Hospital operator Catholic Health Initiatives, which has struggled after rapid expansion and a foray into health insurance, is in merger talks with Dignity Health to create one of the nation's largest nonprofit hospital systems by revenue.
Reported by Denver Post 2 hours ago.
Catholic Health Initiatives, Dignity Health in merger talks
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The 10 most important things in the world right now
Hello! Here's what you need to know on Tuesday.*1. The US said that Obamacare health-insurance premiums will go up by 25% in 2017.* This, the White House argues in a new report, is because prices are slowly getting in line with costs.
*2. The US has again found itself in the middle of a fast-escalating conflict between two of its most important partners in the fight against ISIS.* The dispute between Turkey and Iraq has forced the US into a delicate balancing act.
*3. Twitter is reportedly planning a big round of layoffs that could affect up to 8% of its staff, or 300 people.* The layoffs come as the money-losing social networking company continues to struggle to grow its audience and its business.
*4. At least three people have been killed on a ride at Australia's biggest theme park.* The incident took place at Dreamworld, on the Gold Coast tourist district in Queensland state.
*5. Colombia's communist FARC rebels said they were "close" to agreeing on new terms to rescue a peace accord.* The force has resumed talks with the government to seek a new deal taking into account the demands of the "No" camp that rejected the accord in a referendum.
*6. The United Nations is struggling to raise $200 million to help the families of victims of a deadly outbreak of cholera in Haiti.* The financial aid follows the UN's admission that it had a moral responsibility to help Haiti deal with the epidemic that has been blamed on UN peacekeepers.
*7. The looming failure of free trade talks with the European Union would derail Canada's push to reduce its dependence on the US,* and potentially complicate negotiations with other nations, such as India and China.
*8. The US Navy destroyer that sailed near Chinese-claimed islands in South China Sea last week was under orders from the Third Fleet headquarters in San Diego, California,* a first aimed at bolstering US maritime power in the region.
*9. "Pokémon Go" has fallen down the App Store charts since it peaked in popularity,* and its developer, Niantic, is still doing little to stop the bleeding.
*10. One of the most popular fruit crops in the world could be decimated by disease.* The familiar bright yellow Cavendish banana is ubiquitous in supermarkets and fruit bowls, but it is in imminent danger.
*And finally ...*
*The new "SNL""Black Jeopardy!" is the best sketch on the show in years.*
Join the conversation about this story »
NOW WATCH: Bass Pro Shops is buying its rival Cabela’s for $5.5 billion Reported by Business Insider 22 hours ago.
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ODH Director of Medical Strategy Candace Saldarini, M.D. to Speak at AHIP’s National Conference on Medicaid on Why Population Health Management Needs Behavioral Health
Dr. Saldarini will present on the role of behavioral health in the overall health of population health management.
Washington, D.C. (PRWEB) October 25, 2016
WHAT:
America’s Health Insurance Plans (AHIP) is a national trade association representing the health insurance community. Its members provide health and supplemental benefits through employer-sponsored coverage, the individual insurance market and public programs such as Medicare and Medicaid. Its 2016 National Conferences on Medicare, Medicaid and Duals aims to equip managed care professionals with firsthand knowledge of what is working now and what’s next in these three industries.
Candace Saldarini, M.D., Director of Medical Strategy for ODH, Inc., a leading provider of behavioral health technology solutions and services, will discuss the role of behavioral health in population health management and present how Mentrics, ODH’s leading-edge behavioral population health management solution, can advance innovative patient care management and provider network management.
WHEN & WHERE:
AHIP’s National Conferences on Medicare, Medicaid and Duals – Medicaid Conference
Thursday, October 27, 2016, 8:00 – 8:45 a.m. EDT
JW Marriott, 1331 Pennsylvania Ave, NW, Washington, DC 20004
More information: https://www.ahip.org/events/mcmcduals/
WHO:
Candace T. Saldarini, M.D., is the Director for Medical Strategy for ODH, Inc., a provider of data analytics solutions for the behavioral health field. In this role, she provides content expertise for its flagship product Mentrics, the leading edge comprehensive population health management platform designed to transform the management of behavioral healthcare systems. With more than 15 years of experience in clinical and managed behavioral healthcare, Dr. Saldarini has a proven track record as a direct care provider and as a system manager responsible for clinical and quality management.
About ODH, Inc.
ODH, Inc. is an innovative behavioral health technology and services solution company that leverages technology and clinical expertise to transform the delivery and economics of behavioral healthcare. ODH’s team of experts have decades of experience in the behavioral health, medical, clinical, pharmacy, business and data analytics and information technology fields, and is uniquely qualified to support the transformation of the management of behavioral healthcare. ODH is a subsidiary of Otsuka America, Inc. and part of the Otsuka Group of companies, an $11.9 billion global organization. Otsuka aspires to create new products for better health worldwide. ODH is a proud member of The White House’s Data-Driven Justice Initiative. For additional information on ODH, Inc., visit http://www.ODHSolutions.com and follow on Twitter @ODHInc. Reported by PRWeb 17 hours ago.
Washington, D.C. (PRWEB) October 25, 2016
WHAT:
America’s Health Insurance Plans (AHIP) is a national trade association representing the health insurance community. Its members provide health and supplemental benefits through employer-sponsored coverage, the individual insurance market and public programs such as Medicare and Medicaid. Its 2016 National Conferences on Medicare, Medicaid and Duals aims to equip managed care professionals with firsthand knowledge of what is working now and what’s next in these three industries.
Candace Saldarini, M.D., Director of Medical Strategy for ODH, Inc., a leading provider of behavioral health technology solutions and services, will discuss the role of behavioral health in population health management and present how Mentrics, ODH’s leading-edge behavioral population health management solution, can advance innovative patient care management and provider network management.
WHEN & WHERE:
AHIP’s National Conferences on Medicare, Medicaid and Duals – Medicaid Conference
Thursday, October 27, 2016, 8:00 – 8:45 a.m. EDT
JW Marriott, 1331 Pennsylvania Ave, NW, Washington, DC 20004
More information: https://www.ahip.org/events/mcmcduals/
WHO:
Candace T. Saldarini, M.D., is the Director for Medical Strategy for ODH, Inc., a provider of data analytics solutions for the behavioral health field. In this role, she provides content expertise for its flagship product Mentrics, the leading edge comprehensive population health management platform designed to transform the management of behavioral healthcare systems. With more than 15 years of experience in clinical and managed behavioral healthcare, Dr. Saldarini has a proven track record as a direct care provider and as a system manager responsible for clinical and quality management.
About ODH, Inc.
ODH, Inc. is an innovative behavioral health technology and services solution company that leverages technology and clinical expertise to transform the delivery and economics of behavioral healthcare. ODH’s team of experts have decades of experience in the behavioral health, medical, clinical, pharmacy, business and data analytics and information technology fields, and is uniquely qualified to support the transformation of the management of behavioral healthcare. ODH is a subsidiary of Otsuka America, Inc. and part of the Otsuka Group of companies, an $11.9 billion global organization. Otsuka aspires to create new products for better health worldwide. ODH is a proud member of The White House’s Data-Driven Justice Initiative. For additional information on ODH, Inc., visit http://www.ODHSolutions.com and follow on Twitter @ODHInc. Reported by PRWeb 17 hours ago.
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BBVA's $150M fintech fund is backing a startup offering a 'cafeteria-style menu' for health insurance
Propel Ventures has led a $14.1 million investment into US "InsurTech" startup Hixme.Propel, the $150 million fintech venture capital company set up by Spanish bank BBVA, is set to announce the investment at Money2020 in Las Vegas on Tuesday.
It's Propel's second investment into an "InsurTech" company — the name given to companies trying to bring technology to insurance in much the same way as FinTech has tried to with finance. It's first was Hippo, which does home insurance.
Jay Reinemann, managing partner at Proper Ventures, says: "Insurance has been one of the latest hot areas, it's been that way for at least a year.
"There's a tremendous amount of investment going on at the moment in everything you can think of. We've got one in our portfolio called Hippo that does home insurance but we've seen everything. Pet insurance, baggage insurance, home warranty, life, auto."
Propel was spun out of Spanish bank BBVA in February of this year, with a remit to invest in next-generation finance companies. The VC firm's sole backer is BBVA and its $150 million of funding makes it one of the biggest fintech-focused funds in the world. (You can read BI's interview with BBVA CEO Carlos Torres Vila on the bank's digital strategy here.)
Reinemann says health insurance is one of the biggest areas that could benefit from investment because it's "a major problem for a lot of people in the US" and "for employers it's a very large cost of doing their business and the cost of that is going up dramatically every year."
Hixme, set up in 2013 according to founder Dan Peate's LinkedIn page, helps employers in the US offer more personalised health insurance to staff. Reinemann says: "What they're doing is sort of a cafeteria style menu with the 5,000 health care options on there.
"They try to match someone to the best record possible, versus what most American employers do which is take two or three generic plans and offer them to all employees regardless of individual needs.
"Because they have to accommodate such a broad range of people and conditions often the pricing is expensive because the health insurance providers have to plan in the risk of some very unhealthy people. The healthy person, you're unfortunately paying for your colleague who doesn't have the same health as you do."
He adds: "By you picking a plan more tailored to you, you often times find that it's more affordable at the same time. You're paying for your own risk and you're not paying for the risk of all the others."
The investment takes the total raised by Hixme to $24.6 million, according to Crunchbase. Existing investors Kleiner, Perkins, Caufield and Byers (KPCB) also took part in the "Series B" funding round, as did Transamerica Ventures and Rosemark Capital.
Reinemann says: "Hixme is a really interesting and really complicated business — it's not your usual Silicon Valley, venture capital-backed company."
Join the conversation about this story »
NOW WATCH: Wells Fargo's CEO is giving up $41 million over the phony accounts scandal Reported by Business Insider 18 hours ago.
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Obama Hits The Trail For Hillary Clinton -- And To Cement His Legacy For Generations
President Barack Obama is campaigning for Hillary Clinton so fervently these days you might think he is on the ballot, too.
That’s because he is.
No, Obama can’t stay in office past Jan. 20. But the difference between electing Clinton and Donald Trump isn’t simply about new policies the candidates would advocate. For the president and his longtime aides ― many of whom have been impassioned Clinton advocates in this election cycle ― it’s also about making sure Obama’s legacy, and progressivism as a whole, is firmly ingrained in American society.
“We know how important and impactful having the White House is, and Clinton winning would cement many of President Obama’s biggest accomplishments,” said Dan Pfeiffer, Obama’s longtime communications hand. “Winning three elections in a row can shift the tectonic plates of the political debate towards the left. Just look at how Reagan and his philosophy came to dominate politics for decades. That doesn’t happen if [Michael] Dukakis wins in ‘88.”
