US Ebola Czar - Messaging or Frank Truth?

[Zac]

I'm not impressed with this choice or even the need for a "czar". The surgeon general or director of CDC should be able to perform this function. And it would make much more sense to appoint someone with a medical or life science background, preferably epidemiology or viral microbiology.

---
President Barack Obama will appoint Ron Klain his "Ebola czar," knowledgeable sources tell CNN.

Klain is highly regarded at the White House as a good manager with excellent relationships both in the administration and on Capitol Hill. His supervision of the allocation of funds in the stimulus act -- at the time and incredible and complicated government undertaking -- is respected in Washington. He does not have any extensive background in health care but the job is regarded as a managerial challenge.

http://www.cnn.com/2014/10/17/politics/ebola-czar-ron-klain/index.html?hpt=hp_t1

 

[Ray]

Re: Obama news Ebola Czar

Re: Obama news Ebola Czar

I know I'm in the minority here but I think we have plenty of MD's and public health officials involved in Ebola already. The Ebola Czar is someone who will be coordinating the interagency response in W. Africa and the US.

From Vox

The Ebola response involves various arms of the Department of Health and Human Services (particularly, though not solely, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention), the Pentagon, the State Department, the National Security Council, the World Bank, the World Health Organization, President Obama's office, private stakeholders, and many, many more.

It would have been tempting for the Obama administration to nominate an Ebola czar who sounded good: someone with a long list of medical credentials to her name, or someone with a reassuring public profile. But the federal government has plenty of skilled epidemiologists, and this position needs to do more than look good on the Sunday talk shows.

The "czar" position requires someone who knows how these different agencies and institutions work, who's got the stature to corral their efforts, who knows who to call when something unusual is needed, who can keep the policy straight.

Nominating Klain suggests the White House is thinking about this correctly: as an effort that requires the coordination of already ample resources, where the danger is that the federal government will be too slow in sharing information across agencies and getting the resources where they need to go.

http://www.vox.com/2014/10/17/6994041/ron-klain-is-a-great-choice-for-ebola-czar

 

[sharon sanders]

Re: Obama's new Ebola Czar

Re: Obama's new Ebola Czar

I respectfully disagree 100%. This person's sole job is to control the American public via messaging:

Klain is chief counsel for Revolution LLC:

"Revolution builds leading brands in each industry we target, achieving broad, mainstream appeal. We will embrace an existing brand on its way to market recognition, but sometimes we will use our own Revolution brand to jumpstart market acceptance."

http://www.revolution.com/our-beliefs#.VEFP8vl4pcN



The financial community wants someone at the top that can protect economic interests:

Investments[edit]
Revolution holds majority stakes in several healthcare companies (including Revolution Health Group) and luxury travel firms (including Miraval and luxury destination club Exclusive Resorts, where Case serves as Chairman). In August 2005 it purchased a controlling interest in Flexcar, which merged with Zipcar in November 2007. It was also an early investor in LivingSocial. [19]
On November 18, 2009 American Express announced plans to purchase Revolution Money, a division of Revolution LLC, for $300 Million.[20]
In 2007 Case along with Ted Leonsis on February 27, 2007 joined in a $5.5-million investment in widget syndication specialist Clearspring Technologies.
Case controls tens of thousands of acres of land in Hawaii, including a controlling interest in Maui Land & Pineapple Company,[21][22] and Grove Farm, obtained in a highly controversial transaction which led to years of litigation by the farm's previous owners.[23]
In May 2010 Hellowallet raised $3.6 million in Series A funding from Steve Case and his wife Jean (and Grotech Ventures).[

------------------------------------

Revolution Health Group is a United States-based corporation founded in July 2005 by Steve Case, who previously co-founded America Online. Revolution Health’s stated mission is to change healthcare by giving people the tools, information and support to manage their health and wellness actively.
Revolution Health Group is one of three companies in the Revolution LLC group of companies. Revolution Health is a health-related portal site and social network that some have described as akin to WebMD. The company portal launched on January 20, 2007, using Ruby on Rails technology.

