some world leaders threatening to take retaliatory measures.

Japan’s Nikkei share average fell to a more than two-week low Friday. The Nikkei ended 2.5 percent lower at 21,181.64 points, its lowest closing since Feb. 14.

“Automakers will have to bear the cost, and they may also have to raise prices while auto sales are already sluggish,” said Takuya Takahashi, a strategist at Daiwa Securities. “This isn’t looking good to the auto sector.”

​China, EU, Canada react

China on Friday expressed “grave concern” about the apparent U.S. trade policy but had no immediate response to Trump’s announcement that he will increase duties on steel and aluminum imports.

European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker denounced Trump’s trade plan as “a blatant intervention to protect U.S. domestic industry.” He said the EU would take retaliatory measures, it Trump implements his plan.

Canada said it would “take responsive measures” to protect its trade interests and workers if the restrictions are imposed on its steel and aluminum products.

Trump said Thursday the tariffs of 25 percent on steel and 10 percent on aluminum imports will be in effect for a long period of time. He said the measure will be signed “sometime next week.”

The trade war talk had stocks closing sharply lower on Wall Street.

The American International Automobile Dealers Association said Trump’s tariff plans would increase prices substantially.

“This is going to have fallout on our downstream suppliers, particularly in the automotive, machinery and aircraft sectors,” said Wendy Cutler, a former U.S. trade official. “What benefits one industry can hurt another. What saves one job can jeopardize another,” she said.

White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said the president’s decision “shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone.” She said Trump had talked about the trade plans “for decades.”

Republicans speak out

Not all of Trump’s fellow Republican politicians agreed with his trade war talk.

Senator Ben Sasse of Nebraska said, “You’d expect a policy this bad from a leftist administration, not a supposedly Republican one.”

A spokesman for House Speaker Paul Ryan said the House majority leader hoped the president would “consider the unintended consequences of this idea and look at other approaches before moving forward.”

Trump posted on Twitter Thursday about trade policy.

At the Thursday meeting, President Trump said the NAFTA trade pact and the World Trade Organization have been disasters for the United States. He asserted “the rise of China economically was directly equal to the date of the opening of the World Trade Organization.”

Trump told officials from steel and aluminum companies that the United States “hasn’t been treated fairly by other countries, but I don’t blame the other countries.”

In 2017, Canada, Brazil, South Korea and Mexico accounted for nearly half of all U.S. steel imports. That year, Chinese steel accounted for less than 2 percent of overall U.S. imports.

President Trump said he has a lot of respect for Chinese President Xi Jinping, and when he was in China, he told President Xi, “I don’t blame you, if you can get away with almost 500 billion dollars a year off of our country, how can I blame you? Somebody agreed to these deals. Those people should be ashamed of themselves for what they let happened.”

Xi’s top economic adviser, Liu He, is set to visit the White House Thursday to meet with top administration officials, including Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and Trump’s chief economic adviser Gary Cohn.

A White House official speaking on condition of anonymity told Reuters that they expect a “frank exchange of views” and will focus on “the substantive issues.”

Ryan L. Hass, the David M. Rubenstein Fellow at John L. Thornton China Center and the Center for East Asia Policy Studies at Brookings Institution told VOA he believes in the best-case scenario, Liu’s visit will assure both sides that “they are committed to solving underlying problems in the bilateral trade relationship.” Hass noted, “In such a scenario, both sides would agree on the problems that need to be addressed, the framework for addressing them, and the participants and timeline for concluding negotiations.”

Hass said if Liu’s visit fails to exceed the White House’s expectations, then the probability of unilateral U.S. trade actions against China will go up.

“If the U.S. takes unilateral actions, China likely will respond proportionately, and that could set off a tit-for-tat cycle leading to a trade war,” Hass said.
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From: MeNeedIt

Australia’s corporate watchdog is taking mining giant Rio Tinto and two former executives to court over the global miner’s “misleading and deceptive conduct” in reporting the coal reserves of a Mozambique mine purchased for $4 billion.

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) launched the court action Friday against Rio Tinto, former Chief Executive Tom Albanese and former Chief Financial Officer Guy Elliott.

“ASIC alleges that RTL (Rio Tinto Ltd) engaged in misleading or deceptive conduct by publishing statements in the 2011 annual report, signed by Mr. Albanese and Mr. Elliott, misrepresenting the reserves and resources of RTCM (Rio Tinto Coal Mozambique),” the watchdog said in a statement.

Rio Tinto bought the mine in 2011 for $4 billion and wrote off $3.5 billion in loses several years later when it sold the mine. The mining company fired Albanese and Elliott over their involvement with the sale.