Obama has made this clear on the stump ― like he did the other day in Cleveland, when he talked about some of his accomplishments and warned supporters that “all that progress goes out the window if we don’t make the right choice, right now.”
His aides say the same thing. And, in conversations with The Huffington Post, they make explicit a point that Obama often implies: That adding four more years of a Democratic presidency to Obama’s eight years in office would fundamentally change public expectations about what government can or should do, while setting in motion legal and regulatory changes that successors would find almost impossible to undo.
“What it does is, at the end of her term or two terms ― even if it is one term ― you can’t have the gutting of that legacy,” said Bill Daley, Obama’s former chief of staff. “I don’t know if this election is the exclamation point, because there are going to be changes. But whatever changes she makes will be more productive. Whereas, I think there has been a very strong sense that if the Republicans got the presidency back right after his term, you could undo a lot.”
From workplace standards to environmental regulations, many of Obama’s accomplishments have taken firm root. But they’d become seemingly unshakeable after four more years.
Here are some of those advances spotlighted in conversations with both Obama and Clinton aides and advisers.Health Care
The Affordable Care Act remains a work in progress, with rising premiums and the withdraw of insurers causing serious problems in some parts of the country. But more than 20 million people now get insurance through the Obamacare exchanges. And many millions more have come to expect that the law’s consumer protections ― like guaranteed coverage for pre-existing conditions ― are how health insurance is supposed to work.
The 2016 election probably represents the last shot Republicans have to completely repeal the law and replace it with something different. (And even that’s a long shot.) After Obama, Republicans still might be able to make modifications, maybe even substantially, by reducing funding and relaxing regulations on insurance.
But it’s difficult to imagine the GOP ripping out the wiring of Obamacare altogether, given the disruption it would cause. And that goes double for the law’s “payment reforms” ― that is, changes in the way Medicare pays for care, in order to hold down costs and improve quality.
Climate
Obama failed at his one, highly visible attempt at passing climate legislation ― an effort to create a cap-and-trade system to reduce carbon emissions. Nevertheless, he used wide-ranging authority under the Clean Air Act to limit production of greenhouse gases. Early in his presidency, he issued new regulations requiring the auto industry to produce vehicles that get better mileage and emit less pollution. More recently, he issued rules forcing utilities to reduce emissions from power plants ― a mandate that will force companies to dial back reliance on coal while increasing use of renewables.
The power plant rules would not survive long under a Trump presidency. Either he’d rescind them on his own, or Congress would pass a bill undoing them and Trump would sign it. A Clinton victory would leave the rules in place. And assuming they survive a court challenge, as seems likely, it’s only a matter of time before state officials and utility companies make plans to abide by the new standards ― at which point, there’s basically no turning back.
It worked out that way with the regulations on motor vehicles. They were controversial, but the industry adapted. Just this summer, federal regulators issued a report congratulating the auto industry, because companies were actually ahead of schedule on meeting new emissions goals.
Oh, and Trump as president would also probably try to pull out of the 2015 Paris climate agreement, the first worldwide deal to limit greenhouse gases. He’d also likely do the same with a bilateral agreement that Obama reached with China, setting emissions reductions for each country. Both agreements were pledges without the force of treaties, because Obama couldn’t get assent from the Republican-led Congress. Clinton has praised these deals and would stand by them. And, four years from now, it would be difficult for even a hostile U.S. president to pull out of them ― at least without severe diplomatic repercussions.
Workplace, Labor Regulations
This is another set of issues in which Obama, faced with an intractable Congress, acted alone. In his second term, he issued regulations to provide higher pay and benefits to federal employees (giving them paid sick days) and contractors who provide services to the federal government (also giving them paid sick days, plus a higher minimum wage).
But one key change affected people who aren’t part of the workforce. Obama issued a regulation changing the rules for overtime pay, so that anybody making less than $47,476 a year is eligible for overtime ― even if he or she is a salaried, rather than hourly, employee. Previously, the threshold was $23,600.
That regulation takes effect in December, which means it will be brand new in January, when the next president takes over. A hypothetical Trump administration could rescind it, weaken it, or fail to enforce it ― thereby making it vulnerable to erosion later on.
Clinton, by contrast, has pledged to enforce these kinds of rules. And once these workplace regulations have been in place for a few years, it’d be difficult, if not impossible, to rescind them. A high political cost comes with trying to take pay or benefits away from people used to getting them.
The same likely goes for rules that the Obama administration issued for the management of retirement savings accounts ― effectively forcing managers to put interests of clients ahead of their own profits. Like the overtime rules, they are new and controversial. Trump could easily rescind them. They could also fall victim to legal challenges. By contrast, Clinton would keep them in place and, in the process, make it unlikely a future president or Congress would rescind them, at least openly. The financial industry, after all, is already creating new products to abide by the rules.
Immigration
Although unable to win comprehensive immigration reform, the Obama administration issued a series of orders that set new priorities for immigration enforcement ― and, perhaps more importantly, gave a reprieve to certain categories of undocumented immigrants. In particular, Obama issued Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, which has meant temporary work permits and driver’s licenses ― and no active threat of deportation ― for hundreds of thousands of undocumented residents who arrived in the U.S. as children.
Stopping illegal immigration and deporting undocumented workers already in the U.S. have been the Trump campaign’s central promises. While Trump has sent mixed signals about his commitment to mass deportations, he seems likely to make at least some effort to take away the protections DACA recipients now have.
Clinton, on the other hand, has vowed to expand DACA. And while such efforts could face judicial scrutiny, just as Obama’s have, it’s safe to assume that her election would leave DACA participants able to work (and pay taxes) while remaining with families in the U.S. ― not just for the short term, but for the long term as well.
Foreign Policy
Though it seems unlikely that Clinton, given her history, will strictly adhere to the cautious realism that has defined the Obama years, there are critical policies that she would cement and that Trump would threaten. The thawing of the U.S. relationship with Cuba is almost certain to continue under a Clinton administration, as is the implementation of the Iran nuclear deal, which she helped initiate when she was at the State Department.
“The deal is fragile. I think lots of people would say that. And in some ways that is independent of intentions if you think the deal is good. But if you want to break it down, the deal would be in dire straights if Trump were to win,” said Joseph Cirincione, president of Ploughshares Fund, an anti-proliferation group and a big booster of the Iran pact. “Hillary has been quite clear, as have her advisers, several of whom helped negotiate the deal, that this is a good deal and in the United States’ national security interest.”For Clinton’s campaign, the argument that her election would serve as a solidifying point for the accomplishments of the Obama years is not without complications. There are elements of Obama’s agenda that remain unpopular. But a larger concern for aides is that she must make the affirmative case for her own candidacy, and not be seen solely as an agent of the status quo.
Still, in recent weeks, Clinton’s campaign has begun embracing the idea that Nov. 8 could be a rubicon-crossing moment for progressive governance. Her campaign recently put out an ad, narrated by Morgan Freeman, that made the pitch that her election would be an act of political continuity with Obama.
“What does showing up when it’s time to vote actually mean? You care about protecting his legacy and our progress,” Freeman says.
In addition, the Clinton campaign has been sending out brochures in to African American communities making the case that Trump’s modus operandi is to undo the past eight years. All this would have seemed unthinkable just two years ago, when Senate Democrats were petrified to appear alongside Obama, let alone tout his (and their) agenda. But as the president’s popularity has risen, that calculus has changed. And as Election Day approaches, the party is now openly embracing the concept that four more years of White House control can fully immunize the last eight years of achievement.
“Hillary Clinton is running for her first term, not anyone else’s third term,” her spokesman, Brian Fallon, said in a statement. “But there is no question that as president, she would seek to build on all the progress we have made under President Obama.”
Dave Jamieson and Elise Foley contributed reporting.
-- This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website. Reported by Huffington Post 17 hours ago.
That’s because he is.
No, Obama can’t stay in office past Jan. 20. But the difference between electing Clinton and Donald Trump isn’t simply about new policies the candidates would advocate. For the president and his longtime aides ― many of whom have been impassioned Clinton advocates in this election cycle ― it’s also about making sure Obama’s legacy, and progressivism as a whole, is firmly ingrained in American society.
“We know how important and impactful having the White House is, and Clinton winning would cement many of President Obama’s biggest accomplishments,” said Dan Pfeiffer, Obama’s longtime communications hand. “Winning three elections in a row can shift the tectonic plates of the political debate towards the left. Just look at how Reagan and his philosophy came to dominate politics for decades. That doesn’t happen if [Michael] Dukakis wins in ‘88.”
Obama has made this clear on the stump ― like he did the other day in Cleveland, when he talked about some of his accomplishments and warned supporters that “all that progress goes out the window if we don’t make the right choice, right now.”
His aides say the same thing. And, in conversations with The Huffington Post, they make explicit a point that Obama often implies: That adding four more years of a Democratic presidency to Obama’s eight years in office would fundamentally change public expectations about what government can or should do, while setting in motion legal and regulatory changes that successors would find almost impossible to undo.
“What it does is, at the end of her term or two terms ― even if it is one term ― you can’t have the gutting of that legacy,” said Bill Daley, Obama’s former chief of staff. “I don’t know if this election is the exclamation point, because there are going to be changes. But whatever changes she makes will be more productive. Whereas, I think there has been a very strong sense that if the Republicans got the presidency back right after his term, you could undo a lot.”
From workplace standards to environmental regulations, many of Obama’s accomplishments have taken firm root. But they’d become seemingly unshakeable after four more years.
Here are some of those advances spotlighted in conversations with both Obama and Clinton aides and advisers.Health Care
The Affordable Care Act remains a work in progress, with rising premiums and the withdraw of insurers causing serious problems in some parts of the country. But more than 20 million people now get insurance through the Obamacare exchanges. And many millions more have come to expect that the law’s consumer protections ― like guaranteed coverage for pre-existing conditions ― are how health insurance is supposed to work.
The 2016 election probably represents the last shot Republicans have to completely repeal the law and replace it with something different. (And even that’s a long shot.) After Obama, Republicans still might be able to make modifications, maybe even substantially, by reducing funding and relaxing regulations on insurance.
But it’s difficult to imagine the GOP ripping out the wiring of Obamacare altogether, given the disruption it would cause. And that goes double for the law’s “payment reforms” ― that is, changes in the way Medicare pays for care, in order to hold down costs and improve quality.
Climate
Obama failed at his one, highly visible attempt at passing climate legislation ― an effort to create a cap-and-trade system to reduce carbon emissions. Nevertheless, he used wide-ranging authority under the Clean Air Act to limit production of greenhouse gases. Early in his presidency, he issued new regulations requiring the auto industry to produce vehicles that get better mileage and emit less pollution. More recently, he issued rules forcing utilities to reduce emissions from power plants ― a mandate that will force companies to dial back reliance on coal while increasing use of renewables.
