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Too Many People Have Health Insurance. Republicans Will Fix That.

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President Donald Trump and the Republicans who control Congress have a major problem to solve: The uninsured rate has never been lower.

The GOP hasn’t figured out how to tackle the crisis despite years of preparing for it, but new data illustrate just how bad the situation is. The national uninsured rate fell to 10.9 percent at the end of 2016, compared to 17.3 percent in 2013, according to polling data Gallup released Wednesday.

What happened during those years to bring about this catastrophe? President Barack Obama signed the Affordable Care Act into law in 2010, and then spent the next six years implementing its programs.

By doing so, Obama severely damaged America longstanding distinction among rich countries of having the smallest share of its population on health coverage. The main tools of his destruction were the law’s subsidization of private health insurance to low- and middle-income families and its expansion of the Medicaid program to include more adults living in near poverty. The Gallup survey demonstrates that the Medicaid expansion proved especially consequential, although thanks to Republican governors and state legislators in many states, only 31 states and the District of Columbia adopted this policy after the Supreme Court made it optional in 2012, which limited the carnage.

In states that expanded Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act, the uninsured rate fell by almost half, from 15.8 percent to 8.2 percent from 2013 ― the year before the law’s new coverage took effect ― to 2016. Trump and the congressional GOP face lesser challenges in the states that didn’t expand Medicaid, where the rate declined less than 30 percent, from 20.2 percent to 14.5 percent.

The predicament is most thorny in Kentucky, Arkansas, West Virginia, New Mexico, California and Oregon, where the percentage of the population that lacked health insurance went down by at least 10 points. All of those states expanded Medicaid, including Arkansas and New Mexico, where Republican policymakers helped make it happen.

By contrast, states that didn’t expand Medicaid, like Texas, Oklahoma and Georgia, can remain proud of having among the highest uninsured rates because the Republican leaders in those states foresaw this disaster and made sure to prevent it from fully engulfing their states. These states also typically had higher-than-average uninsured rates to begin with, Gallup found, so they persist as exemplars of the future the GOP envisions.And the new Gallup data can’t be dismissed as fake news, since surveys and studies conducted since 2014 by institutions like the Census and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show similar results.

National Republicans insist they won’t falter before this fearsome calamity.

Trump and congressional GOP stalwarts like House Speaker Paul Ryan (Wis.) and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.) are hard at work devising a solution to the Affordable Care Act’s depressive effect on the uninsured rate. They also possibly will replace the law with a new health care reform plan that would ensure the United States once again stands as a bastion of individual liberty from having your medical bills covered.

-- 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.

United States: Seventh Circuit Declines To Address The EEOC's Challenge To The Legality Of Employer's Wellness Plan - Seyfarth Shaw LLP

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After an employee lost his employer-funded health insurance because he failed to complete a medical examination required by his employer, the EEOC sued the employer under the ADA's ban on involuntary medical examinations. Reported by Mondaq 8 hours ago.

Ted Cruz Congratulated A Woman On Her Multiple Sclerosis On Live TV

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Ted Cruz Congratulated A Woman On Her Multiple Sclerosis On Live TV Ted Cruz, a former presidential candidate/literal puddle of sludge I miss laughing at every single day, took part in a CNN debate on the future of Obamacare last night with Bernie Sanders. The debate mostly served as an opportunity for me to lament that these two weren't ultimately the candidates in the general election—nobody talked about Rosie O'Donnell, for one thing, and I'm not sure anyone even uttered the word "emails." Of course, the debate also hammered home the fact that Cruz has no interest in helping anyone other than rich Americans to get health insurance, so there's that. He also managed to congratulate a woman on her multiple sclerosis, so there's also that. [ more › ] Reported by Gothamist 7 hours ago.

A powerful ad challenges Trump to act like a legitimate president. Here's the backstory.

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A message from an Afghanistan war veteran takes on the president directly.




*"President Trump. I hear you watch the morning shows," begins the latest TV spot from VoteVets, the self-described "largest progressive group of veterans in America."*

The ad, which debuted during Monday morning's episode of MSNBC's "Morning Joe" (a show Trump reportedly watches on a regular basis), features an Afghanistan war veteran who lost a leg in combat, addressing the president directly in a voice-over.

"President Trump. I hear you watch the morning shows. Here’s what I do every morning. Look, you lost the popular vote. You’re having trouble drawing a crowd. And your approval rating keeps sinking. But kicking thousands of my fellow veterans off their health insurance by killing the Affordable Care Act and banning Muslims won’t help. And that’s not the America I sacrificed for. You want to be a legitimate president, sir? Then act like one."