ASIC said in a statement, “… by allowing RTL (Rio Tinto Limited) to engage in such conduct, Mr. Albanese and Mr. Elliott failed to exercise their powers and discharge their duties with the care and diligence required by law as directors and officers of RTL.”

ASIC wants the court to fine the two former Rio Tinto executives and bar them from managing corporations “for such periods as the court thinks fit.”

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission charged the mining giant and the two executives with fraud last year over similar allegations.

Rio Tinto said last year the U.S. charges were “unwarranted.”

The company did not immediately respond to the Australian charges.
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From: MeNeedIt

Uber is driving deeper into health care by offering to take patients in every U.S. market where it operates to their next medical appointment. 

The ride-hailing service said Thursday its Uber Health business will handle rides set up by doctor’s offices or other health care providers and then bill that business, not the patient, for the service. The company said rides can be set up within a few hours or days in advance. Patients won’t need access to a smartphone to use the service.

Uber began testing the service last summer. More than 100 health care providers have signed up including hospitals, clinics and physical therapy centers.  

Company leaders said they are expanding because there’s a need. They cite federal government research that estimates that more than 3 million people do not obtain medical care due to transportation problems.

“There are a lot of people out there who are not going to the doctor simply because they can’t physically make it there,” said Uber Health executive Jay Holley. 

He added that the service also represents a business opportunity for Uber by connecting the company with a lot of first-time users.

Uber will bill care providers who sign up for the service monthly based on their usage. Holley said some may pass the cost on to their customers, but most of the providers it has worked with so far pay for the rides out of their operating budget. 

Uber rival Lyft offers a similar service called Concierge, which allows health care providers to set up rides for patients to get to appointments. The providers pay for the rides. Lyft also has patient transport partnerships with larger health care providers.

Health insurers and others have long recognized the need to help some patients, especially those with low incomes, make their medical appointments. 

Molina Healthcare Inc. has offered a transportation benefit to its customers for around 25 years and says that more than 3 million people are eligible. Molina specializes in administering the state- and federally funded Medicaid programs for poor people and the disabled. 

Spokeswoman Laura Murray said the insurer found that covering transportation expenses helps patients keep regular appointments and preventive care visits, which can include things like flu shots or checkups. She said that can improve patient health and cut down on unnecessary emergency room visits.

Adams Clinical runs clinical trials for drug companies and started using Uber Health in the middle of last year. Since then, trial participation has grown and patients have started staying in the studies longer, CEO Nelson Rutrick said.

The Watertown, Massachusetts, company had used taxis before switching to Uber. Rutrick said taxis were more expensive and required advance planning to get a cab to drive an hour or two to pick someone up. 

 “Uber is already where the patient lives,” he said.

 
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From: MeNeedIt

Older men may face premature death if they spend most of the day sitting around, but it doesn’t require a huge amount of exercise to increase their chances of living longer, a study in the UK suggests.

Researchers asked 1,655 men, all between 71 and 92 years old, to wear accelerometers for one week. The goal was to assess their activity levels.

Among a subset of 1,274 men without cardiovascular disease or heart failure who wore the accelerometers as directed, participants logged a daily average of 616 minutes of sedentary time, 199 minutes of light activity and 40 minutes of moderate to vigorous exercise.

After following the men for up to six years, there were 194 deaths.

For each additional 30 minutes of sedentary time on a typical day, men were 17 percent more likely to die during the study, researchers report in the British Journal of Sports Medicine.

Every extra half hour of light activity, however, was associated with 17 percent lower odds of death.

“For those who are able, it remains a good idea to aim for at least 150 minutes each week of moderate or more intense activity, that is, activities that get the heart beating faster,” said lead study author Barbara Jefferis of University College London.

“Our results suggest that whilst moderate or more intense activity is best, for older men who are unable to achieve the target, doing even light physical activity is worthwhile for extending the lifespan,” Jefferis said by email.

Not surprisingly, researchers also found that men were about 40 percent less likely to die during the study when they got the minimum recommended 150 minutes of moderate to vigorous exercise each week, compared to men who didn’t achieve that amount.

Long or short bursts

And the benefit was similar whether men got this total amount of exercise in brief, sporadic bouts of less than 10 minutes at a time or they exercised in longer bouts of at least 10 minutes or more.

“We found that as long as men accumulated 150 minutes of moderate to vigorous activity per week, it didn’t matter whether it was in long or short bursts,” Jefferis said.

“This is encouraging for older adults, as it is easier for them to reach the target without worrying about sustaining activity in bouts.”

While 66 percent of the men managed to get at least 150 minutes of moderate to vigorous exercise in short bursts, just 16 percent achieved this in bouts of 10 minutes or longer, the study found.

The study wasn’t a controlled experiment designed to prove whether or how the amount or duration of exercise men get might directly impact longevity.