The power plant rules would not survive long under a Trump presidency. Either he’d rescind them on his own, or Congress would pass a bill undoing them and Trump would sign it. A Clinton victory would leave the rules in place. And assuming they survive a court challenge, as seems likely, it’s only a matter of time before state officials and utility companies make plans to abide by the new standards ― at which point, there’s basically no turning back.
It worked out that way with the regulations on motor vehicles. They were controversial, but the industry adapted. Just this summer, federal regulators issued a report congratulating the auto industry, because companies were actually ahead of schedule on meeting new emissions goals.
Oh, and Trump as president would also probably try to pull out of the 2015 Paris climate agreement, the first worldwide deal to limit greenhouse gases. He’d also likely do the same with a bilateral agreement that Obama reached with China, setting emissions reductions for each country. Both agreements were pledges without the force of treaties, because Obama couldn’t get assent from the Republican-led Congress. Clinton has praised these deals and would stand by them. And, four years from now, it would be difficult for even a hostile U.S. president to pull out of them ― at least without severe diplomatic repercussions.
Workplace, Labor Regulations
This is another set of issues in which Obama, faced with an intractable Congress, acted alone. In his second term, he issued regulations to provide higher pay and benefits to federal employees (giving them paid sick days) and contractors who provide services to the federal government (also giving them paid sick days, plus a higher minimum wage).
But one key change affected people who aren’t part of the workforce. Obama issued a regulation changing the rules for overtime pay, so that anybody making less than $47,476 a year is eligible for overtime ― even if he or she is a salaried, rather than hourly, employee. Previously, the threshold was $23,600.
That regulation takes effect in December, which means it will be brand new in January, when the next president takes over. A hypothetical Trump administration could rescind it, weaken it, or fail to enforce it ― thereby making it vulnerable to erosion later on.
Clinton, by contrast, has pledged to enforce these kinds of rules. And once these workplace regulations have been in place for a few years, it’d be difficult, if not impossible, to rescind them. A high political cost comes with trying to take pay or benefits away from people used to getting them.
The same likely goes for rules that the Obama administration issued for the management of retirement savings accounts ― effectively forcing managers to put interests of clients ahead of their own profits. Like the overtime rules, they are new and controversial. Trump could easily rescind them. They could also fall victim to legal challenges. By contrast, Clinton would keep them in place and, in the process, make it unlikely a future president or Congress would rescind them, at least openly. The financial industry, after all, is already creating new products to abide by the rules.
Immigration
Although unable to win comprehensive immigration reform, the Obama administration issued a series of orders that set new priorities for immigration enforcement ― and, perhaps more importantly, gave a reprieve to certain categories of undocumented immigrants. In particular, Obama issued Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, which has meant temporary work permits and driver’s licenses ― and no active threat of deportation ― for hundreds of thousands of undocumented residents who arrived in the U.S. as children.
Stopping illegal immigration and deporting undocumented workers already in the U.S. have been the Trump campaign’s central promises. While Trump has sent mixed signals about his commitment to mass deportations, he seems likely to make at least some effort to take away the protections DACA recipients now have.
Clinton, on the other hand, has vowed to expand DACA. And while such efforts could face judicial scrutiny, just as Obama’s have, it’s safe to assume that her election would leave DACA participants able to work (and pay taxes) while remaining with families in the U.S. ― not just for the short term, but for the long term as well.
Foreign Policy
Though it seems unlikely that Clinton, given her history, will strictly adhere to the cautious realism that has defined the Obama years, there are critical policies that she would cement and that Trump would threaten. The thawing of the U.S. relationship with Cuba is almost certain to continue under a Clinton administration, as is the implementation of the Iran nuclear deal, which she helped initiate when she was at the State Department.
“The deal is fragile. I think lots of people would say that. And in some ways that is independent of intentions if you think the deal is good. But if you want to break it down, the deal would be in dire straights if Trump were to win,” said Joseph Cirincione, president of Ploughshares Fund, an anti-proliferation group and a big booster of the Iran pact. “Hillary has been quite clear, as have her advisers, several of whom helped negotiate the deal, that this is a good deal and in the United States’ national security interest.”For Clinton’s campaign, the argument that her election would serve as a solidifying point for the accomplishments of the Obama years is not without complications. There are elements of Obama’s agenda that remain unpopular. But a larger concern for aides is that she must make the affirmative case for her own candidacy, and not be seen solely as an agent of the status quo.
Still, in recent weeks, Clinton’s campaign has begun embracing the idea that Nov. 8 could be a rubicon-crossing moment for progressive governance. Her campaign recently put out an ad, narrated by Morgan Freeman, that made the pitch that her election would be an act of political continuity with Obama.
“What does showing up when it’s time to vote actually mean? You care about protecting his legacy and our progress,” Freeman says.
In addition, the Clinton campaign has been sending out brochures in to African American communities making the case that Trump’s modus operandi is to undo the past eight years. All this would have seemed unthinkable just two years ago, when Senate Democrats were petrified to appear alongside Obama, let alone tout his (and their) agenda. But as the president’s popularity has risen, that calculus has changed. And as Election Day approaches, the party is now openly embracing the concept that four more years of White House control can fully immunize the last eight years of achievement.
“Hillary Clinton is running for her first term, not anyone else’s third term,” her spokesman, Brian Fallon, said in a statement. “But there is no question that as president, she would seek to build on all the progress we have made under President Obama.”
Dave Jamieson and Elise Foley contributed reporting.
-- This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website. Reported by Huffington Post 17 hours ago.
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Donald Trump Serves Up Piping Hot Nonsense On Obamacare
WASHINGTON ― You would think that Obamacare had enough real problems that Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump would be able to stick to discussing them when taking a swing at the health care law. But you’d be wrong.
During a campaign event promotion for his hotels at the Trump National Doral Miami resort Tuesday, the GOP nominee seized on the news that health insurance premiums on the Affordable Care Act’s exchange marketplaces are going up by a lot for some people next year.
But naturally, instead of just using this information to criticize the law and propose something better (or “something terrific,” as he’s fond of saying), Trump opted to go a little nuts.
Politico reporter Eli Stokols was on the scene in Florida. (Read his dispatch here.) Let’s start with this:
Trump says news of 25% Obamacare rate spike is "phony number...going to be more like 80-90%."
— Eli Stokols (@EliStokols) October 25, 2016
Like with seemingly everything else, Trump appears incapable of just accepting the facts.
Here they are: The Department of Health and Human Services announced Monday that the premiums for “benchmark” plans on the exchanges ― those used to set the size of subsidies that most exchange customers receive ― would rise an average of 25 percent next year in the 39 states that use the federal exchange system on HealthCare.gov.
That’s a lot! And while that average obscures even higher average increases in some states ― including those on the order of what Trump claims here ― that doesn’t make 25 percent “phony.” It’s how averages work.
And let’s recall that Trump has claimed more than once that President Barack Obama would somehow hide these numbers and postpone the three-month insurance enrollment period that begins Nov. 1 to help Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton win.
If I ran a crooked system and rigged election, I'd blackmail insurers into hiding their ACA price hikes until November 9. But that's me.
— Dave Weigel (@daveweigel) October 25, 2016
And then there’s this, which comes close to making no sense:
Classic Trump, claiming his employees are "having tremendous problems" with Obamacare AND claiming credit for providing them w/ healthcare.
— Eli Stokols (@EliStokols) October 25, 2016
Trump, in fact, claimed “all” the people who work for him are having these “tremendous problems,” per Reid J. Epstein of the Wall Street Journal.
Trump: "All of my employees are having a tremendous problem with Obamacare."
— Reid J. Epstein (@reidepstein) October 25, 2016
But wait! Let’s break this down. The Trump Organization, like virtually all large employers in the U.S., provides health benefits to its full-time employees, so there’s no way “all” the people who work there are having “problems” with Obamacare.
Job-based health insurance isn’t “Obamacare.” While that term is used interchangeably with the Affordable Care Act, the rate increases in question only affect people who use the exchanges, not people who have health coverage from a job or a government program like Medicare or Medicaid. In fact, premiums for employer health insurance are rising much more slowly.
And apparently, the Trump Organization offers quality health insurance! Good for the Trump Organization! This is how one leading expert in workplace benefits described it to Salon earlier this year:
The Trump Hotel’s insurance is pretty good, according to Paul Fronstin, director of the Health Research and Education Program at the Employee Benefit Research Institute. He reviewed a copy of the Trump International Hotel Las Vegas health benefits guide that the union provided to Salon.
“The premiums are below average,” says Fronstin. “Some might consider this a Cadillac plan.”
Trump knows what he said was false, too. Or maybe he just doesn’t actually understand what Obamacare is?
Responding to Q shouted by reporter about whether his employees are on Obamacare, Trump said, "Some of them, but most of them no." https://t.co/MZKRb28BR0
— Eli Stokols (@EliStokols) October 25, 2016
The guy who runs the Miami resort where Trump appeared Tuesday knows this is false, too.
Doral GM David Fedder says 95% of employees get healthcare, so very few on Obamacare.
— Eli Stokols (@EliStokols) October 25, 2016
(Stokols subsequently tweeted that the man’s last name is spelled “Feder.”)
Later, on Fox News, Trump said ― well, he said something. Via Sopan Deb at CBS News:
Trump on Fox: "I don't use much ObamaCare, I must be honest with you, because it is so bad for the people and they can't afford it." pic.twitter.com/BQXAq1vsai
— Sopan Deb (@SopanDeb) October 25, 2016
This is gobbledygook.
Large businesses like the Trump Organization don’t “use” Obamacare. Businesses buy health insurance for large numbers of people from commercial insurance carriers (or businesses contract with those providers to administer benefits but pay workers’ medical bills with company money).
Even though it’s true, as Trump said, that some people who can’t get insurance from a job ― like the part-time workers at his company ― can’t afford policies from an exchange or directly from an insurer, this statement still contradicts his assertion that “all” his employees are having “tremendous problems” with Obamacare.
But what about those employees who aren’t on the company plan, which likely includes only people who work part-time and aren’t offered those benefits? Those who have health coverage at all might be using the exchanges (or they might have Medicaid or be covered by a family member’s insurance or something else).
Are those employees having “tremendous problems”? Possibly. People who earn too much for subsidies on the exchanges have no protection from the rate hikes next year.
But those subsidies are available to people who earn up to four times the federal poverty level, which comes to about $47,000 a year for a single person. The average annual earnings for a maid working full time are less than half of that, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
But let’s just assume, for the sake of argument, that there are Trump Organization employees who are being hit hard by the Obamacare rate increases. Believing Donald J. Trump has any idea about that would require believing that he knows or cares about the personal problems his low-wage workers are experiencing, which, come on.