On October 25, 2007, the company dismissed 60 employees, or a quarter of its work-force, ostensibly as part of a restructuring.
On May 23, 2008, RHG terminated its employer business unit and business to business unit as well as laying off an additional 50 people.
On October 3, 2008, Revolution Health announced that it would merge with Waterfront Media, which operates the Everyday Health Network, in a deal valued at $300 million.[1] The combined company was projected to have more than 20 million unique users*, according to a comScore research custom report.

-------------------------

HelloWallet, wholly owned subsidiary of Morningstar, Inc., is a web and mobile application for employees, founded by former Brookings Institution scholar Matt Fellowes.[1] It provides independent and personalized financial guidance to members and relies on behavioral economics to incentivize workers to implement its advice.[2]
The company has generated press attention for its SaaS enterprise products, from sources including The Wall Street Journal,[3] The Washington Post,[4] BloombergBusinessweek,[5] Washington Business Journal,[6] and Tech Crunch.[7]
The company is based in Washington, DC and has offices in San Francisco CA.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Case


------------------------------

We are being "messaged" or massaged - depending on what you prefer.

 

[BestlaStormcrow]

Re: Obama's new Ebola Czar

Re: Obama's new Ebola Czar

This kind of message will need plenty of massaging:

A 21 day period for quarantine may result in the release of individuals with a 0.2 – 12% risk of release prior to full opportunity for the incubation to proceed. It is suggested that a detailed cost-benefit assessment, including considering full transmission risks, needs to occur in order to determine the appropriate quarantine period for potentially exposed individuals.

From that enlightening study, On the Quarantine Period for Ebola Virus http://currents.plos.org/outbreaks/article/on-the-quarantine-period-for-ebola-virus/

 

[Lizw]

Re: Obama's new Ebola Czar

Re: Obama's new Ebola Czar

I'm really on the fence with this one. I agree with Ray's reasoning about Klain, but vehemently share Sharon's disgust for his past business associations. I'm personally so tired of the brainwashing disseminated by all our major corporations that I could vomit. But if the message in this case is medically accurate and phrased in a way that most people can understand and act on, then I'm willing to put my other reservations aside. I think we're just going to have to wait and see.

 

[sharon sanders]

Re: Obama's new Ebola Czar

Re: Obama's new Ebola Czar

Above are his current business associations as chief counsel to the parent company.

There has been no mention of him quitting his current job and putting all of his investments into a blind trust.

There is a lot of money at stake in diseases. A lot.

 

[JJackson]

Re: Obama's new Ebola Czar

Re: Obama's new Ebola Czar

I do not know enough about any individual to comment but my vote would go to a heavy weight Washington insider. What the individual needs is to know who to talk to get things done quickly and the weight to bully them into action. They can have all the medical creds going but in Washington that does not get you through the door or give your opinion much weight, sadly, I wish it did.

 

[sharon sanders]

Re: Obama's new Ebola Czar

Re: Obama's new Ebola Czar

I respectfully disagree 100%. Again - what's the deal with his investments? Is he putting everything into a blind trust? He will be essentially influencing the economy of the US. Is he going to file a financial statement? Congressional hearings? He will have tremendous power to move the markets. What is the mechanism for oversight of his actions?

Is there going to be an embedded journalist?

 

[sharon sanders]

Re: Obama's new Ebola Czar

Re: Obama's new Ebola Czar

I respectfully disagree 100%. Again - what's the deal with his investments? Is he putting everything into a blind trust? He will be essentially influencing the economy of the US. Is he going to file a financial statement? Congressional hearings? He will have tremendous power to move the markets. What is the mechanism for oversight of his actions?

Is there going to be an embedded journalist?

Jim Cramer: Good Earnings Results Weighed Down by Ebola, Europe
BY Bret Kenwell
Follow | 10/16/14 - 11:29 AM EDT|

snips

Later in the day on his "Stop Trading" segment, Cramer said, "It just seems like every time the market rallies, we're going to get another Ebola headline that will take it down."

Otherwise, without the impact of Ebola, he reasoned that the stock market would go higher, when "rates go higher."

 

[JimO]

Re: Obama's new Ebola Czar

Re: Obama's new Ebola Czar

I see this as more of a publicity stunt to avoid having to make changes in the management at HHS or CDC. What I dislike most about these "Czar" appointments is the broad power they wield and the lack of independent oversight. We are left to rely entirely on the individual's integrity and you know what they say about power and absolute power.