Just minutes after the ad aired, Trump tweeted, which the group suspects may have been in response to the ad.



Any negative polls are fake news, just like the CNN, ABC, NBC polls in the election. Sorry, people want border security and extreme vetting.

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 6, 2017


*Trump has talked a pretty big game when it comes to how he sees the military's role, but VoteVets has concerns about what exactly that means.*

"I will be so good at the military your head will spin," Trump said in a September 2015 interview. In one of his first acts as president, Trump signed an executive order calling for a "great rebuilding of the Armed Forces." While those actions and statements might sound good, there's not a whole lot of substance to them.

That's why VoteVets is trying to reach the president where they're most likely to be heard: on cable news.

"All we're really doing here is elevating the voice of one of our members who wants to speak directly to Trump, and obviously, we feel he's earned that right to do it," says VoteVets Chairman and Co-founder Jon Soltz. "So, we just wanted to do something that was direct, something that addressed him personally, something that would catch his attention that had substance to it about the Muslim ban and the Affordable Care Act."

Trump holds a Purple Heart replica that was given to him during a campaign event in August 2016. "I've always wanted to have a Purple Heart," Trump said. "This was much easier." Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images.

*While the ACA and the travel ban are receiving much attention lately, there are a number of other issues VoteVets and other veteran advocacy organizations are concerned about.*

Soltz cites possible privatization of the Department of Veterans Affairs as one of the larger concerns on the group's radar. While Trump has made some bold promises to "fix" the VA, it's not entirely clear what that will look like. Adding to the concern, Trump held a "listening session" for possible improvements to the VA that didn't include prominent veterans advocacy organizations.

Additionally, Soltz notes that Trump's federal hiring freeze will hurt veterans in a number of ways. There are more than 2,000 job openings at the short-staffed VA that, due to Trump's hiring freeze, will remain vacant. Additionally, 31% of all federal employees are veterans. For that reason, along with the fact that veterans are given hiring preference for federal jobs, the hiring freeze will disproportionately affect veterans in search of work.

Iraq War veteran and VoteVets Chairman Jon Soltz meets with then-Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid in 2007. Photo by Jonathan Ernst/Getty Images.

Not to mention the concerns some veterans and active members of the military may have over Trump's views on things like NATO and his general decision-making capabilities when it comes to issues of war.

*But why take out an ad? Why not just flood the White House comment line and use more traditional avenues of lobbying for policy change? *

Well ... with the White House comment line down, people and groups have been scrambling to find new ways to make their voices heard.

How do you get through to a president that doesn't listen to anyone outside his own circle of advisers, refuses to acknowledge any poll that shows disapproval of his performance or policies, calls any news not to his liking "fake news," and accuses anyone who protests of being nothing more than a paid plant?

VoteVets' strategy of targeting his favorite TV shows is an innovative approach, to say the least.

Image from VoteVets/YouTube.

It's an approach that brings with it another challenge, however: TV ads take time to make. That's why VoteVets deviated from the approach they've used in the past — veterans talking directly to the camera — and instead chose to rely on a voiceover message so the audio can be swapped out as needed to keep up with the quickly changing news cycle.

"We're interested in shooting this ad in a way that's simple, that does not look like a political ad — because it's not. It's a veteran's story," says Soltz, "but in a way that if we have to make his statements more pointed, we have the ability to do that quickly so it's still relevant to the news cycle."

As for why the veteran who stars in the ad isn't named, Soltz explains that there are concerns about the veteran's and his family's safety, as well as a belief that "less is more."

"If you really want to hit hard, you've got to say something," says Soltz. "We don't need to explain a lot for people to know this is a combat-wounded Afghanistan war veteran. We don't want to distract from the visual or the words."

To learn more about this ad, visit the VoteVets website.


Reported by Upworthy 6 hours ago.

Trump administration weighs health insurance ‘stabilization’

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WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration and congressional Republicans are looking at how to stabilize wobbly health insurance markets for nearly 20 million people buying their own policies. Government and industry officials say the goal is to soothe jittery insurance companies that could bolt next year and reassure consumers. That would buy time for more […] Reported by Seattle Times 4 hours ago.

30 incredible perks companies like IKEA, Facebook, and Goldman Sachs offer their employees

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30 incredible perks companies like IKEA, Facebook, and Goldman Sachs offer their employees Most of us spend a majority of our waking hours at work, so it's only natural that we want to enjoy our time in the office as much as we can. And perks help — a lot.

According to career site Glassdoor, more than half (57%) of all workers say perks and benefits are among the top things they consider when deciding whether to accept a job, and almost 80% of employees say they would prefer new benefits over a pay raise.