Editor’s note: Donald Trump regularly incites political violence and is a serial liar, rampant xenophobe, racist, misogynist and birther who has repeatedly pledged to ban all Muslims — 1.6 billion members of an entire religion — from entering the U.S.
-- This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website. Reported by Huffington Post 12 hours ago.
During a campaign event promotion for his hotels at the Trump National Doral Miami resort Tuesday, the GOP nominee seized on the news that health insurance premiums on the Affordable Care Act’s exchange marketplaces are going up by a lot for some people next year.
But naturally, instead of just using this information to criticize the law and propose something better (or “something terrific,” as he’s fond of saying), Trump opted to go a little nuts.
Politico reporter Eli Stokols was on the scene in Florida. (Read his dispatch here.) Let’s start with this:
Trump says news of 25% Obamacare rate spike is "phony number...going to be more like 80-90%."
— Eli Stokols (@EliStokols) October 25, 2016
Like with seemingly everything else, Trump appears incapable of just accepting the facts.
Here they are: The Department of Health and Human Services announced Monday that the premiums for “benchmark” plans on the exchanges ― those used to set the size of subsidies that most exchange customers receive ― would rise an average of 25 percent next year in the 39 states that use the federal exchange system on HealthCare.gov.
That’s a lot! And while that average obscures even higher average increases in some states ― including those on the order of what Trump claims here ― that doesn’t make 25 percent “phony.” It’s how averages work.
And let’s recall that Trump has claimed more than once that President Barack Obama would somehow hide these numbers and postpone the three-month insurance enrollment period that begins Nov. 1 to help Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton win.
If I ran a crooked system and rigged election, I'd blackmail insurers into hiding their ACA price hikes until November 9. But that's me.
— Dave Weigel (@daveweigel) October 25, 2016
And then there’s this, which comes close to making no sense:
Classic Trump, claiming his employees are "having tremendous problems" with Obamacare AND claiming credit for providing them w/ healthcare.
— Eli Stokols (@EliStokols) October 25, 2016
Trump, in fact, claimed “all” the people who work for him are having these “tremendous problems,” per Reid J. Epstein of the Wall Street Journal.
Trump: "All of my employees are having a tremendous problem with Obamacare."
— Reid J. Epstein (@reidepstein) October 25, 2016
But wait! Let’s break this down. The Trump Organization, like virtually all large employers in the U.S., provides health benefits to its full-time employees, so there’s no way “all” the people who work there are having “problems” with Obamacare.
Job-based health insurance isn’t “Obamacare.” While that term is used interchangeably with the Affordable Care Act, the rate increases in question only affect people who use the exchanges, not people who have health coverage from a job or a government program like Medicare or Medicaid. In fact, premiums for employer health insurance are rising much more slowly.
And apparently, the Trump Organization offers quality health insurance! Good for the Trump Organization! This is how one leading expert in workplace benefits described it to Salon earlier this year:
The Trump Hotel’s insurance is pretty good, according to Paul Fronstin, director of the Health Research and Education Program at the Employee Benefit Research Institute. He reviewed a copy of the Trump International Hotel Las Vegas health benefits guide that the union provided to Salon.
“The premiums are below average,” says Fronstin. “Some might consider this a Cadillac plan.”
Trump knows what he said was false, too. Or maybe he just doesn’t actually understand what Obamacare is?
Responding to Q shouted by reporter about whether his employees are on Obamacare, Trump said, "Some of them, but most of them no." https://t.co/MZKRb28BR0
— Eli Stokols (@EliStokols) October 25, 2016
The guy who runs the Miami resort where Trump appeared Tuesday knows this is false, too.
Doral GM David Fedder says 95% of employees get healthcare, so very few on Obamacare.
— Eli Stokols (@EliStokols) October 25, 2016
(Stokols subsequently tweeted that the man’s last name is spelled “Feder.”)
Later, on Fox News, Trump said ― well, he said something. Via Sopan Deb at CBS News:
Trump on Fox: "I don't use much ObamaCare, I must be honest with you, because it is so bad for the people and they can't afford it." pic.twitter.com/BQXAq1vsai
— Sopan Deb (@SopanDeb) October 25, 2016
This is gobbledygook.
Large businesses like the Trump Organization don’t “use” Obamacare. Businesses buy health insurance for large numbers of people from commercial insurance carriers (or businesses contract with those providers to administer benefits but pay workers’ medical bills with company money).
Even though it’s true, as Trump said, that some people who can’t get insurance from a job ― like the part-time workers at his company ― can’t afford policies from an exchange or directly from an insurer, this statement still contradicts his assertion that “all” his employees are having “tremendous problems” with Obamacare.
But what about those employees who aren’t on the company plan, which likely includes only people who work part-time and aren’t offered those benefits? Those who have health coverage at all might be using the exchanges (or they might have Medicaid or be covered by a family member’s insurance or something else).
Are those employees having “tremendous problems”? Possibly. People who earn too much for subsidies on the exchanges have no protection from the rate hikes next year.
But those subsidies are available to people who earn up to four times the federal poverty level, which comes to about $47,000 a year for a single person. The average annual earnings for a maid working full time are less than half of that, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
But let’s just assume, for the sake of argument, that there are Trump Organization employees who are being hit hard by the Obamacare rate increases. Believing Donald J. Trump has any idea about that would require believing that he knows or cares about the personal problems his low-wage workers are experiencing, which, come on.
Editor’s note: Donald Trump regularly incites political violence and is a serial liar, rampant xenophobe, racist, misogynist and birther who has repeatedly pledged to ban all Muslims — 1.6 billion members of an entire religion — from entering the U.S.
-- This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website. Reported by Huffington Post 12 hours ago.
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Ex-Ted Cruz campaign manager: It’s a ‘glorious day’ because Obamacare premiums are going up
Jeff Roe, the former presidential campaign manager for Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX), said that it was a “glorious day” after the news broke that Americans would be paying more for their health insurance. On Monday, the Obama administration announced that premiums for health insurance purchased u...
Reported by Raw Story 12 hours ago.
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Trump Fumbles Obamacare Attack at Florida Rally
Donald Trump slammed Obamacare over his employees' struggles with healthcare, but mucked up his message by suggesting he doesn't provide them with health insurance, Politico reports.
Reported by Newsmax 11 hours ago.
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What you need to know on Wall Street right now
Business Insider has launched Markets Insider, which combines the best of Business Insider with market data. You can follow the site on Twitter @MktsInsider, and on Facebook.*Welcome to Finance Insider, Business Insider's summary of the top stories of the past 24 hours.*
**To sign up, scroll to the bottom of this page and click "Get updates in your inbox," or click here.**
Wall Street trading desks need a new fitness routine. They're bloated, and they need to get leaner as costs rise and revenues fall.
A senior Deutsche Bank exec in Hong Kong has been sentenced to prison over a fatal car crash. BBVA's $250 million fintech fund is backing a startup offering a "cafeteria-style menu" for health insurance. And Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena, the stricken Italian lender, will cut about 2,600 workers as part of accelerated plans to overhaul the bank.
AT&T’s CEO should think twice before going through with the Time Warner deal, according to Business Insider's Dan Bobkoff. Here's why Goldman Sachs missed out on the biggest deal of the year. And T-Mobile could be the next big takeover target.
Short-seller Andrew Left gave us his post-election play. Vancouver's housing bubble has popped and "the helium is coming out of the balloon," according to David Rosenberg. And the probability of a market crash is "as high as it's ever been," according to Jesse Felder.
Artificial intelligence programs are taking on stock market cheats. A hedge fund manager who retired at 36 says stay away from the industry. And here's what a Trump or Clinton victory means for the markets.
This is the worst mistake everybody makes when cooking steak, according to Anthony Bourdain.
And lastly, here are the 50 best movies of all time, according to critics on Metacritic.
*Here are the top Wall Street headlines at midday*
*Outrage over the price of the EpiPen may have actually led to more prescriptions for the device* - One side effect of all that fury over the price of the EpiPen: a jump in prescriptions for the drug.
*Venezuela's small win won't help it in the long run* - Venezuela's state oil company PDVSA announced on Monday the results of a bond swap, in which creditors holding $2.8 billion of debt agreed to swap their holdings for $3.4 billion of new bonds maturing in 2020.
*Caterpillar is keeping the global economy on watch - *Caterpillar lowered its outlook for profit this year when it reported third-quarter earnings results on Tuesday.
*The housing market is getting more frustrating* - Two sets of US housing market data were released on Tuesday, and both showed that prices are still on the rise.
*There's "something bad on the horizon," and the average investor should get out of the way* - The average Joe needs to get out of the markets, former hedge fund manager Raoul Pal says.
*There's a disturbing divide between Wall Street and the US auto industry - *General Motors reported earnings on Tuesday, and they beat analysts expectation by a solid margin.
*Sprint is sliding despite topping estimates and raising guidance* - Sprint reported earnings with a smaller than expected loss Tuesday after posting its first year-over-year revenue gain in two years.
*Tesla's big solar roof unveiling will happen on Friday* - Tesla has been hyping up its solar roof product for some time, and the official unveiling is finally near.
*Under Armour plunges after warning that future sales growth may stink - *Under Armour shares sank by as much as 14% in early trading on Tuesday after the company beat third-quarter profit expectations but warned about future sales growth.
*SEE ALSO: 22 maps that explain America*
Join the conversation about this story » Reported by Business Insider 9 hours ago.
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Q&A: New sign-up season; new woes for Obama health law
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama is leaving the White House in a few months, but the troubles of his signature health care law continue to make headlines. With premiums rising by double digits and many consumers scrambling to replace coverage because their insurer bailed out, the 2017 sign-up season that starts Nov. 1 looks challenging. Obama says it's just "growing pains" but critics see the threat of market collapse, a death spiral. The 2010 health care law aimed to create a single market in each state for health insurance purchased by individuals. [...] consumers who bypass the public insurance exchanges and buy individual policies from an insurer are not insulated from premium increases. The administration estimates that 6.9 million people currently buy coverage outside the marketplaces, and of those, nearly two-thirds would not be eligible for subsidies if they looked within the exchanges. Switching to lower your premiums may mean having to accept higher out-of-pocket costs, or a different network of doctors, or a new list of preferred medications. While there's strong evidence that competition among insurers helps to keep premiums in check, it's not clear that insurers bailing out is the main reason driving double-digit price increases in many areas. Administration officials say you should experience a smoother website that makes it easier to compare plans on features that consumers care about, such as which doctors participate. The so-called "cost sharing reductions" are keyed to a consumer's income and are available for people making up to 250 percent of the federal poverty level, which is about $50,400 for a family of three. If you're unfamiliar with health insurance jargon, seek help from an enrollment counselor in your community.
Reported by SeattlePI.com 9 hours ago.
