FOX Translator
No data currently available.
No data currently available.
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.
Home
Monday, June 23, 2008
/C O R R E C T I O N -- U.S. Preventive Medicine/
Comtex
DALLAS, June 23, 2008 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ ----PR Newswire is advised by a representative of U.S. Preventive Medicine that the company's name was misspelled in the headline and source line of the release issued earlier today. The correct spelling is U.S. Preventive Medicine.
------
U.S. Prevention Medicine: Employers Can Help Workers Avoid Heart Attacks
Prevention Expert Offers Tips for Benefits/HR Managers
Employers and their corporate human resources departments can play an important role in preventing their workers from suffering crippling or fatal heart attacks, according to a leading prevention expert at U.S. Preventive Medicine, the leader in disease prevention.
Dr. Boyd Lyles, corporate medical director at U.S. Preventive Medicine, says it's not uncommon for heart attacks to strike individuals who seem relatively healthy or who feel good. "Unfortunately, people, by nature, do not seek out medical care when they don't feel bad. They don't want the possibility of getting bad news or to be told that they should be doing things that they don't want to do, such as eating differently, drinking less alcohol, not smoking, or exercising more regularly," says Dr. Lyles.
With employer health care costs continuing to rise at nearly double digit increases, prevention and wellness programs in the workplace are beginning to gain much more attention, noted Dr. Lyles.
"We are committed to helping employers make prevention their top priority when it comes to the health of their employees and families," says Dr. Lyles. "In a climate of increasing costs of living, including health insurance and co-pays for physician visits and medications, it is important to spend money wisely. A little reading or study can prove very helpful in making informed decisions about their health."
Dr. Lyles offers these suggestions for employers:
1) Provide a proactive, thorough, employee-friendly portal to preventive health care that eliminates the confusion about what and when to do to be truly preventive. This should include health risk assessments (HRAs), lifestyle/behavior education opportunities, as well as guidance for the appropriate medical testing. Health coaching, either by telephone or internet can be very effective.
2) Install a "library" that is easily accessible that features publications by the American Heart Association, American Cancer Society, American Dietetic Association, and other recognized health authorities.
3) Provide health insurance options that emphasize preventive care. These can include provisions for periodic physical exams and lab tests, mammograms, colon exams, and access to educational and support programs (smoking cessation, weight loss, exercise options, etc).
4) Sponsor health fairs, special health weeks and months (January for exercise, February for heart health, etc) when posters and special education opportunities are provided (e.g., brown bag lunches with speakers).
5) Create an expectation of wellness among employees and reward them for their participation and health improvement. Not only should employers provide the various benefits, programs and onsite health promotional activities, they should create an environment in which employees are expected to participate and be proactive about improving their health.
"Without question, everyone, including employers, must focus more attention on prevention, and not simply treating illnesses when they occur," said Dr. Lyles. "Furthermore, the success of any prevention or health awareness program requires that it start at the top. Corporate benefit and human resource managers should help ensure that their senior management is engaged and committed to the effort for it to be successful."
About U.S. Preventive Medicine
U.S. Preventive Medicine(R), a privately owned company, is building the first personalized medicine business in the United States and internationally focused on prevention. The company offers employers, government agencies and consumers proprietary products that include The Prevention Plan(TM), a groundbreaking health and lifestyle management program delivered online to individuals; The Prevention Plan CM(TM), field-based chronic disease management programs customized for employers and government agencies to reduce healthcare costs; and The Center for Preventive Medicine(R), which offers high-tech diagnostic screenings delivered to consumers in partnership with hospitals, health systems and other providers. For more information, please visit http://www.USPreventiveMedicine.com.
SOURCE U.S. Prevention Medicine
http://www.USPreventiveMedicine.com
Copyright (C) 2008 PR Newswire. All rights reserved
Market Snapshot
| Symbol | Last Price | Netchange | Volume |
|---|---|---|---|
| -- | -- | -- | -- |
| -- | -- | -- | -- |
| -- | -- | -- | -- |
| -- | -- | -- | -- |
| -- | -- | -- | -- |