That's why some employers are raising the bar and going beyond standard vacation days and health insurance benefits to attract new talent.

Companies like Airbnb and Salesforce are offering unique and surprising perks like travel stipends and paid time off to volunteer, while companies like IKEA and Pinterest are stepping up their game for helping new parents.

"Benefits and perks matter because they're an added piece of the total compensation puzzle," says Scott Dobroski, Glassdoor's career trends analyst. "Job seekers should understand what benefits and perks an employer may be offering, and do their research ahead of time to find companies that offer benefits that matter most to them."

Head over to Glassdoor to see the full list of the "Top 20 Employee Benefits and Perks for 2017," and keep scrolling to see some of the employees' favorite perks — the one they rate at least 4.0 out of 5.0 on Glassdoor:

*SEE ALSO: The 25 best jobs in America right now*

*DON'T MISS: The 50 best places to work in 2017, according to employees*

-Free intern housing at Facebook-

Facebook offers interns free housing with tons of amenities like shuttle service to and from Facebook's Menlo Park campus, or a monthly housing stipend of $1,000.

*Overall benefits rating:* 4.7 / 5-Fitness classes at Reebok-

Employees at Reebok are encouraged to take advantage of the company's full on-site gym and CrossFit box throughout the workday.

*Overall benefits rating:* 4.1 / 5-Abundant perks for new parents at American Express-

American Express offers up to five months of fully-paid leave for both mothers and fathers. Birthing mothers can also receive an additional six to eight weeks for paid medical leave. In addition, parents have access to a 24-hour lactation consultant, and mothers traveling for business can ship their breast milk home for free. 

*Overall benefits rating:* 4.0 / 5
See the rest of the story at Business Insider Reported by Business Insider 4 hours ago.

Trump administration weighs health insurance 'stabilization'

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WASHINGTON (AP) — Worried about the nearly 20 million people who buy their own health insurance policies, the Trump administration and congressional Republicans are weighing how to stabilize a wobbly market, government and industry officials say. The goal is to soothe jittery insurance companies that may bolt next year, while reassuring consumers anxious about the future. Trump administration officials would not comment ahead of an expected Senate vote on confirming Georgia Rep. Tom Price as the new health secretary. [...] a Republican congressional aide familiar with the internal discussions said the regulatory changes that the administration is considering include: Insurers have complained that some people take advantage of such opportunities to get coverage when they need care and later drop out, raising costs for everyone else. A White House regulatory website lists a health insurance market stabilization rule as "pending review." Along with the administration, congressional Republicans would have a role to play in stabilizing the markets, by stepping back from several previous efforts to block "Obamacare" financing. Democrats are putting Republicans on notice that they'll be blamed if people lose coverage or benefits such as protection from being denied insurance because of a medical problem. Reported by SeattlePI.com 4 hours ago.

Business Highlights

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WASHINGTON (AP) — A push by a group of Republican statesmen for a tax on carbon to help combat the effects of climate change is already meeting entrenched opposition from their own party. Former Secretary of State Jim Baker went to the White House on Wednesday in an effort to gain Trump administration support for the plan, which would place a new tax on oil, natural gas and coal and then use the proceeds to provide quarterly dividends to American taxpayers. WASHINGTON (AP) — Andrew Puzder says he would avoid conflicts of interest as President Donald Trump's secretary of labor by resigning as executive of a fast food empire, selling off his holdings and recusing himself from government decisions in which he knows he has a financial interest. NEW YORK (AP) — Utilities, real estate and other high-dividend-paying companies lead U.S. stocks mostly higher, pushing the Nasdaq composite to an all-time high for the second day in a row. The gains in stocks that pay big dividends came as bond yields fell, making those traditional safe-haven companies more attractive to investors seeking income. WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration and congressional Republicans are looking at how to stabilize wobbly health insurance markets for nearly 20 million people buying their own policies. Government and industry officials say the goal is to soothe jittery insurance companies that could bolt next year and reassure consumers. In other energy futures trading, wholesale gasoline rose 7 cents, or 4.4 percent, to $1.55 a gallon, while heating oil added 1 cent to $1.64 a gallon. Reported by SeattlePI.com 3 hours ago.