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Donald Trump Has Irrevocably Changed How We Will Grade Our Presidential Candidates
Close your eyes for a second and go back to October 2012. Mitt Romney, engaged in a pitched fight to unseat President Barack Obama, is campaigning hard as the election closes, drawing major crowds and inspiring Republican visions of a White House takeover.
Now imagine, as Romney campaigns, that a story breaks detailing how his onetime company, Bain Capital, took $17 million in insurance money for business damages that it very likely had not incurred. It would be a scandal. Romney’s ethics would be questioned. The campaign would come to a halt for a bit.
OK, ignore the insurance fraud. Let’s say as Romney was campaigning down the stretch, a story broke that his super PAC, Restore Our Future, was caught discussing how to secretly funnel illegal donations from a Chinese source into its coffers. Watchdog groups would be in an uproar. Obama’s campaign would pounce and Romney would be forced to condemn the group immediately, lest he seem like he was benefiting from foreign money.
Let’s say that neither the Chinese donations nor the insurance fraud happened in our re-imagining of the 2012 election. Instead, an article was published in the closing days of the race saying Romney had held parties with underaged girls and cocaine. OK. That’s impossible to imagine. Let’s say the article reported that he’d openly discussed trying to pick up John Travolta’s wife, Kelly Preston, just days after the couple’s 16-year-old son had died. You’re right ― again, impossible to imagine.
How about this: An article came out showing that Romney had used his campaign funds to purchase his own book, No Apology, and then turn around and sell that book at a massively hiked-up price to the very donors who were giving to him in the first place. That could have happened in this altered rendering of 2012. And if it had, Romney would have been viewed as callous, at a minimum, and deceitful at worst.
Of course, none of it happened to Romney. As you’ve likely concluded, each one of these stories has popped up about Donald Trump in just the last few days. And they all have had marginal impact at best; disappearing, as Warden Norten would say, “like a fart in the wind.”
That may be because they’ve been overshadowed by the broader controversies orbiting Trump’s campaign: the continued accusations of sexual assault and his routine skepticism about the election’s legitimacy. That may be because other items have sucked some oxygen from the room, such as the publication of the hacked emails of Hillary Clinton campaign chief John Podesta, or the expected sharp rise in premiums for health insurance plans sold on Obamacare exchanges.
But in the end, the practical impact is the same.
Trump is not Teflon. Cumulatively, these stories have caused damage. He is very likely going to lose the election, and by a margin far greater than Romney did. But he will have fundamentally moved the Overton Window for what qualifies as scandalous behavior for a presidential candidate.
That might bring some positives with it in the long run, such as helping wash away some of the puritan sensibilities and standards we have about how politicians should behave. But it will also launch a whole new genre of campaign rationalizations for bad behavior (Trump, remember, will end this campaign having never released his tax returns ― a first for a nominee since the days of Nixon).
It will be a while, if ever, before a candidate like Trump runs for president again. But future candidates for president will get graded against Trump. And that will make actual “gaffes,” like the variety that Romney committed ― “binders full of women” comes to mind ― look positively quaint in comparison.
Editor’s note: Donald Trump regularly incites political violence and is a serial liar, rampant xenophobe, racist, misogynist and birther who has repeatedly pledged to ban all Muslims — 1.6 billion members of an entire religion — from entering the U.S.
-- This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website. Reported by Huffington Post 9 hours ago.
Now imagine, as Romney campaigns, that a story breaks detailing how his onetime company, Bain Capital, took $17 million in insurance money for business damages that it very likely had not incurred. It would be a scandal. Romney’s ethics would be questioned. The campaign would come to a halt for a bit.
OK, ignore the insurance fraud. Let’s say as Romney was campaigning down the stretch, a story broke that his super PAC, Restore Our Future, was caught discussing how to secretly funnel illegal donations from a Chinese source into its coffers. Watchdog groups would be in an uproar. Obama’s campaign would pounce and Romney would be forced to condemn the group immediately, lest he seem like he was benefiting from foreign money.
Let’s say that neither the Chinese donations nor the insurance fraud happened in our re-imagining of the 2012 election. Instead, an article was published in the closing days of the race saying Romney had held parties with underaged girls and cocaine. OK. That’s impossible to imagine. Let’s say the article reported that he’d openly discussed trying to pick up John Travolta’s wife, Kelly Preston, just days after the couple’s 16-year-old son had died. You’re right ― again, impossible to imagine.
How about this: An article came out showing that Romney had used his campaign funds to purchase his own book, No Apology, and then turn around and sell that book at a massively hiked-up price to the very donors who were giving to him in the first place. That could have happened in this altered rendering of 2012. And if it had, Romney would have been viewed as callous, at a minimum, and deceitful at worst.
Of course, none of it happened to Romney. As you’ve likely concluded, each one of these stories has popped up about Donald Trump in just the last few days. And they all have had marginal impact at best; disappearing, as Warden Norten would say, “like a fart in the wind.”
That may be because they’ve been overshadowed by the broader controversies orbiting Trump’s campaign: the continued accusations of sexual assault and his routine skepticism about the election’s legitimacy. That may be because other items have sucked some oxygen from the room, such as the publication of the hacked emails of Hillary Clinton campaign chief John Podesta, or the expected sharp rise in premiums for health insurance plans sold on Obamacare exchanges.
But in the end, the practical impact is the same.
Trump is not Teflon. Cumulatively, these stories have caused damage. He is very likely going to lose the election, and by a margin far greater than Romney did. But he will have fundamentally moved the Overton Window for what qualifies as scandalous behavior for a presidential candidate.
That might bring some positives with it in the long run, such as helping wash away some of the puritan sensibilities and standards we have about how politicians should behave. But it will also launch a whole new genre of campaign rationalizations for bad behavior (Trump, remember, will end this campaign having never released his tax returns ― a first for a nominee since the days of Nixon).
It will be a while, if ever, before a candidate like Trump runs for president again. But future candidates for president will get graded against Trump. And that will make actual “gaffes,” like the variety that Romney committed ― “binders full of women” comes to mind ― look positively quaint in comparison.
Editor’s note: Donald Trump regularly incites political violence and is a serial liar, rampant xenophobe, racist, misogynist and birther who has repeatedly pledged to ban all Muslims — 1.6 billion members of an entire religion — from entering the U.S.
-- This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website. Reported by Huffington Post 9 hours ago.
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Colorado health-insurance exchange introduces price-comparison tool to attract customers
With more than 72,000 Coloradans forced to look for new health-insurance plans in a year in which average premiums are rising by more than 20 percent, Connect for Health Colorado — the state's marketplace for individual and small group coverage — has introduced a new tool hoping to attract more customers its way as it continues to examine a sustainable path for its future. Exchange officials on Tuesday publicly rolled out the “Quick Cost and Plan Finder" tool ( access here), which went live…
Reported by bizjournals 9 hours ago.
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Dedicated to Advancing Lifestyle Medicine, Creo Wellness Joins as a Founding Member of the American College of Lifestyle Medicine’s Corporate Roundtable
Creo Wellness was announced today as the newest founding member of the American College of Lifestyle Medicine’s (ACLM) Corporate Roundtable. Advancing the cause of lifestyle medicine is a mission shared by both Creo and ACLM.
Naples, FL (PRWEB) October 25, 2016
The American College of Lifestyle Medicine (ACLM), the nation’s medical professional society for physicians, allied health professionals and healthcare executives dedicated to a lifestyle medicine-first approach to healthcare, today announced the addition of Creo Wellness as a Founding Member of the Lifestyle Medicine Corporate Roundtable (CRT).
“After leading a multi-billion dollar health system for more than 20 years, I have seen firsthand the tremendous impact that the promotion of healthy lifestyles can have on organizations and the people that comprise them,” said Peter J. Bernard, CEO & Co-Founder of Creo Wellness, former Chief Executive Officer of Bon Secours Virginia Health System, Inc. “We saw our health insurance costs drop by 4% in one year by implementing wellness initiatives that encouraged healthy living. Our employees and their families were happier and healthier. When companies like Creo collaborate with organizations like ACLM to further lifestyle medicine, everyone wins.”
It’s estimated that 80% or more of all healthcare spending in the U.S. is tied to the treatment of conditions rooted in poor lifestyle choices. The medical community, employers and government are all awakening to the fact that by educating, equipping and empowering individuals to prevent and fight disease through the power of their own lifestyle choices, the alarming rise in chronic disease trends and associated costs can be reversed.
With lifestyle improvements for wellness as the centerpiece, Creo empowers individuals to understand and change their own health risks with a personalized approach that improves health and reduces healthcare costs. Creo combines advanced biomarker blood testing with health risk and readiness for change assessments to formulate highly accurate risk stratification.
“We often talk about the fact that advancing lifestyle medicine as the foundation of a transformed and sustainable system will require awareness, education, certification, reimbursement, and effective educational tools and resources that clinicians, individually, can use, and that employee populations can implement,” said ACLM Executive Director Susan Benigas. “It’s inspiring to see companies like Creo helping to meet the need of these employee populations, being true to a lifestyle medicine-first approach.”
About Creo
Creo is a wellness change company that integrates the leading science and technology of health improvement into our partners’ wellness initiatives. With our advanced biomarker blood testing and precision analytics, population health plans are built on reliable data and accurate risk baselines. But personal engagement is key to lifestyle changes. So our platform creates personalized lifestyle plans—backed by interactive online profiles and live health coaching—for every participant. With machine learning and detailed reporting, employers can expect real health improvements with verifiable long-term ROI. Preventable diseases drive healthcare spending—see how we create change at http://www.creochange.com.
About the American College of Lifestyle Medicine
ACLM is the professional medical association for those dedicated to the advancement and clinical practice of Lifestyle Medicine as the foundation of a transformed and sustainable healthcare system. More than a professional association, ACLM is a galvanizing force for change. ACLM addresses the need for quality education and certification, supporting its members in their individual practices and in their collective desire to domestically and globally promote Lifestyle Medicine as the first treatment option, as opposed to a first option of treating symptoms and consequences with expensive, ever increasing quantities of pills and procedures. ACLM members are united in their desire to identify and eradicate the cause of disease. Join today at http://www.LifestyleMedicine.org. Reported by PRWeb 9 hours ago.
Naples, FL (PRWEB) October 25, 2016
The American College of Lifestyle Medicine (ACLM), the nation’s medical professional society for physicians, allied health professionals and healthcare executives dedicated to a lifestyle medicine-first approach to healthcare, today announced the addition of Creo Wellness as a Founding Member of the Lifestyle Medicine Corporate Roundtable (CRT).
