
Boston Doctors Can Now Prescribe You a Bike - RougeFemme
http://www.slate.com/blogs/moneybox/2014/04/09/prescribe_a_bike_boston_medical_center_has_a_new_prescription_to_fight_obesity.html
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qeorge
In Greensboro, NC, Greensboro Housing Coalition is a non-profit that wants
everyone to have safe housing, regardless of income levels. A common problem
with low-income housing is cockroaches, bad insulation, and other conditions
which lead to a much higher rate of asthma in children who grow up in such
homes.

They are putting together a study to test whether improving the condition of
these home would reduce the incidence of asthma in affected children (and the
costs associated with the resulting frequent hospital visits) so much as to be
a more cost effective use of Medicaid funds.

If the study finds that this is the case, and their experience suggests that
will, the end goal is to enable doctors to prescribe home inspections and
improvements, and for those actions to be paid for by medicaid/insurance. It
would be a clear win/win: healthier children and lower costs across the board.

If this interests you, please consider a donation to
[http://greensborohousingcoalition.com](http://greensborohousingcoalition.com)
. They are an excellent organization that will make efficient use of your
donation.

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dmm
The US is so afraid of socialism it has to medicalize every social problem so
that it can be helped. That really does sounds like a good program and this is
not a criticism, just an observation.

[http://thelastpsychiatrist.com/2010/11/the_terrible_awful_tr...](http://thelastpsychiatrist.com/2010/11/the_terrible_awful_truth_about_1.html)

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qwerta
Ireland has cycle-to-work scheme. It deduces price of bike from your income
tax, practically it means you pay 40% less for a bike. Ireland is probably the
worst possible country for cycling (rain, wind, narrow roads with walls on
side) but it seems to work.

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mahyarm
You just need to make the bike clothing/armor tax deductible too!

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qwerta
Already is, I forgot to write bike AND equipment. The limit is about 1000 euro
every 6 months.

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herge
Did it start off as 1000€ every 2 years when the law first came into effect?

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qwerta
I am not sure about 6 months, I guess it could be 2 years instead.

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cpncrunch
Seems like a good idea to get unfit people onto bikes. However I don't see why
Hubway should cost $85 a year. I recently bought a decent second-hand mountain
bike for $50 (before that I bought one for $25 that lasted 7 years).

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streptomycin
I can't speak for Hubway, but most municipal bike programs I've seen have
bikes built like tanks, which must cost more than $50. I assume this is to
minimize the maintenance costs that must be inherent in a system where the
bike users have nearly no incentive to take care of the bikes. And, of course,
you still have maintenance costs even for these tank-bikes.

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hubway
Hubway bikes have often been described like that, as "tanks." They are 42 lbs
each, designed like that on purpose to be stable & steady street bikes for
riders of different skill levels. They do, indeed, cost more than $50, but a
lot of that is the technology involved with the docking/rental system, moreso
than to minimize maintenance. Alta Bicycle Share, the system that operates
Hubway for the metro-Boston region, employees a full team of mechanics and
field staff to do regular maintenance, including a full service during the
winter months, on the entire fleet of 1300+ bikes.

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ldarcyftw
What about winters? I'm under impression it can get quite rough in Boston
(possibly to the point that health risks will outweight the benefits).

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cauterize
The Hubway stations are removed before winter.

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mpapi
They kept the Cambridge ones open this year, though, and it seemed like they
were still regularly used.

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letrerrr
How about prescribing nutrient rich food?

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Shivetya
One thing at a time. I like this idea because it encourages activity, not just
exercise but just being out. With all the various aid programs we have
institutionalized poverty.

For far too many we have nearly found the least cost to society to idle a
large portion of it. To give them just enough to exist, just enough to not
want to resort taking from others, but too much so that they don't have a need
or desire to live. Its a drug.

Here, watch some tv, enjoy that boxed dinner in your microwave, we will even
help you with a place to stay. All you have to is stay out of sight, be quiet
and it will all be okay

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brianstorms
Now, if we can only get doctors to prescribe stopping at stop signs.

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scoofy
Now, if we can only get doctors to prescribe not speeding. #replacebikewithcar

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eloisant
I hope pollution levels are low in Boston because making a physical effort
while breathing polluted air (= in a city with a lot of cars at rush hours) is
not the best for your health.

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jrockway
Heart disease kills many more Americans than pollution. Even after factoring
in the additional pollution exposure and traffic accident risk, cycling is
still a net win:

[http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2920084/](http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2920084/)

(And, of course, the more people cycling, the more drivers look out for
cyclists. And there are less cars!)

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Brakenshire
Interesting study. Just as a slight criticism of your wording, although I
don't think this applies to the study- a lot of deaths from heart disease are
actually caused by air pollution. Inhalation of particulate matter is
implicated in tens of thousands of deaths a year.

Even though exercise outweighs inhalation of fumes, air pollution is a serious
issue, and many lives could be saved by its reduction. Hopefully that will be
an extra benefit of electric and hybrid cars in cities.