HUFFPOST HILL - Days Since The President Made Us Think About Genitals: [0][0][1]

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*Like what you read below? **Sign up for HUFFPOST HILL** and get a cheeky dose of political news every evening! *

Today we finalized what animated character will star in our “Schoolhouse Rock” remake: Donny the Fascist, Loofa-Faced Shit-Gibbon. Everyone is making a fuss about the lack of senatorial decorum, but we’re pretty sure Mitch McConnell just made a huge contribution to Elizabeth Warren’s presidential campaign ― what a great guy. And Ted Cruz congratulated a woman on her suffering, making it Cruz’s third-most embarrassing moment, right behind him eating that booger on live TV and the time he publicly campaigned for a man who maligned his family. This is HUFFPOST HILL for Wednesday, February 8th, 2017:  

*GORSICH CRITICIZES TRUMP’S ATTACKS ON THE JUDICIARY *-That Gorsuch’s handlers confirmed the remarks suggest this is exactly how they wanted this to play out. Now moderate Dems have cover to vote for Gorsuch and Gorsuch can say he thought the conversation was private. Everyone gets something. Even Richard Blumenthal can make an omelet with the egg on his face. Abby Phillip and Robert Barnes: “President Trump’s escalating attacks on the judicial branch drew denunciation Wednesday from his Supreme Court nominee, Neil Gorsuch, who told lawmakers that the attacks were ‘demoralizing’ and ‘disheartening’ to the independence of the federal courts. *‘He certainly expressed to me that he is disheartened by the demoralizing and abhorrent comments made by President Trump about the judiciary,’ Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D- Conn.) *told reporters after meeting privately with Gorsuch. Gorsuch’s comments to Blumenthal were confirmed by Ron Bonjean, a member of the judge’s ‘sherpa’ team, a group of aides tasked with helping him navigate the confirmation process.” [WaPo]

*GOOD LORD, STEVE BANNON IS INSANE - *Shout out to all of our homies in the fifth column. Steve is coming for us. Paul Blumenthal and J.M. Rieger: “In 2009, the historian David Kaiser, then a professor at the Naval War College in Newport, Rhode Island, got a call from a guy named Steve Bannon. Bannon wanted to interview Kaiser for a documentary he was making based on the work of the generational theorists William Strauss and Neil Howe…. Bannon pressed Kaiser on one point during the interview. ‘He was talking about the wars of the Fourth Turnings,’ Kaiser recalled. ‘You have the American Revolution, you have the Civil War, you have World War II; they’re getting bigger and bigger. Clearly, he was anticipating that in this Fourth Turning there would be one at least as big. And he really made an effort, I remember, to get me to say that on the air.’ … *‘This is the fourth great crisis in American history,’ Bannon told an audience at the Liberty Restoration Foundation, a conservative nonprofit, in 2011…. The ‘Judeo-Christian West is collapsing,’ *he went on. ‘It’s imploding. And it’s imploding on our watch. And the blowback of that is going to be tremendous.’” [HuffPost]

*WHITE HOUSE STAFFERS STARTING TO WORRY ABOUT THE BOSS *- Rantings about precious bodily fluids to follow? S.V. Date and Christina Wilkie: “President Donald Trump was confused about the dollar: Was it a strong one that’s good for the economy? Or a weak one? So he made a call ― except not to any of the business leaders…. Instead, he called his national security adviser, retired Lt. Gen. Mike Flynn, according to two sources familiar with Flynn’s accounts of the incident…. [H]e told Trump he didn’t know, that it wasn’t his area of expertise…*. Trump was not thrilled with that response ― but that may have been a function of the time of day. Trump had placed the call at 3 a.m., according to one of Flynn’s retellings*…. [W]hile leaks typically involve staffers sabotaging each other to improve their own standing….  Trump’s 2-week-old administration has a third category: leaks from White House and agency officials alarmed by the president’s conduct.” [HuffPost]

*Then there’s this bit*: “Small things can provide him great joy or generate intense irritation. Trump told The New York Times that he’s fascinated with the phone system inside the White House. At the same time, he’s registered a complaint about the hand towels aboard Air Force One, the White House aide said, because they are not soft enough.” [Ibid.]

*Like HuffPost Hill? Then order Eliot’s book*, The Beltway Bible: A Totally Serious A-Z Guide To Our No-Good, Corrupt, Incompetent, Terrible, Depressing, and Sometimes Hilarious Government

Does somebody keep forwarding you this newsletter? Get your own copy. It’s free! Sign up here. Send tips/stories/photos/events/fundraisers/job movement/juicy miscellanea to eliot@huffingtonpost.com. Follow us on Twitter - @HuffPostHill