“After leading a multi-billion dollar health system for more than 20 years, I have seen firsthand the tremendous impact that the promotion of healthy lifestyles can have on organizations and the people that comprise them,” said Peter J. Bernard, CEO & Co-Founder of Creo Wellness, former Chief Executive Officer of Bon Secours Virginia Health System, Inc. “We saw our health insurance costs drop by 4% in one year by implementing wellness initiatives that encouraged healthy living. Our employees and their families were happier and healthier. When companies like Creo collaborate with organizations like ACLM to further lifestyle medicine, everyone wins.”
It’s estimated that 80% or more of all healthcare spending in the U.S. is tied to the treatment of conditions rooted in poor lifestyle choices. The medical community, employers and government are all awakening to the fact that by educating, equipping and empowering individuals to prevent and fight disease through the power of their own lifestyle choices, the alarming rise in chronic disease trends and associated costs can be reversed.
With lifestyle improvements for wellness as the centerpiece, Creo empowers individuals to understand and change their own health risks with a personalized approach that improves health and reduces healthcare costs. Creo combines advanced biomarker blood testing with health risk and readiness for change assessments to formulate highly accurate risk stratification.
“We often talk about the fact that advancing lifestyle medicine as the foundation of a transformed and sustainable system will require awareness, education, certification, reimbursement, and effective educational tools and resources that clinicians, individually, can use, and that employee populations can implement,” said ACLM Executive Director Susan Benigas. “It’s inspiring to see companies like Creo helping to meet the need of these employee populations, being true to a lifestyle medicine-first approach.”
About Creo
Creo is a wellness change company that integrates the leading science and technology of health improvement into our partners’ wellness initiatives. With our advanced biomarker blood testing and precision analytics, population health plans are built on reliable data and accurate risk baselines. But personal engagement is key to lifestyle changes. So our platform creates personalized lifestyle plans—backed by interactive online profiles and live health coaching—for every participant. With machine learning and detailed reporting, employers can expect real health improvements with verifiable long-term ROI. Preventable diseases drive healthcare spending—see how we create change at http://www.creochange.com.
About the American College of Lifestyle Medicine
ACLM is the professional medical association for those dedicated to the advancement and clinical practice of Lifestyle Medicine as the foundation of a transformed and sustainable healthcare system. More than a professional association, ACLM is a galvanizing force for change. ACLM addresses the need for quality education and certification, supporting its members in their individual practices and in their collective desire to domestically and globally promote Lifestyle Medicine as the first treatment option, as opposed to a first option of treating symptoms and consequences with expensive, ever increasing quantities of pills and procedures. ACLM members are united in their desire to identify and eradicate the cause of disease. Join today at http://www.LifestyleMedicine.org. Reported by PRWeb 9 hours ago.
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Democratic Senate Candidate Evan Bayh Represents Everything Broken, Corrupt And Wrong With America
Submitted by Michael Kriger via Liberty Blitzkrieg blog,*Whether participating in glittery dinners with heads of state, or tête-à-têtes in the Oval Office, Andrew Liveris, the chief executive of Dow Chemical, has regularly visited the White House.*
*He served as co-chairman of President Obama’s Advanced Manufacturing Partnership. He stood beside the president onstage at events.*
*Many of these Washington appearances by Mr. Liveris — which have totaled more than two dozen since 2009 — were arranged with the help of Teneo, an advisory firm with close ties to the Democratic establishment. Dow is Teneo’s biggest and most lucrative account, paying millions of dollars a year in fees, according to a 2014 lawsuit filed against Dow and interviews with two Teneo employees.*
*Other prominent employees have included former President Bill Clinton and Huma Abedin, who, starting in 2012, briefly worked at Teneo while employed at the State Department under Secretary Hillary Clinton. At the same time, Ms. Abedin held a paid position at the Clinton Foundation, the family-founded charitable organization. Last year, Teneo declined to answer questions from the Senate Judiciary Committee regarding Ms. Abedin’s employment…*
*Heather Bresch, the chief executive of the pharmaceutical company Mylan, was given two salons by Teneo in 2011 — one in a New York City apartment and a second at a private home in Washington that attracted a mix of media, finance and political elite. Then, in 2012, a Teneo employee and Ms. Bresch met with President Obama’s senior adviser Valerie Jarrett at the White House, according to White House records.*
*This year Ms. Bresch was thrust into the spotlight after Mylan increased the price of its EpiPen, a lifesaving allergy treatment, sixfold. A Mylan spokeswoman, Nina Devlin, confirmed that the company had been a client of Teneo, saying the relationship ended in 2012. She declined to address specific questions about the dinners.*
*In Washington, Teneo salons — often home-cooked dinners that occasionally include homemade ice cream — are sometimes held in the home of Margaret Carlson, a columnist for Bloomberg View. Guests have included United States Senators Kirsten Gillibrand, Democrat of New York, and Joe Manchin, Democrat of West Virginia, according to several former Teneo employees.*
*In a statement, Teneo said the salon dinners were an “extremely small part” of its operations and that they were “information thought leadership events” that were typically attended by heads of leading think tanks and nonprofit organizations, public officials and members of the media, including journalists from The New York Times. An individual inside the firm also said that all appropriate disclosures to participants were made.*
– From the recent New York Times article: A Constellation of Influencers: Behind the Curtain at Teneo
If you haven’t read the recent New York Times article on “advisory firm” Teneo, you should really take the time. It adds yet another piece to the disturbing puzzle of how the “real axis of evil;” government, media and big business, collude behind closed doors to concentrate money and power in an increasingly small number of hands. *This is a very well oiled machine — sophisticated, unethical, organized and incredibly destructive.* It’s what really runs this country, and it doesn’t care in the least about the suffering and despair of the American people.
Of course, it takes two to tango. From the beginning of time, big money has always attempted to buy off legislators and others in positions of political power. What separates successful societies from failed states is the relative level of cronyism that the stewards of the public good are willing to tolerate and participate in. *In 2016 America, the level of corruption is at failed state/Banana Republic levels, and the citizenry is starting to figure it out.*
Many of you will know the name Evan Bayh. He’s the son of three-term Indiana Senator Birch Bayh, and went on to become Governor of Indiana from 1983-1997, and then Senator himself from 1999-2011. Upon leaving “public service,” he did what most of these government prostitutes do — *made millions and millions of dollars doing pretty much nothing.*
As a recent article from Politico reveals, the Bayh family had assets worth $2.1-$7.7 million in when he left the Senate in 2010, but it has since surged to a range of $13.8 million-$48 million. Making that kind of money isn’t easy for anyone, and it’s particularly suspicious in the hands of a man supposedly dedicated to the public good.
So how did the couple make all this money? Evan, for example, joined law lobbying firm McGuireWoods and became an advisor to private equity giant Apollo Global as upon leaving the Senate. Meanwhile, I can’t figure out for the life of me what his wife Susan does. She seems to be a* “professional board member”* for a variety of large companies.
Wikipedia notes the following about Susan:
*A newspaper in her state has described her as being engaged in a profession it termed “professional board member” or “professional director”.*
and
*An Indiana newspaper listed eight corporations of which Bayh was a director, as of 2006. Bayh began serving on corporate boards in 1994 and has since served on the boards of 14 corporations, including the insurance, pharmaceutical, and food processing industries.*
No, no conflict of interest there.
Meanwhile, a reference link on Susan’s Wikipedia page points to a 2007 article published at the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette titled, “Across the Boards.” Unfortunately, it leads to the following result:
It’s not just Wikipedia. A Talking Points Memo article from 2009 referenced that same broken link, so it was *clearly a meaningful article which seems to have disappeared from the internet.*
Nevertheless, here’s some of what we learn about Susan from thatTPM article:
Yesterday, Sen. Evan Bayh joined his colleague Joe Lieberman in suggesting that he may oppose health-care reform, citing concerns about the deficit. Bayh has long been one of the more conservative members of the Democratic caucus. But is his stance also affected by the fact that his wife has reportedly earned at least $2 million over the last six years as a member of the board of a major health insurer?
Susan Bayh’s affiliation with Indianapolis-based WellPoint isn’t news. But a new report on TheStreet digs into the details. It also finds that last year, Susan Bayh sat on four other corporate boards, in addition to WellPoint’s. She received over $656,0000 in cash and stock for all her board work, around half of which came from WellPoint.
*As the site puts it: “Susan Bayh’s corporate directorships provide a significant chunk of the Bayh family income.”*
It’s also worth noting that Susan Bayh was a mid-level attorney at Eli Lilly before joining WellPoint’s board in 1998, while her husband was governor. *That suggests that the company, at least, may have felt that her value lay more in the access she offered to Evan Bayh than in her own accomplishments.*
*Note: Since this post was published, I was able to find an archive of the 2007 article Across the Boards. Excerpt below, but you can read the entire thing here.
*WASHINGTON – Since leaving Indiana as a first lady, Susan Bayh has become a professional board member, earning more than $1 million a year in director fees for advice she gives to companies that make pharmaceuticals, operate radio stations, sell health insurance policies, offer online banking and distribute ingredients to fast-food restaurants.*
In the past four years, Bayh collected more than $1.7 million in pre-tax income when she exercised stock options from two of the corporations. Her actual income from exercising stock options is higher, but the details of one transaction were not publicly reported.
During the same time, her husband, Sen. Evan Bayh, D-Ind., cast more than 3,000 votes, including some on issues of keen interest to the pharmaceutical, broadcast, insurance, food-distribution and finance industries.
Bayh said his wife’s business interests never influence how he votes, the bills he introduces or the positions he takes.
*Last year, Susan Bayh served on the boards of six publicly traded and two privately held companies, putting her into a class described as “professional board member.”*
She was first appointed to a public board seat in June 1994 when she was named to the Emmis Broadcasting board.* Since then, she has been named to the boards of 14 businesses, primarily in the insurance or pharmaceutical industries.* As of last year, she sat on the governing bodies of eight companies: Indianapolis-based Emmis Broadcasting and WellPoint Inc., the second-largest U.S. health insurance company; four pharmaceutical companies: Curis Inc., Dyax Corp., Nastech Pharmaceuticals and Dendreon Corp.; and privately held Golden State Foods of California and E-Trade Bank of Virginia.
Bayh’s appointment to six publicly traded boards is at the extreme end of what the National Association of Boards of Directors considers reasonable. The organization recommends that a professional with a full-time job serve on no more than three boards and that a retired or unemployed person limit directorships to five.
Apparently, all this person does is sit on corporate boards while being married to a Governor and Senator. Yep, nothing dirty about that.
Unfortunately, this story of betraying the public trust isn’t over, as Mr. cronyism Evan Bayh is once again running for the U.S Senate. He was initially up by over 20 points due to name recognition, but the race is tightening. Politico reports:
The Bayh name, which goes back six decades in Indiana politics, is under barrage — and this critical Senate battleground state will turn on whether Republicans can drive down his numbers even further in the next two weeks to stage what would be one of the biggest upsets of 2016.
