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We like to think that when we deposit a dollar at the bank, it goes into a big vault and we can pull out that same dollar at any time. But that¿s not how the U.S. banking system works. Banks take that money and invest it to make money themselves, so cash gets spread around. This, naturally, leads to a big risk: What happens if those investments go sour? Well, you¿d be out of luck. You can¿t get your dollar back.
The Federal Reserve doesn¿t like that scenario, so it prohibits banks from putting all the cash it has on deposit on the line. In fact, the Fed forces banks to keep a portion of their assets at the Federal Reserve itself, to make sure that some of your assets won¿t get squandered if the bank¿s bets go south. These are called ¿reserves,¿ (hence, Federal Reserve. Got it? Good), and usually amount to 10% of the total cash kept in checking accounts.
These reserves are never exactly 10%, and banks like to keep a little extra in reserve ¿ not, as you might think, to make you more comfortable that they¿re in good financial shape, but rather so they can take that excess and lend it to other banks and make money off it. (They¿re banks, they can¿t help themselves.) The rate at which they make these loans is called the Federal Funds rate, which is set by the Federal Reserve¿s Federal Open Market Committee.
When you hear people chattering about how the Fed cut or hiked interest rates, this is what they¿re talking about: the interest rate banks can charge for lending money from their reserves. This begs the question: If these are essentially loans between banks, why is the Fed Funds rate so important for the rest of the economy?
Well, simply put, because loans make the financial world go round. Bank A lends Bank B $10,000 at a Fed Funds rate of 5%. Bank B then lends out $10,000 to a small business at 7%. The small business then takes that money and expands the business and hires new workers. Now someone is employed, Bank B has made interest off the loan, and Bank A is the richer for making it all happen. It¿s perhaps overly simplistic, but you get the idea. When you want the economy to thrive, you make lending cheaper.
Of course, sometimes you don¿t want the economy to thrive. In fact, you might want it to cool down, mostly to avoid money flooding the system and causing inflation. In that case, the Fed raises interest rates, making it difficult to lend or borrow.
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Friday, June 27, 2008
American Lung Association Report Finds Lung Disease Death Rates Increasing While Cancer, Heart Disease and Stroke Death Rates Are Decreasing
Comtex
WASHINGTON, June 27, 2008 /PRNewswire-USNewswire via COMTEX/ ----According to the latest report by the American Lung Association, Lung Disease Data, death rates due to lung disease are currently increasing while death rates due to other leading causes of death such as heart disease, cancer and stroke are declining. Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is expected to become the third leading cause of death by 2020.
The American Lung Association publishes Lung Disease Data to serve as a resource to the public, media, healthcare professionals, researchers and lung disease patients and their caregivers on the latest trends and research in lung disease, along with relevant facts and figures about some of the most common lung diseases in the United States today.
Lung disease is any disease or disorder where lung function is impaired. Lung diseases can be caused by long-term and immediate exposure to smoking, secondhand smoke, air pollution, occupational hazards such as asbestos and silica dust, carcinogens that trigger tumor growth, infectious agents, and over reactive immune defenses.
"Every year, about 400,000 Americans die from lung disease," said Bernadette Toomey, President and CEO of the American Lung Association. "With our report, Lung Disease Data, we hope to provide valuable information on lung disease to the public, especially to people who become ill and their family members who are caring for them," she continued.
There are many types of lung diseases, including:
-- Obstructive lung diseases such as asthma and COPD which includes chronic bronchitis and emphysema. These all affect a person's airways and limit or block the flow of air in or out of the lungs.
-- Infectious illnesses such as pneumonia, influenza, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and tuberculosis (TB). Bacteria or viruses cause these diseases that can also affect the membrane (or pleura) that surrounds the lungs.
-- Lung cancer. A disease characterized by uncontrolled growth and spread of abnormal cells.
-- Respiratory failure, pulmonary edema, pulmonary embolism and pulmonary hypertension. These conditions are caused by problems with the normal gas exchange and blood flow in the lungs.
-- Pulmonary fibrosis and sarcoidosis. Hidden List These are diseases characterized by stiffening and scarring of the lungs.
-- Occupational diseases, such as mesothelioma and asbestosis, caused by exposure to hazardous substances.
The American Lung Association strongly believes that if cigarette smoking, preventable premature childbirth, disregard for workers' safety and violation of clean-air laws were to end today, a future largely free of the most lethal forms of lung disease would be possible.
The American Lung Association urges Congress to pass the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act and to fund a COPD program at the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). The Lung Association is actively working to pass comprehensive smokefree laws across the country to eliminate people's exposure to secondhand smoke, as well as to encourage the federal and state governments to pass policies to increase cessation services for the over 45 million U.S. adult smokers.
"As our nation wrestles with how to pay for increasing health care costs, we must look at the tremendous financial burden caused by tobacco in this nation," Toomey added. "Tobacco use costs the United States an estimated $193 billion annually, including $96 billion in direct health care expenditures."
To download the full report, please visit www.lungusa.org and visit the research section. For questions, please contact Carrie Martin at cmartin@lungusadc.org.
About the American Lung Association: Beginning our second century, the American Lung Association is the leading organization working to prevent lung disease and promote lung health. Lung disease death rates are currently increasing while other major causes of death are declining. The American Lung Association funds vital research on the causes of and treatments for lung disease. With the generous support of the public, the American Lung Association is "Improving life, one breath at a time." For more information about the American Lung Association or to support the work it does, call 1-800-LUNG-USA (1-800-586-4872) or log on to www.lungusa.org.
SOURCE American Lung Association
http://www.lungusa.org
Copyright (C) 2008 PR Newswire. All rights reserved
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