*SENATE GOP DEFENDS SILENCING ELIZABETH WARREN - *Literally nothing says snowflake quite like blowing up your party’s messaging because an old rich powerful white guy named Jefferson Beauregard Session III’s feelings are hurt. Burgess Everett and Seung Min Kim: “The visual of GOP men silencing Warren unleashed a flood of outrage on social media. Democrats quickly began fundraising off of the spectacle. And people tuned into C-SPAN for a late-night Senate session that otherwise would have been ignored, as Sen. Sessions of Alabama plodded toward confirmation despite near-unanimous Democratic opposition…. Senators often come close to disrespecting their colleagues and breaking the arcane chamber’s rule book barring personal insults of their peers. Most notably, McConnell and Senate Republicans ignored Ted Cruz’s attacks on McConnell in 2015 for telling a ‘lie’ about the Export-Import Bank, preferring not to elevate a political opponent. But elevating an opponent is precisely what McConnell did on Tuesday — and the Kentucky Republican is not prone to strategic missteps. *There was no grand strategy, Republicans said, just a burgeoning anger that Warren was destroying whatever vestige of comity that remains in the Senate.* Orrin Hatch of Utah, the most senior GOP senator, said Democrats had treated Sessions like ‘dirt.’” [Politico]

Sessions is going to get confirmed anyway, of course. Remember when Tom Daschle’s nomination was scuttled? LOL

*BEGUN, THESE MALL WARS HAVE* - We lost a lot of good men at the Swatch kiosk. A lot. *looks off into distance* Christina Wilkie: “President Donald Trump launched a social media attack from the White House Wednesday against Nordstrom, after the retail chain decided this month not to carry his daughter Ivanka Trump’s fashion line. ‘My daughter Ivanka has been treated so unfairly by @Nordstrom,’ Trump complained on Twitter Wednesday morning. ‘She is a great person — always pushing me to do the right thing! Terrible!’ *Within minutes, @POTUS ― the president’s official White House Twitter account, previously used by President Barack Obama ― retweeted Trump’s complaint, sharing it with 15 million followers*…. Nordstrom said the decision to stop selling Ivanka Trump’s brand was based on its poor sales, not politics. ‘In this case, based on the brand’s performance, we’ve decided not to buy it for this season,’ the company previously said in a statement. On Wednesday, it noted that ‘Ivanka was personally informed’ of the company’s decision ‘in early January.’” [HuffPost]

Heaven help any classmate who dares bully Barron Trump.

*CONSERVATIVE EVANGELICAL LEADERS PROTEST REFUGEE BAN* - Then Jesus said, “And vet unto them extremely, and then the kingdom of heaven shall be made great again.” Sarah Pulliam Bailey: “*In a highly unusual move, several conservative evangelical leaders took out a full-page advertisement in Wednesday’s Washington Post to denounce President Trump’s executive order temporarily banning refugees*, saying they are ‘deeply concerned.’ The ad includes the signatures of evangelicals considered to be more conservative and represent large churches and institutions, including New York City Pastor Tim Keller and his wife, Kathy Keller, Southern Baptists Ed Stetzer and Daniel Akin and popular author Max Lucado.” [WaPo]

*America not so sure about Trump’s agenda* beyond trade. [HuffPost’s Grace Sparks]

*LOOK, A MODICUM OF RESISTANCE TO TRUMP FROM CONGRESS -* Checks and balances are so quaint. Daniel Marans: “Six senators from both parties introduced a bill on Wednesday that would prevent President Donald Trump from easing sanctions on Russia without congressional approval…. Republican Sens. John McCain (Ariz.), Marco Rubio (Fla.) and Lindsey Graham (S.C.) joined Democratic Sens. Sherrod Brown (Ohio), Claire McCaskill (Mo.) and Ben Cardin (Md.) in co-sponsoring the bill.” [HuffPost]

*GABBARD FACING SCRUTINY FOR SYRIA TRIP FUNDING/ACTIVITY - *Bad news for Donald Trump’s favorite House Democrat. Tim Mak: “Rep. Tulsi Gabbard’s visit with Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad has already raised controversy. Now she’s in hot water yet again for failing to comply with House ethics rules. *Gabbard hasn’t yet submitted the required disclosure forms which detail who paid for her trip, and who else she met while she was in Syria*…. The Hawaii Democrat is required to show, in detail, where the money came from to pay for her trip, but her travel disclosures are missing the document which describes this. Gabbard lists as her sponsor a little-known group called AACCESS-Ohio, which has been in and out of existence since 1991 and does not have a functional webpage; its resources are unclear, at best. If AACCESS-Ohio received money from other sources to pay for her trip to Syria, these documents are supposed to show it.” [Daily Beast]

*GOP HEROES GEAR UP TO LIBERATE AMERICANS FROM HEALTH INSURANCE - *Jeffrey Young: “President Donald Trump and the Republicans who control Congress have a major problem to solve: The uninsured rate has never been lower…. *Trump and congressional GOP stalwarts like House Speaker Paul Ryan (Wis.) and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.) are hard at work devising a solution to the Affordable Care Act’s depressive effect on the uninsured rate.* They also possibly will replace the law with a new health care reform plan that would ensure the United States once again stands as a bastion of individual liberty from having your medical bills covered.” [HuffPost]

*ICYMI: *That time Ted Cruz told a woman with M.S., “congratulations on your struggles.”

