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Greetings!
Even though the parade and fireworks of America's birthday celebration are behind us, there is still a lot of summer to enjoy! Whether you find your inspiration in a tall cool glass of lemonade sipped in a shady spot in the hammock, a castle built by hand from the sandbucket and spade at the beach, or the aromas from the barbeque grill filling the backyard, your season of fun and sun await!
Just remember all good things in moderation. July is UV safety month, and I would like to take this opportunity to remind you about the harmful effects of the sun:
Ultraviolet (UV) radiation is the main cause of skin cancer. UV rays can also damage your eyes. Anyone can get skin cancer, but the risk is greatest for people with:
- White or light-colored skin with freckles
- Blond or red hair
- Blue or green eyes
You can take these steps to help prevent skin cancer:
- Stay out of the sun between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m.
- Use sunscreen with SPF 15 or higher.
- Cover up with long sleeves and a hat.
- Check your skin regularly for any changes.
For more detailed information visit:
http://www.skincancer.org/prevention/sun-protection/sunscreen
Summer is also an excellent time to eat lighter and try new recipes with all the fresh and local ingredients available! Check out the super easy, delicious salad recipe below from Southern Living magazine.
Berry Delicious Summer Salad
YIELD: 6 - 8 SERVINGS
PREP TIME: 0:05 MINUTES
Ingredients:
- 8 cups of mixed salad greens
- 2 cups of fresh blueberries
- 1/2 cup of crumbled Gorgonzola or blue cheese
- 1/4 cup of chopped and toasted walnuts or pecans
- Bottled vinaigrette
Preparation:
- Toss together first 4 ingredients; drizzle with desired amount of vinaigrette, tossing gently to coat.
- Note: For testing purposes only, we used Newman's Own Light Raspberry & Walnut vinaigrette
ENJOY!
Yours in health,
Margaret Hersh
Executive Director
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What Does the Recent Supreme Court Ruling on the Affordable Care Act Mean for Free Clinics?
On Thursday, June 28, 2012, the Supreme Court issued a ruling on the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). You may be wondering how this will affect ARFC and other free clinics. We would like to share with you the information that has been provided by the National Association of Free Clinics:
On June 28th, the Supreme Court ruled the following:
The ACA, including its individual mandate that American's buy health insurance, is constitutional. While there was much discussion in the Court as to whether or not Congress could use its power to regulate commerce between states to impose this mandate, or whether it is a tax in the end, five Justices agreed that the penalty that someone must pay if he refuses to buy insurance is a kind of tax that Congress can impose using its taxing power.
With the survival of the mandate, the Court did not need to decide what other parts of the statue were constitutional with the exception of a provision that required states to comply with new eligibility requirements for Medicaid or risk losing their funding.
To understand what this means can be best explained by SCOTUSBlog.com:
The Court's decision on the constitutionality of the Medicaid expansion is divided and complicated. The bottom line is that:
(1) Congress acted constitutionally in offering states funds to expand coverage to millions of new individuals;
(2) States can agree to expand coverage in exchange for those new funds;
(3) If a state accepts the expansion funds, it must obey by the new rules and expand coverage;
(4) A state can refuse to participate in the expansion without losing all of its Medicaid funds; instead the state will have the option to continue its current, unexpanded plan as is.
This could mean that some states may decide that they do not want to expand their Medicaid program to 133% of the poverty level, but rather continue with the levels that are currently in place.
For more detailed information about the Affordable Care Act and the impact on Free Clinics visit http://www.nafcclinics.org/blog.
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