Bayh, who’s never lost a race in 30 years in politics, acknowledges that his initial eye-popping advantage over Young was based mostly on name recognition. But he says that in his previous competitive races, for secretary of state in 1986 and then governor in 1988, he won by only single digits. He dismisses any notion that he is losing appeal with Indiana voters, whom he last faced on the ballot in 2004.
His 20-plus point lead is down to 6 points, according to the two most recent independent polls of the race. Shortly before those surveys, Young’s campaign announced his internal polling had him up a single point. Multiple Democratic operatives say their own internal polling finds Bayh still leading outside the margin of error.
However close it is, Republicans say the momentum is with Young, a hard-charging former Marine Corps officer who jumps at any chance to contrast his own background with the scion of Indiana politics.
Young’s strategy has been clear all along: Turn Bayh’s last name, and the notion that he’s relying solely on it to win, into a liability. And couple that with the case that Bayh left Indiana to profit from public service after voting on controversial policies such as President Barack Obama’s signature health care law.
*Indeed, recently filed personal financial disclosure forms show Bayh has been compensated handsomely in his post-Senate life. He has banked nearly $6.3 million since January 2015 in salary, board compensation and speaking fees, according to those disclosures. Bayh and his wife, Susan, now report $13.9 million to $48 million in assets, compared with $2.1 and $7.7 million when Bayh left the Senate at the end of 2010.*
Bayh doesn’t talk at length when asked to respond to charges that he profited from his time in the Senate.
“I’ve been proud to work with some good Indiana businesses, like Berry Plastics right here in Evansville, largest employer in town, to grow that company, to create jobs,” Bayh said in the interview, referring to one company that paid him $400,000 since January 2015 to sit on its board. “I’m proud of that.”
Young and his allies have latched onto a recent Associated Press report that found Bayh had more than four dozen meetings and phone calls concerning his future employment prospects between the time he announced his retirement from the Senate in February 2010 and the end of his term in December of that year. The Indianapolis Star subsequently noted that the Bayh campaign initially said Bayh did not meet with officials from Apollo Global Management, the private equity firm that has employed him since January 2011 — though the AP story revealed otherwise.
Another damaging AP report last week found that Bayh spent $3,000 of taxpayer money for trips to New York that included meetings with top banking officials and one job headhunter. Bayh denied using public dollars for personal use. But the AP stood by its report, which came out the same day Young earned the endorsement of the Star, the state’s largest newspaper.
I know absolutely nothing about his opponent, but I know this.* Evan Bayh needs to lose this race.* Reported by Zero Hedge 8 hours ago.
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Anthem expected to confirm 1,000-job Midtown expansion Wednesday
Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal and Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed are expected to announce an economic development project Monday morning. That company is said to be Anthem Inc., which plans to open a technology center in Midtown that could create “several thousand” jobs over time. Atlanta Business Chronicle reported details of the potential expansion Oct. 3. Calls to Anthem were not returned Tuesday. The Indianapolis-based Fortune 500 health insurance firm plans to invest in multiple technology hubs…
Reported by bizjournals 8 hours ago.
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Heartland Institute Experts React to Obamacare Rate Hikes
The following statements about Obamacare rate hikes from health policy experts at The Heartland Institute – a free-market think tank – may be used for attribution.
(PRWEB) October 25, 2016
The Department of Health and Human Services this week announced insurance purchased under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), also known as Obamacare, will increase an average of 25 percent in 2017 across 39 states that use federal exchanges. Some states will see much bigger rate hikes, while others will see smaller increases.
Twenty percent of customers shopping in the federal exchanges will find only one insurance company to choose from. Only 2 percent of consumers had only one choice in 2016, but health insurance giants UnitedHealth, Humana, and Aetna have largely pulled out of Obamacare over the past 12 months. The next open enrollment for ACA begins November 1.
The following statements from health policy experts at The Heartland Institute – a free-market think tank – may be used for attribution. For more comments, refer to the contact information below. To book a Heartland guest on your program, please contact Director of Communications Jim Lakely at media(at)heartland(dot)org and 312/377-4000 or (cell) 312/731-9364.
”President Obama promised the Affordable Care Act would reduce health insurance costs for average families by $2,500 a year. But two years after Obamacare went into effect, health insurance premiums for average families even with job-based coverage have increased by $3,775 per year. Total costs for employer-provided coverage have increased by $17,000 per year since Obamacare passed in 2010, primarily due to taxes and regulations imposed by Obamacare. Studies show Obamacare has already increased health insurance costs for younger adults by 44 percent. Now comes news that next year costs will increase even faster.
”Obama says not to worry. Much of the added costs will be covered by taxpayers through tax credits. But more precisely, those costs will be covered by adding the costs to our $20 trillion national debt. That is still more of the long-term decline of America under Obama’s socialist economic policies. Don’t expect more jobs, rising wages, and increased economic growth until America is liberated from this economic oppression – which Democrat nominee Hillary Clinton promises to continue.
”None of this should be a surprise since every promise Obama made to win enactment of Obamacare has proven false.”
Peter Ferrara
Senior Fellow for Entitlement and Budget Policy
The Heartland Institute
pferrara(at)heartland(dot)org
703/582-8466
Mr. Ferrara is the author of Power to the People: The New Road to Freedom and Prosperity for the Poor, Seniors, and Those Most in Need of the World’s Best Health Care (2015), andThe Obamacare Disaster (2010).
”The new hikes in Affordable Care Act premiums are only the most recent failure of the beleaguered program. The Affordable Care Act has continually proven to be anything but affordable, costing Americans more than $1 trillion in new federal taxes over the next 10 years and increasing health care costs across the board.
”ACA architects argued that ensuring everyone had a health insurance plan would encourage patients to take advantage of preventative care and use their own doctors instead of the emergency room. The reality has been the opposite: The number of emergency room visits by low-income patients has increased since Obamacare went into effect, health care costs have skyrocketed, reimbursement rates have plummeted, and the quality of care provided has yet to improve.
”ACA has many problems demanding reform or full repeal. The fact that substantial subsidies are needed to prop up this imploding program is a problem, not a laudable benefit.”
Matthew Glans
Senior Policy Analyst
The Heartland Institute
mglans(at)heartland(dot)org
312/377-4000
”By announcing the health insurance premium hikes The Heartland Institute reported almost a week ago, the Department of Health and Human Services has once again confirmed the Affordable Care Act’s failure to empower patients and improve the country’s health care market. “Now HHS is papering over the law’s cracks, boasting increased subsidies for people facing average Obamacare premium increases of 25 percent nationwide. As mega insurers jump ship to cut their losses, the Obama administration throws good money after bad.
”The latest round of hikes confirms that unaccountable governments are skilled at manipulating people and markets but not at containing the explosive costs of their own central planning.”
Michael Hamilton
Managing Editor, Health Care News
Research Fellow
The Heartland Institute
mhamilton(at)heartland(dot)org
312/377-4000
The Heartland Institute is a 32-year-old national nonprofit organization headquartered in Arlington Heights, Illinois. Its mission is to discover, develop, and promote free-market solutions to social and economic problems. For more information, visit our Web site or call 312/377-4000. Reported by PRWeb 6 hours ago.
(PRWEB) October 25, 2016
The Department of Health and Human Services this week announced insurance purchased under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), also known as Obamacare, will increase an average of 25 percent in 2017 across 39 states that use federal exchanges. Some states will see much bigger rate hikes, while others will see smaller increases.
Twenty percent of customers shopping in the federal exchanges will find only one insurance company to choose from. Only 2 percent of consumers had only one choice in 2016, but health insurance giants UnitedHealth, Humana, and Aetna have largely pulled out of Obamacare over the past 12 months. The next open enrollment for ACA begins November 1.
The following statements from health policy experts at The Heartland Institute – a free-market think tank – may be used for attribution. For more comments, refer to the contact information below. To book a Heartland guest on your program, please contact Director of Communications Jim Lakely at media(at)heartland(dot)org and 312/377-4000 or (cell) 312/731-9364.
”President Obama promised the Affordable Care Act would reduce health insurance costs for average families by $2,500 a year. But two years after Obamacare went into effect, health insurance premiums for average families even with job-based coverage have increased by $3,775 per year. Total costs for employer-provided coverage have increased by $17,000 per year since Obamacare passed in 2010, primarily due to taxes and regulations imposed by Obamacare. Studies show Obamacare has already increased health insurance costs for younger adults by 44 percent. Now comes news that next year costs will increase even faster.
”Obama says not to worry. Much of the added costs will be covered by taxpayers through tax credits. But more precisely, those costs will be covered by adding the costs to our $20 trillion national debt. That is still more of the long-term decline of America under Obama’s socialist economic policies. Don’t expect more jobs, rising wages, and increased economic growth until America is liberated from this economic oppression – which Democrat nominee Hillary Clinton promises to continue.
”None of this should be a surprise since every promise Obama made to win enactment of Obamacare has proven false.”
Peter Ferrara
Senior Fellow for Entitlement and Budget Policy
The Heartland Institute
pferrara(at)heartland(dot)org
703/582-8466
Mr. Ferrara is the author of Power to the People: The New Road to Freedom and Prosperity for the Poor, Seniors, and Those Most in Need of the World’s Best Health Care (2015), andThe Obamacare Disaster (2010).
”The new hikes in Affordable Care Act premiums are only the most recent failure of the beleaguered program. The Affordable Care Act has continually proven to be anything but affordable, costing Americans more than $1 trillion in new federal taxes over the next 10 years and increasing health care costs across the board.
”ACA architects argued that ensuring everyone had a health insurance plan would encourage patients to take advantage of preventative care and use their own doctors instead of the emergency room. The reality has been the opposite: The number of emergency room visits by low-income patients has increased since Obamacare went into effect, health care costs have skyrocketed, reimbursement rates have plummeted, and the quality of care provided has yet to improve.
”ACA has many problems demanding reform or full repeal. The fact that substantial subsidies are needed to prop up this imploding program is a problem, not a laudable benefit.”
Matthew Glans
Senior Policy Analyst
The Heartland Institute
mglans(at)heartland(dot)org
312/377-4000
”By announcing the health insurance premium hikes The Heartland Institute reported almost a week ago, the Department of Health and Human Services has once again confirmed the Affordable Care Act’s failure to empower patients and improve the country’s health care market. “Now HHS is papering over the law’s cracks, boasting increased subsidies for people facing average Obamacare premium increases of 25 percent nationwide. As mega insurers jump ship to cut their losses, the Obama administration throws good money after bad.
”The latest round of hikes confirms that unaccountable governments are skilled at manipulating people and markets but not at containing the explosive costs of their own central planning.”