*SPICER INVENTS NEW ‘ONE DEAD SOLDIER’ RULE -* Lyndon Johnson and Bill Clinton would like this to be implemented retroactively, please. Eline Gordts and Jesselyn Cook: “White House press secretary Sean Spicer raised eyebrows Wednesday when he argued that anyone questioning the success of a controversial U.S. military raid in Yemen last month was dishonoring Chief Petty Officer William ‘Ryan’ Owens, the Navy SEAL who died in the operation…. *‘Anyone who undermines the success of that raid owes an apology to the life and service of Chief Owens.’* [Spicer said].” [HuffPost]

*CONGRESSMAN PROPOSES WHAT SOUNDS LIKE THE PLOT OF A TERRIBLE TIM ALLEN MOVIE* - From the people who brought you: “Ralph NAYder: Horse President,” comes the follow-up smash hit... Jennifer Bendery: “A Democratic congressman is introducing legislation as soon as next week *that would require a psychiatrist at the White House*, something he says is overdue but also urgent given his and other people’s concerns about President Donald Trump’s mental health. Rep. Ted Lieu (D-Calif.) said Tuesday that the president, any president, should have access to a mental health professional given the pressures of the job. Congress passed a law in 1928 requiring a physician at the White House, but stopped short of requiring a psychiatrist because of the stigma associated with mental illness.” [HuffPost]

*BRAVE PATRIOT PROTESTS GOVERNMENT* - Matt Bevin’s office can wire us $200,000 for that bit of message consulting. Linda Blackford: “Gov. Matt Bevin is more than a month late paying 2016 property taxes on his Louisville house, according to records of the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office. As first reported by WDRB-TV in Louisville, tax payments on Bevin’s nearly $700,000 home were due Dec. 31. Now his bill of $9,157.05 has grown to $11,080.03 because of late fees and interest. The governor’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Last summer, the governor said he was planning to move from Louisville to the Kentucky Governor’s Mansion in Frankfort with his wife, Glenna, and their nine children. Officials said they would keep their Louisville house.” [Herald-Leader]

*GET MO GITMO -* Read the draft text of Trump’s executive order on terror detainees. [NYT]

*BECAUSE YOU’VE READ THIS FAR *- Here’s a baby hippo.

*HERO GUY IS HERO - *Philadelphians finally leveraging their rudeness for the greater good. Daniel Craig: “A Pennsylvania lawmaker had strong words for Donald Trump after the president reportedly joked he would ‘destroy’ a Texas lawmaker’s career. In a Facebook post, state Sen. Daylin Leach, D-Montgomery, linked to a Politico story about Trump’s meeting with several county sheriffs, including Chester County Sheriff Carolyn Bunny Welsh. According to the website, Harold Eavenson, sheriff of Rockwell County, Texas, brought up the issue of civil asset forfeiture…. Leach, who has pushed for civil asset forfeiture reform in Pennsylvania, invited Trump to come after him as well. ‘Hey! I oppose civil asset forfeiture too,’ Leach wrote on Facebook and Twitter. ‘Why don’t you come after me you fascist, loofa-faced s***-gibbon!!’” [Philly Voice]

*COMFORT FOOD*

- Incredible drag-and-drop mashup generator.

- A hyperlapse made from 3,305 Google Map screencaps.

- We might finally get regular, hi-res images of Venus’ surface.

*TWITTERAMA*

@emilynussbaum: The enemy of my enemy is my favorite outlet for discounted scarves.

@aedwardslevy: “Do you approve or disapprove of Donald Trump’s handling of the D?”

@michaelcrowley: old fear: president fields scary 3am phone call
new fear: president places scary 3am phone call

Got something to add? Send tips/quotes/stories/photos/events/fundraisers/job movement/juicy miscellanea to Eliot Nelson (eliot@huffingtonpost.com)

-- 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 2 hours ago.

U.S. court blocks Anthem-Cigna $54 billion deal

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(Reuters) - A federal judge on Wednesday ruled against U.S. health insurer Anthem Inc's proposed $54 billion merger with smaller rival Cigna Corp , derailing an unprecedented effort to consolidate the country’s health insurance industry. Reported by Reuters 10 minutes ago.