Another limitation is that accelerometers used in the study didn’t distinguish between standing time and sitting, which might have different health effects, researchers note. Men who followed through with wearing the devices also tended to be younger and healthier than men who didn’t.

Mental benefits

Still, the results add to evidence that any exercise is better than none, even if more intense activity is better, said Keith Diaz, a researcher at Columbia University Medical Center in New York City who wasn’t involved in the study.

“So, whether one walks for 1 minute at a time or 10 minutes at a time, any duration of activity at a time is healthful,” Diaz said by email.

“Regular exercise can lower blood pressure, blood sugar levels, body weight, triglycerides, and unhealthy LDL cholesterol; all of which can improve your heart’s health and, in turn, longevity,” Diaz added. “Exercise can also help memory and thinking by stimulating the release of chemicals in the brain that affect the health of brain cells and the growth of new blood vessels in the brain.”
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From: MeNeedIt

In making a documentary about disgraced Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein, PBS’ Frontline wanted to focus less on what he did than on how the alleged sexual misconduct went on for so long.

“Weinstein” airs Friday on most PBS stations, two nights before the Academy Awards. Its richness comes in detailing the combination of fear, intimidation and self-interested passivity that papered over allegations of harassment and assault dating back nearly 40 years, involving the famous and obscure alike.

More than 100 women have come forward since stories about the influential film producer’s behavior were first published in The New York Times and The New Yorker magazine last fall. Weinstein has denied some of the allegations. Several women speak to Frontline, their stories unfolding with numbing similarity, usually starting with an unwanted request for a massage.

To illustrate how long this has been going on, PBS interviews two women who worked on Weinstein’s first film in the early 1980s, back when he ran a concert promotion business in Buffalo, New York. Suza Maher-Wilson and Paula Wachowiak kept their stories to themselves because they figured no one else would care, or that it typified how young women were treated in the entertainment industry.

Career suffered

Actress Sean Young said she rebuffed Weinstein when he exposed himself. “I upset a few important men and the trajectory of my career … ,” she said, her hand motioning downward.

Frontline also speaks with two former Weinstein employees, Paul Webster and Tom Prince, who illustrated with their own inaction how things continued. Webster said he knew Weinstein was a dangerous character when he took a job there in 1995. “But I knew he was in the epicenter of where I wanted to be,” he said.

Webster seems to wrestle on camera with his conscience. He said he knew of character traits of Weinstein’s that perhaps could lead to predatory behavior. Looking back, he said, “I did know and I chose to suppress it. I chose to hide from that fact.”

Prince said he heard innuendoes, and he became suspicious of why the company was spending a lot of money to fly young women around the world. But he didn’t give it much thought, primarily because he was focused on his day-to-day job.

For people not motivated to keep quiet, Weinstein had many tools at his disposal. Alleged victims signed nondisclosure agreements. Investigative companies were used; one lawyer who told Weinstein he’d heard that the mogul assaulted women was told that his own behavior had been investigated. New York authorities, despite convincing an Italian model who alleged she was groped by Weinstein to wear a wire when she met with him again, dropped their case after a sophisticated tabloid campaign to disparage her.

“I felt if you could understand that more deeply, it could have consequences beyond the Harvey Weinstein story — that it’s important and appropriate to speak out when you’re observing something that isn’t quite right,” said Raney Aronson-Rath, executive producer of Frontline.

Silence remains

Several people are still reluctant to talk. Filmmakers interviewed Zelda Perkins, a former Weinstein assistant who broke a nondisclosure agreement after advocating for a friend who alleged that Weinstein assaulted her. Her friend still hasn’t spoken publicly.

In an illustration of how difficult the story was to crack, PBS talks to two well-regarded journalists — Ken Auletta of The New Yorker and Kim Masters of The Hollywood Reporter — who tried and failed. Auletta even confronted Weinstein about accusations made by Perkins.

“I wish I could have nailed the guy in 2002,” Auletta says in the film. “The problem was that I couldn’t prove it.”

With the self-imposed Oscars deadline, “Weinstein” came together quickly for a documentary. Some important interviews, including Webster and New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, were conducted within the past two weeks, Aronson-Rath said.

PBS did not get an interview with Weinstein, but his camp specifically discusses some of the accusations discussed in the film. The documentary’s final scene was of reporters recently cornering Weinstein. “We all make mistakes. Second chance, I hope,” Weinstein said, before getting into an SUV.

It was also the first Frontline collaboration with the BBC, which was airing “Weinstein” Thursday. The organizations merged investigative teams to work faster, and the combination of the PBS and BBC names helped persuade some interview subjects to talk, she said.

