• Repeal it.
• Immediately pass another massive health care reform package.
• Take up-or-down votes on individual improvements to the health care system.
• Meet with health care providers and patients to discuss different reforms they would like to see.
• Work to ensure health insurance coverage for Americans under the age of 26 or with preexisting conditions.
• Vote on legislation to allow individuals to buy health insurance across state lines.
• Consider proposals to advance common-sense liability protections.
• Look at plans to ensure seniors of today and those of tomorrow have access to Medicare.
• Advance policies that lower health care costs and improve its quality.
• Other.

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It is an honor to serve you in Washington, and I value your engagement and input.  Don't hesitate to contact me if I can answer questions or help you in any way.  I encourage you to visit my Facebook and Twitter pages for other ways to stay up to date with what I'm doing in Washington and in our neighborhood, or to share your thoughts.

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Sincerely,
Bobby Schilling
Member of Congress

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When Bill W. and Dr. Bob created Alcoholics Anonymous 77 years ago, they borrowed principles learned from a Christian fellowship called the Oxford Group to create their 12-step recovery program.

"They knew that their spiritual program was effective where other 'cures' had failed, and over the years, there have been many theories as to why," says Dr. Harry Haroutunian, physician director of the Betty Ford Center in Palm Springs, and collaborator with Dr. Louis Teresi on the book, Hijacking the Brain: How Drug and Alcohol Addiction Hijacks our Brains - The Science Behind Twelve-Step Recovery (www.HijackingTheBrain.com).

"Now we know that stress is the fuel that feeds addiction, and that stress and drug and alcohol use cause neurological and physiological changes," Haroutunian says. "The changes are primarily in the deep brain reward centers, the limbic brain, responsible for decisions, memory and emotion. These centers are 'hijacked' by substance abuse, so that the addicted person wants the booze or drug over anything else. "

As a scientist and physician applying the 12-step program to his own life, Teresi studied the physiological changes triggered by this seemingly non-scientific treatment.

"One response is that elements of 12-step programs reduce stress and increase feelings of comfort and reward through chemical changes in the brain and body. These changes allow for neuronogenesis - the birth of neurons in the brain," Teresi says.

"As substances of abuse affect the limbic brain, so do 12-step recovery practices."

Teresi says the 11th step in the program, which emphasizes spiritual practices such as prayer and meditation, works for the following reasons:

• Chilling out: Addiction is a cycle of bad habits. When something bad happens, an alcoholic drinks to feel better. When something good occurs, he drinks to celebrate. After years of this behavior, a person needs a way to step outside of himself to maintain sobriety. Regular prayer or meditation achieves that and becomes "that other habitual option" for responding to emotions, he says.

• "Mindfulness" meditation: While certain forms of prayer are effective, meditation may be a more direct way to achieve the kind of beneficial self-regulation that makes the 11th step so crucial, Teresi says. Mindfulness meditation incorporates active Focused Attention and the more passive Open Monitoring to raise a person's awareness of his impulses, leading to better self-control.

• The three-fold manner: A successful 11th step tends to have the following benefits: First, stress is relieved in both cognitive and emotional reactivity, as evidenced by reduced cortisol (stress hormone) levels and other biological indicators. Second, some forms of meditation are shown to stimulate the brain's reward centers, releasing dopamine - a mood elevator -- while improving attention and memory. Third, an increased sense of connectivity and empathy to others is achieved, satisfying our natural need for social connection and reducing stress.

Sobriety is not so much about not drinking or drugging, Teresi says.

"It's about developing an attitude and lifestyle that brings sufficient serenity and personal reward that drinking, or taking any mood-altering drug, is simply unnecessary."

About Dr. Teresi & Dr. Haroutunian

Louis Teresi earned his medical degree from Harvard, where he completed honors concentration courses in neuroscience. In more than 24 years of practice, Teresi has authored numerous peer-reviewed papers, winning 14 national and international awards for his research, and is a senior member of the American Society of Neuroradiology. He is a grateful recovering alcoholic.

Dr. Harry L. Haroutunian, known as "Dr. Harry," is an internationally known speaker on addiction who has created the "Recovery 101" lecture series. As physician director of the Betty Ford Center, Dr. Haroutunian has contributed to the development of a variety of programs. He is the author of the soon-to-be-published book "Staying Sober When Nothing Goes Right" and collaborated with Dr. Louis Teresi, author of "Hijacking the Brain: How Drug and Alcohol Addiction Hijacks our Brains - The Science Behind Twelve-Step Recovery."

As I'm sure you know by now, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act.

It was an exciting day for people with cancer, and those who care about them, because the decision protects policies that ensure they can access quality, affordable health care.

In Iowa, thanks to the health care law, already:

• More than 20,000 young people have gained coverage;

• Nearly two million residents with private insurance no longer have to worry about lifetime limits on their health coverage;

• 611,000 Iowans with private health insurance gained preventive service coverage with no cost-sharing.

And it just gets better in the years to come. By January 2014:

• Nearly one million people may benefit from a health care exchange, which provides individuals and small businesses with affordable, quality health plans;

• Insurance companies will no longer be able to discriminate against people who have been sick in the past, a benefit already extended to children.

One thing is for sure -- access to care saves lives. ACS research shows that people without health coverage are more likely than those with private insurance to be diagnosed with cancer at its more advanced stages and are less likely to survive the disease.  Now that the Supreme Court has ruled, it is time for all of our elected officials in Iowa to work together in a bipartisan effort to implement the health care law as strongly as possible for cancer patients, survivors and their families.