Top athletes for National Race Walk, Khushbir uncertain

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Max Bupa Health Insurance company will be the title sponsor and it has set aside a prize purse of Rs 4 lakh for the event. Reported by DNA 11 hours ago.

Race walking meet on Feb 18

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*The National Race Walking championship will take place here on February 18 and 19, serving as a selection trial for the Asian Race Walking Championships in Japan in March.*

Max Bupa Health Insurance company has come forward to be the title sponsor with prize purse of Rs 4 lakh.

The national championship of 20km (men's and women's) and 50km (men's) will take place on February 18 over one km loop in Vinay Marg and promises participation of over 200 national race walking champions, including Manish Singh Rawat, Khusbhir Kaur, Gurmeet Singh. The event will conclude with the 10km race walk on February 19 to be held on the Rajpath as part of Max Bupa Walk for Health, an annual initiative that endeavors to make India a 'walking' nation.

The AFI President Adille Sumariwalla said racewalking has the potential to get India a medal in the Olympics. "It is one event where we had well in past years, and where we feel we can have a medal in Olympics," he said. Reported by Deccan Herald 6 hours ago.

'The elephant in the courtroom:' A federal judge said Cigna sabotaged its own merger to create the largest health insurer in the US (ANTM, CI)

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A federal judge blocked a proposed merger between Cigna and Anthem, which would have created the largest health insurance company in the US based on number of people covered.

US District Court judge Amy Jackson said in the decision that the anti-competitive nature of the deal would create higher costs for consumers, but a big part of the decision to block the case was the "elephant in the courtroom:" Cigna was actively fighting the merger.

"In this case, the Department of Justice is not the only party raising questions about Anthem’s characterization of the outcome of the merger: one of the two merging parties is also actively warning against it," said the decision from Jackson.

Jackson said that compelling testimony against the supposed cost savings and benefits from the merger came from Cigna lawyers.

"Cigna officials provided compelling testimony undermining the projections of future savings, and the disagreement runs so deep that Cigna cross-examined the defendants’ own expert and refused to sign Anthem’s Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law on the grounds that they 'reflect Anthem’s perspective' and that some of the findings 'are inconsistent with the testimony of Cigna witnesses'," said the decision.

Anthem defended these practices, according to the decision, as simply a disagreement from Cigna's CEO David Cordani. Transcripts from the trial revealed in November that Cordani expressed serious doubts regarding the merger and its benefits.

While Anthem argued that the personal acrimony from Cordani should not prevent the judge from approving the merger, Jackson said it was not so simple.

"Anthem urges the Court to look away, and it attempts to minimize the merging parties’ differences as a 'side issue,' a mere 'rift between the CEOs,'" said the decision. "But the Court cannot properly ignore the remarkable circumstances that have unfolded both before and during the trial."

Anthem touted possible synergies from the merger that would allow for a more efficient company after the combination and save Americans money, but instead Jackson found that the disagreements between the two firms already showed that those savings would not be realized.

"The documentary record and the testimony reflect that the pre-merger integration planning that is necessary to capture any hoped-for synergies is stalled and incomplete," said Jackson's decision. "Much of the work has not proceeded past the initial stage of identifying goals and targets to actually specifying the steps to be taken jointly to implement them."

In the end, Jackson, supported by the counter-case from Cigna, determined that the merger had no benefits to the patients it was supposed to help.

"Eliminating this competition from the marketplace would diminish the opportunity for the firms’ ideas to be tested and refined, when this is just the sort of innovation the antitrust rules are supposed to foster," concluded the decision.

"Considering all of these circumstances, and for all of the reasons set forth in greater detail in the Memorandum Opinion docketed separately, the Court is persuaded that the merger should not take place."

The move comes just a few weeks after another US District Court judge blocked a similar deal between Aetna and Humana, citing the same anti-competitive outcome.

*SEE ALSO: One-third of Americans don't appear to know Obamacare and the Affordable Care Act are the same thing*

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: Here's how to use one of the many apps to buy and trade bitcoin Reported by Business Insider 10 hours ago.

Anthem-Cigna health insurance merger rejected by judge

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Predicting diminished competition and likely higher costs, a federal judge rejected health insurer Anthem's bid to buy rival Cigna. Reported by CNSNews.com 10 hours ago.

Anthem-Cigna deal blocked; what will companies do with all that cash?

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Another mega-merger in the health insurance industry was stymied after a federal judge blocked Anthem Inc.'s proposed $48 billion deal to buy Cigna Corp. Wednesday. That, of course, comes a few weeks after another judge blocked the proposed $37 billion acquisition of Louisville-based Humana Inc. (NYSE: HUM) by Hartford, Conn.-based Aetna Inc. (NYSE: AET) In both cases, the judges found that the mergers would have violated antitrust laws by reducing competition. Now, as Bloomberg reports, the question… Reported by bizjournals 10 hours ago.