Michael Hamilton
Managing Editor, Health Care News
Research Fellow
The Heartland Institute
mhamilton(at)heartland(dot)org
312/377-4000
The Heartland Institute is a 32-year-old national nonprofit organization headquartered in Arlington Heights, Illinois. Its mission is to discover, develop, and promote free-market solutions to social and economic problems. For more information, visit our Web site or call 312/377-4000. Reported by PRWeb 6 hours ago.
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AIS Database Releases Full List of Plans, Premiums for State, Federal ACA Exchanges
Full, complete 2017 premium rates for insurers selling products on state and federal exchanges have been posted to Atlantic Information Services’ Health Insurance Exchange Database.
Washington, DC (PRWEB) October 25, 2016
Atlantic Information Services, Inc.’s (AIS) Health Insurance Exchange Database (PBX) — an easy-to-use, continually updated interactive website with details of all health plans operating on state and federal exchanges — has just uploaded the complete list of plans and premiums for federally facilitated exchanges (FFEs), federally supported state-based exchanges and nine state-based exchanges. The data, maintained by AIS’s in-house research team, is available in a format that mirrors CMS’s FFE file and thus can be seamlessly compared and integrated into users own interfaces.
In total, the PBX database now has 47,637 different premiums, allowing lookups and comparisons of offerings by 128 insurers in 48 states. Users can sort or filter Individual and Small Business Health Options Program (SHOP) exchange rates for individuals age 27 and 40 in all applicable rating areas. In addition to online access, subscribers can download the complete, downloadable PBX data set.
Premium rates are available in PBX for the following state-based exchanges: California, Colorado, Connecticut, Maryland, Minnesota, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington, D.C. AIS also previously added rates for Delaware, Kentucky, Nevada, New Mexico and Oregon, but updated these rates to reflect more current FFE filing data.
Want to know the average premium for individual Gold plans in California? Need to compare Anthem and UnitedHealthcare’s nationwide SHOP rates for a 40-year-old? AIS’s Health Insurance Exchange Database offers a convenient, user-friendly online search tool and downloadable spreadsheets to provide detailed premium rates data that can be easily ranked, averaged and sorted by rating area and age (where applicable), insurer, state, metal level and plan type. SHOP premiums are provided for all four quarters of the 2017 plan year. Data for every ACA plan offered throughout the U.S can be downloaded as Excel sheets or printed directly from the website.
For more information on Health Insurance Exchange Database, including access to a free demo version, visit https://aishealthdata.com/pbx.
About Atlantic Information Services
Atlantic Information Services, Inc. (AIS) is a publishing and information company that has been serving the health care industry for more than 25 years. It develops highly targeted news, data and strategic information for managers in hospitals, health plans, medical group practices, pharmaceutical companies and other health care organizations. AIS products include print and electronic newsletters, websites, looseleafs, books, strategic reports, databases, webinars and conferences. Learn more at http://AISHealth.com. Reported by PRWeb 5 hours ago.
Washington, DC (PRWEB) October 25, 2016
Atlantic Information Services, Inc.’s (AIS) Health Insurance Exchange Database (PBX) — an easy-to-use, continually updated interactive website with details of all health plans operating on state and federal exchanges — has just uploaded the complete list of plans and premiums for federally facilitated exchanges (FFEs), federally supported state-based exchanges and nine state-based exchanges. The data, maintained by AIS’s in-house research team, is available in a format that mirrors CMS’s FFE file and thus can be seamlessly compared and integrated into users own interfaces.
In total, the PBX database now has 47,637 different premiums, allowing lookups and comparisons of offerings by 128 insurers in 48 states. Users can sort or filter Individual and Small Business Health Options Program (SHOP) exchange rates for individuals age 27 and 40 in all applicable rating areas. In addition to online access, subscribers can download the complete, downloadable PBX data set.
Premium rates are available in PBX for the following state-based exchanges: California, Colorado, Connecticut, Maryland, Minnesota, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington, D.C. AIS also previously added rates for Delaware, Kentucky, Nevada, New Mexico and Oregon, but updated these rates to reflect more current FFE filing data.
Want to know the average premium for individual Gold plans in California? Need to compare Anthem and UnitedHealthcare’s nationwide SHOP rates for a 40-year-old? AIS’s Health Insurance Exchange Database offers a convenient, user-friendly online search tool and downloadable spreadsheets to provide detailed premium rates data that can be easily ranked, averaged and sorted by rating area and age (where applicable), insurer, state, metal level and plan type. SHOP premiums are provided for all four quarters of the 2017 plan year. Data for every ACA plan offered throughout the U.S can be downloaded as Excel sheets or printed directly from the website.
For more information on Health Insurance Exchange Database, including access to a free demo version, visit https://aishealthdata.com/pbx.
About Atlantic Information Services
Atlantic Information Services, Inc. (AIS) is a publishing and information company that has been serving the health care industry for more than 25 years. It develops highly targeted news, data and strategic information for managers in hospitals, health plans, medical group practices, pharmaceutical companies and other health care organizations. AIS products include print and electronic newsletters, websites, looseleafs, books, strategic reports, databases, webinars and conferences. Learn more at http://AISHealth.com. Reported by PRWeb 5 hours ago.
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Report: Lower health care costs taking up a larger share of family income
Employees are spending a larger percentage of their income on health insurance than they did before passage of the Affordable Care Act, according to a newly released report from The Commonwealth Fund. The study describes the development as a general increase in “the share of median family income necessary to cover premium costs and deductibles.” On average, the report says, that family share grew from 6.5 percent in 2006 to 10.1 percent last year. But in many cases, the trend doesn't draw from…
Reported by bizjournals 35 minutes ago.
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Employer health insurance cost increases slowing down, but not in Maryland
A new report found that health insurance premiums are rising more slowly for employer-sponsored plans, but not in Maryland. The report from the Commonwealth Fund analyzed national employer health insurance data between 2006 and 2015. About 154 million people nationwide get their health insurance through their employer, as opposed to 10 million who get insurance through the individual marketplace. In Maryland, about 20 percent of the population gets insurance through the individual marketplace. On…
Reported by bizjournals 35 minutes ago.
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Watch: Obama trolls Trump over 'mean tweet', reveals real reason behind no third term
President Barack Obama on Monday trolled Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump - known for his prolific use of Twitter to settle scores - making Trump the punch line for jokes on ABC's late-night show Jimmy Kimmel Live.
Obama read aloud a series of "mean tweets" culminating in one from Trump: "President Obama will go down as perhaps the worst president in the history of the United States!"
"At least I will go down as a president," Obama said.
Kimmel joked that Obama had to "take time away from helping rig the election" to appear on the show, a dig at Trump, who has repeatedly said the November 8 vote is rigged against him.
Obama picked up on the joke while describing how comedian Bill Murray beat him in a contest to putt golf balls into a glass in the Oval Office during a recent visit - a stunt the White House designed to promote Obamacare health insurance.
"He won repeatedly," Obama said. "The glass was rigged!"
Kimmel asked Obama, "Do you ever laugh" when watching Trump on television. "Most of the time," Obama said.
Obama also revealed he has been called on a special phone by his bed "three or four times" in the middle of the night during his time in office to deal with emergencies, including when the 2011 tsunami hit Japan.
But he said he does not reach for his smartphone in the wee hours - another dig at the Republican candidate. "I don't tweet at 3 am about people who insult me," Obama said.
Obama's second and final term ends on January 20. Under the US constitution, presidents are limited to two terms - which is just as well, Obama said. "If I were able to run for a third term, Michelle would divorce me," he said, noting his wife does not like politics.
Not all the jokes were at Trump's expense. Comedian Will Farrell channeled deceased but beloved Chicago Cubs sportscaster Harry Caray to recommend that Obama "open a shrimp shack" after he leaves office.
And Joel McHale feigned outrage when told he had been bumped from the show for Obama.
"You got the president, huh. Wow, that's a big deal - he's got two months left in the job," McHale said, oozing sarcasm. "That's a real good get there, Jimmy: Lame! Duck!" McHale said.
ReportEntertainmentReutersLos Angeles
· Barack Obama
· US Presidential Election 2016
· Donald Trump
· Hillary Clinton
· Jimmy Kimmel
· Jimmy Kimmel Live
· Bill Murray
· Chicago Cubs
· Harry Caray
· Will Ferrell
· Joel McHale
· Michelle Obama
· White House
· TV
Wed, 26 Oct 2016-10:08am
Date updated:
Wednesday, 26 October 2016 - 10:08am
Article Images:
Barack Obama reads mean tweet by Donald Trump
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From Print Edition: Reported by DNA 5 minutes ago.
Obama read aloud a series of "mean tweets" culminating in one from Trump: "President Obama will go down as perhaps the worst president in the history of the United States!"
"At least I will go down as a president," Obama said.
Kimmel joked that Obama had to "take time away from helping rig the election" to appear on the show, a dig at Trump, who has repeatedly said the November 8 vote is rigged against him.
Obama picked up on the joke while describing how comedian Bill Murray beat him in a contest to putt golf balls into a glass in the Oval Office during a recent visit - a stunt the White House designed to promote Obamacare health insurance.
"He won repeatedly," Obama said. "The glass was rigged!"
Kimmel asked Obama, "Do you ever laugh" when watching Trump on television. "Most of the time," Obama said.
Obama also revealed he has been called on a special phone by his bed "three or four times" in the middle of the night during his time in office to deal with emergencies, including when the 2011 tsunami hit Japan.
But he said he does not reach for his smartphone in the wee hours - another dig at the Republican candidate. "I don't tweet at 3 am about people who insult me," Obama said.
Obama's second and final term ends on January 20. Under the US constitution, presidents are limited to two terms - which is just as well, Obama said. "If I were able to run for a third term, Michelle would divorce me," he said, noting his wife does not like politics.
Not all the jokes were at Trump's expense. Comedian Will Farrell channeled deceased but beloved Chicago Cubs sportscaster Harry Caray to recommend that Obama "open a shrimp shack" after he leaves office.
And Joel McHale feigned outrage when told he had been bumped from the show for Obama.
"You got the president, huh. Wow, that's a big deal - he's got two months left in the job," McHale said, oozing sarcasm. "That's a real good get there, Jimmy: Lame! Duck!" McHale said.
ReportEntertainmentReutersLos Angeles
· Barack Obama
· US Presidential Election 2016
· Donald Trump
· Hillary Clinton
· Jimmy Kimmel
· Jimmy Kimmel Live
· Bill Murray
· Chicago Cubs
· Harry Caray
· Will Ferrell
· Joel McHale
· Michelle Obama
· White House
· TV
Wed, 26 Oct 2016-10:08am
Date updated:
Wednesday, 26 October 2016 - 10:08am
Article Images:
Barack Obama reads mean tweet by Donald Trump
YouTube
Short URL:
dnai.in/dD5D
Embargo:
Syndicate:
Hide lead image:
Page views:
12
From Print Edition: Reported by DNA 5 minutes ago.
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