Lance Armstrong means business. He says his new race is finding a cure for a disease that kills 600,000 people a year. Lance is a ten year testicular cancer survivor and was diagnosed at the age of 25.

Yesterday, Lance urged Iowans to support a presidential candidate who's dedicated to expanding cancer research. In a speech to 1,500 guests of the Greater Des Moines Partnership's annual dinner, the seven time Tour de France Champion described the power Iowa holds as the nation's lead-off state in the presidential nominating process.

"The cancer question has to be asked, and it has to be on the agenda for the most powerful man in the world", Armstrong said.

Go Lance!

To the consternation of small business and medical insurers alike, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has announced sweeping reform in health care coverage with a proposal of universal health care for all Californians. Currently, 6.5 million residents who live in the state are without the security and safety of medical health care coverage.

Schwarzenegger, who is now being accused of sounding more Democrat than Republican, suggests his new $12 billion dollar health care plan be paid with fees levied on businesses, insurers, doctors and hospitals, and that 85 percent of every insurance premium dollar be spent on the insured in patient care. Insurers would be required to make all-things-equal in offering health insurance based on a community-rating model, as opposed to charging higher premiums for those who fall into a high-risk category. In addition, insurance companies would not be able to deny coverage. All persons who apply for health insurance would be guaranteed coverage.

Employers would be required to provide health insurance to all workers or pay 4 percent of their payrolls to the state; doctors would pay a new tax of 2 percent; and hospitals would pay a new tax of 4 percent.

The number of medically-uninsured in this country is growing yearly, and it is an issue that cannot be ignored. Those without medical insurance postpone seeing a physician, and when we are talking about cancer, delayed diagnosis and treatment can often mean the difference between life and death.

Recent surveys have indicated that even the insured are beginning to wonder if they will be able to afford quality health care in the future, as the cost of care continues to rise. It is not lost on politicians that health care is an important issue with the voters of this country, and those who wish to garner more votes will tackle these concerns.

In fairness, I am not suggesting politicians are solely motivated to act based on popular vote, but elections do have a way of clarifying the issues that are important to the citizens of this country and the resulting changes that can occur as a result of defined focus.

Schwarzenegger is not alone in his efforts to affect change. In December, Oregon Senator Ron Wyden introduced a new proposal to provide affordable, high quality, private health coverage for everyone regardless of where they work or live with the Healthy Americans Act.

The current system is simply not working for nearly 46.6 million people who are without health insurance coverage, according to statistics provided by U.S. Census Bureau's Housing and Household Economic Statistics Division. The solution will not be an easy one, but a solution is needed. Schwarzenegger has made a bold move, but one that will be made by other political leaders in this country as we lead up to the 2008 presidential elections. For the every day citizen, the time is overdue for the realignment of a health care system that is teetering out-of-balance and in a seriously off-kilter orbit.

Related posts:

Uninsured: the hard wind batters the brittle tree
Cancer survivors not getting medical attention or medications
Two paychecks away and cancer into the abyss
Healthy Americans Act: health insurance for every citizen

Roy Thayers has experienced death up close, as he was caregiver for his first wife as she battled cancer -- he knows what it is like to watch someone fight for their life -- and he was there when she lost her life to cancer.

Thayers, who at the age of 77 lives alone, was recently told by his doctors that he was at risk for a fatal heart attack and might lose his life if he didn't undergo heart surgery to unblock the heart valves immediately.

The problem of avoiding death and living longer became a matter of time and money. When the NHS put Thayers on a nine-month waiting list for heart surgery, he worried he might not have that long to wait -- considering the urgency with which the doctors had impressed upon him concerning the imminent threat of a fatal heart attack without surgery. He was told he could have the surgery immediately if he paid for it himself.

Today the RAGBRAI began.

RAGBRAI, an acronym for The Register's Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa, is an annual seven-day 472 mile bicycle ride across the state of Iowa. The ride began 33 years ago as a challenge made by one Des Moines Register newspaper journalist to another -- when John Karras, feature writer/copy editor suggested to Don Kaul, Over The Coffee columnist, that he ride his bicycle across Iowa and write columns about what he saw from that perspective.

Today, RAGBRAI has the distinction of being the longest, largest and oldest touring bicycle ride in the world. The ride is so popular that riders who wish to participate are required to enter a lottery for a spot in RAGBRAI.

Lance Armstrong will join RAGBRAI this year. Armstrong is participating in the ride to continue to raise awareness about cancer issues, the need for increased federal funding of cancer research and cancer survivorship. Armstrong sees Iowa as a pivotal place politically, and he is hoping to encourage locals to grill prospective presidential candidates on their positions on cancer research funding when they come to court Iowa voters.

Armstrong is more than concerned that for the first time in 35 years, the federal budget for cancer research has been reduced. He is single-focused about cancer survivorship, and remains consistently determined to fight for the best in cancer care and cancer cure.

When I was going through cancer treatment, I read Armstrong's book, It's Not About the Bike: My Journey Back to Life, in which he shared the philosophy of a cancer survivor's obligation of the cured. I was inspired to my own commitment and obligation in cancer survivorship. He has steadfastly lived up to his obligation. RAGBRAI is one more effort made -- and for a seven-time Tour de France champion -- a passion.