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Good afternoon:
The Dog Days of Summer are upon us, as well as the political "Silly Season" and the final three-day weekend of summer, Labor Day on September 5. Yes, it's time to put away those white shoes.
Our language is often filled with colloquialisms (see our Wordsmith.org link in InternetIntel), such as the Dog Days of Summer. Have you ever wondered about the origins of the phrase? No? We'll tell you anyway ... it all started in Ancient Rome. The sultry weather of late summer often made people sick, so they, logically, blamed this occurrence on the constellation Sirius, the "Dog" star, which rose at about the same time as the sun. Early Romans believed that Sirius, the brightest star, added its heat to the sun thus creating hot, unhealthy weather. The ancients used to sacrifice a brown dog at the beginning of the Dog Days to appease the rage of Sirius. Mutts were still in the doghouse during the Middle Ages when it was popularly believed that dogs went mad during the Dog Star season. Another name for this time of year, the canicular days, comes from the Latin word canis meaning "dog."
As for the political "Silly Season," this might seem self-explanatory, but there is a historical context for this phrase that describes the slow news season during the late summer months when the media publish frivolous stories for want of real news. This may or may not seem to be the case this summer ... See InternetIntel for the link.
This might be the "silly season," but Robbins Insurance has some non-frivolous news (some good news, too!) to share with you during the Dog Star season (the "Sirius Season"?).
Let's start with some good news: in the category of "technology can be good," Kaiser Permanente introduces its new iPhone application, the KP Locator. Recently launched, the KP Locator is designed to help users easily locate Kaiser health care facilities and, even better, it is available at no charge through the iPhone App Store.
Kaiser said the new application is the first phase of a planned expansion of mobile services, including enhancements later this year to "My Health Manager," Kaiser's personal health record link on www.kp.org.
KP Locator provides the following:
· Location of Kaiser Permanente medical facilities near you
· Contact information
· Available departments and services
We don't need to remind you not to text and drive, even while using the KP Locator. Pull over and avoid (further) injury : )
Great news that may help trim your pharmaceutical costs: some of the most popular (and expensive) drug patents are expiring soon and will be available to purchase at a fraction of the cost.
Patents for six of the 10 most popular medications will expire before the end of 2012. According to the Associated Press, the savings for health insurers and patients will be immense: last year, the average co-payments were $6 for generics, compared with $24 for brand-name drugs.
Prescription drugs going off patent in the coming months include:
· Lipitor (cholesterol)
· Plavix (blood thinner)
· Actos (diabetes)
· Lexapro (depression)
· Zyprexa (anti-psychotic)
· Singulair (asthma)
· Diovan (blood pressure)
· Enbrel (rheumatoid arthritis)
We'll post a link to the full list of drugs that will be available in generic form as their patents expire, as well as the patent expiration date on www.robbinsinsurance.net
... and we have a warning about cellphone voice mail hacking. If you haven't done so already, it's time to take some precautions to protect your phone.
We're introducing a new monthly feature, our WellnessWatch, to provide you with health facts and information. This month, we have a link to WebMD's cool slideshow on how to detect the signs of a heart attack (okay, the slideshow is cool, but the subject matter is serious. Please take a moment out of your day to review the information - it could save your life or help you save the life of a loved one.)
We'll check back in with you next month, so enjoy a pleasant and safe Labor Day!
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