Green is Healthy, So Health Care Should Be Green Too

Green Building Scene / Jonathan A. Schein The last week or so in the presidential sweepstakes has produced many plans to deal with the healthcare crisis in the U.S. There are many opinions on this matter. However, there are no easy solutions when 47 million Americans are uninsured citizens. That''s how many we know about; there are probably many more that are undocumented. Although most of these plans show a definite move in the right direction -- toward affordable options for everyone -- they all seem to be leaving out a very important element: health and how we live our lives. There may be no appropriate way to legislate how we live our lives -- what and how and when we eat, sleep, exercise, work, and restore ourselves -- but how difficult would it be for these healthcare proposals to encourage a discussion about our lifestyles? For a model, we can look at the green living movement. While green living is not legislated, the movement toward sustainability is coming from every aspect of government, and it''s aimed at getting this country, its people and environment, healthier. Perhaps we're not at the point at which health and heath care can be addressed in the same package. But we must foster an environmentally clean, safe, and healthy way of living, or even the best of health care plans won''t matter. Jonathan A. Schein is President and CEO of ScheinMedia, a diversified media company who's holdings include New York House Magazine, New Jersey & Company and FlierWire.com. He offers insights into the philosophy and business of green in his weekly newsletter. Subscribe here. More Green Building Scene Treating Ground Zero Workers Amounts to Simple Environmental Justice Most Hotel Guests Do Their Part To Be Green Congress Does Something Admirable (No, Really!) By Going Carbon Neutral Building Green Doesn''t Cost More Greens Bringing Back The Neighborhood: Green Building Scales Up