Advertisement

Daily Rounds: Obama's Health Care Cache; "Occupy" As Teachable Moment; Obesity In The Workplace

Health Care Industry Donates More To Obama Than GOP (Huffington Post) "President Barack Obama has raised more money from the health care industry than Republican candidates, according to an analysis conducted by the Center For Responsive Politics published in National Journal.Obama has raised $1.6 million from the health sector, more than the $920,000 raised by former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and the $494,000 raised by Texas Gov. Rick Perry. Pharmaceutical companies gave Obama $230,000 versus $161,000 for Romney and $43,000 for Perry."

For Children’s Sake, Taking to the Streets - NYTimes.com And so it goes in the second month of Occupy Wall Street, where children are becoming an increasing presence as parents try to seize a “teachable moment” to enlighten them on matters ranging from income inequality to the right to protest. The park’s makeshift collective library has a children’s section, complete with a copy of “Harry Potter,” Beverly Cleary titles and Meg Cabot’s “Holiday Princess.” A group called Parents for Occupy Wall Street, headed by Kirby Desmarais, a Brooklyn mother and record label owner, even organized a sleepover at the park for more than 80 parents and children on a recent weekend night. (The families had to be moved at dawn to make way for new police lines and barricades.) Spin-off parent groups have sprung up in other cities like Denver and Seattle.(nytimes.com)Workplaces Feel The Impact Of Obesity (NPR.org) "From cubicle farms to auto factories, accommodating larger and heavier employees has become a fact of life. One in three U.S. adults is obese, and researchers say the impact on business can be boiled down to a number: $1,000 to $6,000 in added cost per year for each obese employee, the figure rising along with a worker's body mass index.Studies estimate the total cost of obesity to U.S. employers — including lost productivity — at $73 billion a year. But that figure doesn't include some of the smaller ways the workplace is adapting."

This program aired on October 28, 2011. The audio for this program is not available.

Advertisement

More from WBUR

Listen Live
Close