“We felt that the stakes were so high in this investigation that we wanted to make sure that we were working together on all levels,” she said.
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From: MeNeedIt

The battle to identify and remove extremist video online just got a new weapon. Video-sharing sites can now use artificial intelligence to scan thousands of videos as they are uploaded. Faith Lapidus reports.
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From: MeNeedIt

If you’re looking for a new sport, or a new hobby that doesn’t cost a fortune, is open to nearly everyone, and helps relieve stress, you may want to consider ax throwing. All you need is a sharp ax — or axe, as Canadians spell it — and an unsuspecting piece of wood. Arash Arabasadi caught up with an international, competitive ax-throwing league in Washington.
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From: MeNeedIt

Orchids are among the world’s most beautiful flowers. Although the blossoms come in different shapes, sizes and colors, they all belong to one of the largest and oldest families of flowering plants on earth. The U.S. Botanic Garden in Washington is showcasing some of the thousands of different orchid varieties in a spectacular exhibit that runs until the first week of April. VOA’s Deborah Block takes us there for a fragrant look at the exotic world of orchids.
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From: MeNeedIt

Daichi Yamamoto is a Japanese photographer who has called Senegal home for the past two years. His work captures local fashion, and he’s helped launch the careers of several Senegalese fashion models. For VOA, Chika Oduah has the story from Dakar.
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From: MeNeedIt

The biggest drama at Sunday’s Academy Awards may be not on the Dolby Theatre stage but in the behind-the-scenes moves to tackle the sexual misconduct scandal that has rocked the industry.

After moving swiftly to expel Oscar-winning film producer Harvey Weinstein last October after multiple women accused him of sexual misconduct, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has yet to take action against other people in its ranks who have been accused of impropriety.

They include actor Kevin Spacey, director Roman Polanski and comedian Bill Cosby.

Weinstein, who has denied having nonconsensual sex with anyone, was only the second person in the academy’s 90-year history to be thrown out. His expulsion made the publicity-averse Academy, whose 8,000 members vote on the Oscars, the moral guardian in the #MeToo scandal that has led to dozens of Hollywood figures stepping down or being dropped from creative projects.

“The academy has always wanted to be the symbol of Hollywood, the glamour and excitement and creativity. But now this awful stuff is being told about Hollywood and it’s like, ‘You’re going to be the symbol of the downside, too,’ ” said Tim Gray, awards editor of Hollywood trade publication Variety.

“This is new territory for them. I think they haven’t quite figured it out,” said Gray.

Challenging, fair, methodical

The job of policing accusations against filmmakers, agents and actors among the academy’s members has proved slow and difficult.

The academy issued its first-ever code of conduct in December and set up a task force to handle allegations on a wide range of potential violations. Chief Executive Dawn Hudson told members in a January email that it was “a

challenging process that will not be solved overnight.”

Hudson’s email said the academy’s goal was “not to be an investigative body but rather ensure that when a grievance is made, it will go through a fair and methodical process.”

The academy is developing an online form for submitting claims of misconduct that go beyond sexual behavior to include abuses in matters of gender, sexual orientation, race, age, and religion.

According to the guidelines, claimants must supply evidence of alleged behavior and an accused person has 10 days to respond before the academy’s membership committee reviews the matter.

Only the board of governors can decide whether to suspend or expel a member.

‘Slippery slope’

“Traditionally it’s up to the employer to monitor bad behavior — in this case the studios, TV networks and the agencies,” said Gray. “It’s a slippery slope to get into that. Where do you draw the line?”

The membership list of the invitation-only academy has never been published but the academy said that Spacey, Polanski and Cosby are still members.

Double Oscar-winner Spacey has been accused of sexual misconduct by more than 30 men. He apologized to the first accuser and has retreated from public life.

Polanski won an Oscar in 2003 despite being wanted in the United States to serve time for his 1977 admission of the rape of a minor.

Cosby faces retrial in Pennsylvania in April on a charge of sexual assault and has been accused of sexual misconduct by more than 60 other women. He denies the allegations.

Director and actor Woody Allen, who won Oscars for Annie Hall and Midnight in Paris, has repeatedly denied a resurfaced 1992 accusation that he molested his stepdaughter when she was a child. Allen has never been a

member of the academy, it said.

Dave Karger, special correspondent for entertainment website IMDB.com, said he didn’t expect any quick action.

“My sense with the academy is that they act judiciously, carefully and deliberately. I can see them making moves to expel certain members, but I see that happening as a multistep process,” Karger said.
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From: MeNeedIt

When refugees arrive in a new country, they bring little to no material possessions. But many bring something more valuable: their talent and skills. Twenty refugee women and asylum seekers from different parts of the world recently came together at a pop-up store in Phoenix, Arizona, to display their homemade products and tell their compelling stories. VOA’s June Soh spoke with some of the women in this report narrated by Carol Pearson.
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From: MeNeedIt