I just don't want to see this turn into another political issue to spin. Too many lives are at stake and we need practical, decisive action.

 

[erruve]

Re: Obama's new Ebola Czar

Re: Obama's new Ebola Czar

I see this as more of a publicity stunt to avoid having to make changes in the management at HHS or CDC. What I dislike most about these "Czar" appointments is the broad power they wield and the lack of independent oversight. We are left to rely entirely on the individual's integrity and you know what they say about power and absolute power.

I just don't want to see this turn into another political issue to spin. Too many lives are at stake and we need practical, decisive action.

IF he can coordinate an effective response amongst all these different departments and egos, this is a win. In fact, I'm sure they saw that this would be seen as a stunt because he's not a doctor, and they chose this course in spite of the reaction. They went this way because management skills are badly needed. They care less about the spin and more about the real effects.

.

 

[BestlaStormcrow]

Re: Obama's new Ebola Czar

Re: Obama's new Ebola Czar

America’s Strange Love Affair With the Word Czar

Ebola Czar. Ebola Czar. Ebola Czar. Thank you, gods of political absurdity, for your annual tithe to the gods of linguistic fun. I’ve been wandering around my house repeating it all morning: Ebola Czar! Give it a little Spanish lilt and you’ve got a credible political liberator, Simón Ebolazar, or an experimental novelist, Julio Ebolázar, or maybe it’s top of the ninth, bases loaded, and some indomitable Cuban Casey is at bat. The crowd goes crazy. Ebolazar!

And, in fact, maybe the crowd has gone crazy. A couple of hours ago, President Obama appointed lawyer and former vice-presidential chief of staff Ron Klain to serve as the administration’s Ebola Czar. I will leave it to others to argue about whether we need a federal appointee to manage a disease that has so far struck a grand total of three out of 318 million Americans. I want to raise a different question: Why do we call such appointees “czars”?

Read the rest here - http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2014/10/americas-strange-love-affair-with-czars.html

 

[sharon sanders]

Re: Obama's new Ebola Czar

Re: Obama's new Ebola Czar

There are plenty of people in the United States who are good managers that have many years experience in the national and international health arenas:

1) Is Mr. Klain going to release a financial statement?

2) Is Mr. Klain going to place his investments into a blind trust for the duration of his appointment?

3) Is an independent reporter going to be embedded in his office?

 

[Ray]

Re: Obama's new Ebola Czar

Re: Obama's new Ebola Czar

I will leave it to others to argue about whether we need a federal appointee to manage a disease that has so far struck a grand total of three out of 318 million Americans.[/I]

Clearly doesn't get it.

3? 8 by my count.

Sacra, Brantley, Writebol, unnamed NIH patient, unnamed Emory patient, Mukpo, Pham and Vinson.

 

[Zac]

Re: Obama's new Ebola Czar

Re: Obama's new Ebola Czar

IF he can coordinate an effective response amongst all these different departments and egos, this is a win. In fact, I'm sure they saw that this would be seen as a stunt because he's not a doctor, and they chose this course in spite of the reaction. They went this way because management skills are badly needed. They care less about the spin and more about the real effects.
.

A major problem I see is his lack of any science or medical background will mean a very steep learning curve. Until he can develop that understanding, he will be relying on advisers rather than having an intuitive understanding of the issues. I don't think an MD is necessary or even necessarily helpful for the position. Some experience and background in viral microbiology, epidemiology, and health care administration would seem to be helpful if not prerequisites though.

 

[Dani]

Re: Obama's new Ebola Czar

Re: Obama's new Ebola Czar

IF he can coordinate an effective response amongst all these different departments and egos, this is a win. In fact, I'm sure they saw that this would be seen as a stunt because he's not a doctor, and they chose this course in spite of the reaction. They went this way because management skills are badly needed. They care less about the spin and more about the real effects.

.

I agree with you 100% about the need for an effective manager, not a scientist. A really good manager has the talent to ask the right people the right questions in order to handle situations about which he himself knows very little. However, I don't see this type of management in his skill set. There's no evidence that he's a turnaround expert, or well-versed in change management, or large scale project management. These are all very specific skill sets. It seems like Kain knows many people in Washington, and that's good. But I think he's there more for the messaging than anything substantial, which is really unfortunate.

I do think consistent messaging is important, but if we really do end up with a true outbreak here, of any size, he's not the man for the job. Which leads me to believe that either there is someone else behind the scenes who's actually doing the real work, or the Administration doesn't really think there is a problem that goes beyond poor optics. It's that last possibility that really worries me, because we have already seen that general attitude among the authorities handling the outbreak thus far. I think it's apparent that the time to take this issue seriously has arrived. It's not just about communications, it's about having something substantial and effective to communicate.

 

[Drexl]

Re: Obama's new Ebola Czar

Re: Obama's new Ebola Czar

I or the Administration doesn't really think there is a problem that goes beyond poor optics. It's that last possibility that really worries me, because we have already seen that general attitude among the authorities handling the outbreak thus far. I think it's apparent that the time to take this issue seriously has arrived. It's not just about communications, it's about having something substantial and effective to communicate.

A political, rather than medical or scientific, appointee tells you a lot about how the Administration views this issue imho. This is all about messaging.

In my experience, most people are still citing annual traffic, flu and lightning strike fatality figures when it comes to assessing the potential risk of Ebola in a developed country. The Czar is simply the person to manage the message and keep the other segment of the population (those watching with concern) calm and consuming.

 

[sharon sanders]

Re: Obama's new Ebola Czar

Re: Obama's new Ebola Czar

Already happening....stupidness.....

"This is a serious disease, but we can't give in to hysteria or fear." Obama October 18, 2014 weekly radio address.

http://uk.reuters.com/article/2014/10/18/uk-health-ebola-idUKKCN0I52X020141018


--------------------------

The message should be - "Hey, ebola is a very deadly disease and it can be transmitted from person to person. But, with a few common sense behaviors we all can protect ourselves and here are a few things to do......."

Telling people not to be hysterical is insulting.

And fear? Well, infectious disease is high on the list of what humans are afraid of. We are part of the animal kingdom and we have an instinct to run from infectious disease. It is impossible for us to be unafraid. It is our nature.

We should embrace this fear and fight against it with our intellect. Simply telling us not to be afraid is ridiculous.

 

[Zac]

Re: US Ebola Czar - Messaging or Frank Truth?

The choice of a lawyer/investment banker/PR man with no science or medical background is very disappointing, particularly since Obama said in his first inaugural address:

"We will restore science to its rightful place, and wield technology's wonders to raise health care's quality and lower its cost,"

http://www.newscientist.com/article...ience-to-its-rightful-place.html#.VELUNRbt1UU

I believed in and voted for Obama, but I have been sorely disappointed.

 

[Emily]

Re: US Ebola Czar - Messaging or Frank Truth?

Looks like a fixer when things have gone seriously haywire due to poor risk assessment and functioning at the federal level:

http://articles.baltimoresun.com/1994-05-04/news/1994124102_1_general-janet-reno-white-house-clinton

Reno tries to get off the roller-coaster
May 04, 1994|By Susan Baer | Susan Baer,Washington Bureau of The Sun

WASHINGTON -- Sometimes, after a day in the capital pressure cooker, it all comes crashing down on the strapping woman with the steely jaw, the robotic demeanor and the nation's top law enforcement job.

"Every now and then, I get frazzled late at night," Attorney General Janet Reno says, "and I just kind of sit there and just shake a little bit and say, 'I just do the best I can.' "
...
And long resistant to having a chief of staff, she recently acquired Ron Klain, another political master, from the White House to serve as a counselor.
...
But inside official Washington, the tide began to turn against her last fall, about the time the Justice Department issued its final report on the deadly raid on the Branch Davidian compound in Waco, Texas -- the incident that had sparked the nation's infatuation with Ms. Reno when she publicly accepted blame for the April 1993 disaster.

Report's stings

While the Justice report concluded that the attorney general was not at fault, it suggested that she had not carefully read the FBI's assessment of conditions at the compound before she ordered the invasion. What's more, the report found no evidence that children were being abused in the compound -- the concern that was said to have been uppermost in Ms. Reno's mind when she ordered the raid...

At least he was not her adviser during the fiasco.