Anthem-Cigna health insurance merger is rejected by judge

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Predicting diminished competition and likely higher costs, a federal judge has rejected Anthem Inc.’s bid to buy rival health insurer Cigna Corp.

U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson said Wednesday that the merger would significantly reduce competition in the already concentrated insurance market,... Reported by L.A. Times 10 hours ago.

Judge blocks Anthem-Cigna deal — now what will those companies do with all that cash?

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Few poor or minority patients in New York City’s academic hospitals

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(Reuters Health) - Black patients are half as likely as white patients to get care at academic medical centers in New York City even after accounting for differences in health insurance, a recent study suggests. Reported by Reuters 9 hours ago.

Group BPCE : 4th quarter and full-year 2016 results

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Paris, February 9, 2017

4 ^th QUARTER AND FULL-YEAR 2016 RESULTS ^[1]
OF GROUPE BPCE

Published net income of €4bn in 2016
Robust generation of capital, chiefly through retained earnings

*COMMERCIAL ACTIVITIES REMAIN BUOYANT*

*Strong momentum in retail banking*

· 3.7% year-on-year growth in loan outstandings and 1.7% in deposits & savings at Dec. 31, 2016 
· New loan production in excess of €100bn in 2016

*Development of Insurance activities* ^[2]

· Strong momentum in life insurance with gross inflows up 7% compared with 2015
· Non-life insurance: 5.3 million contracts at end-2016 and 9% year-on-year portfolio growth

             
*Notable contribution from Natixis' Corporate & Investment Banking division*

· Excellent momentum enjoyed by Global markets , with high levels achieved by the Equity and Fixed income businesses

             
*STRONG FUNDAMENTALS*

*Revenues* ^[3] *stand up well despite an interest rate environment highly unfavorable to retail banking activities: €* 23.4 *bn, down * 1.1%

· Natixis business line revenues in 2016 up by 2.9%3 year-on-year, to €8.1bn
· Retail banking revenues down by 2.2% ^[4] , to €15bn

*Decline in the cost of risk to* 22 *basis points in* 2016 *,* lower than the business cycle average (30 to 35bp)

*Net income attributable to equity holders of the parent* 3 *of €* 3.4 *bn, up* 7.6%

*Published net income attributable to equity holders of the parent of €* 4 *bn, up* 26.7%

*ROBUST GENERATION OF CAPITAL*

*Substantial capital generation capacity* making the Group well-placed to comply with future regulatory requirements

*CET1 ratio of* 14.3% ^[5] *at* Dec. 31, 2016 *: +* 130 *bp in* 2016 (including 73bp through retained earnings)

*TLAC ratio of* 19.4%5 * * (including the January 2017 issue of senior non-preferred debt for a total of €1.6bn)

*PREPARATION of Groupe BPCE's new strategic plan for 2018-2020*

*Merger of regional banks:* creation of Banque Populaire Auvergne Rhône Alpes and Banque Populaire Méditerranée, reducing the number of Banque Populaire banks to 15 at end-2016 vs. 18 at end-2015

*Plans for the transformation of retail banking:* presentation on February 21, 2017

On February 9, 2017, the Supervisory Board of Groupe BPCE convened a meeting chaired by Pierre Valentin to examine the Group's financial statements for the full year and 4 ^th quarter of 2016.

François Pérol, Chairman of the Management Board of Groupe BPCE, said: " Our Group has published good results for 2016 with net income attributable to equity holders of the parent of €4bn, thereby confirming the strength of our fundamentals and the relevance of our full-service universal banking model. The business lines of Natixis put up a fine performance with the notable contribution of the Corporate & Investment Banking division and the further development of our insurance activities. In our retail banking division, the commercial dynamism of our networks - with new loan production in excess of €100bn in 2016 - has enabled us to limit the unfavorable impact of the low interest-rate environment on our revenues. Groupe BPCE will be presenting its plan for the transformation of its retail banking activities on February 21, in anticipation of its future strategic plan for 2018 - 2020."
  
*1.* *CONSOLIDATED RESULTS* ^[6] *OF GROUPE BPCE FOR FULL-YEAR AND THE FOURTH QUARTER OF 2016*

Despite a backdrop of persistently low interest rates and a difficult market environment, Groupe BPCE is publishing strong results for full-year 2016, with published net income attributable to equity holders of the parent of €4bn thanks to capital gains generated on the disposal of Visa Europe. If non-economic and exceptional items are excluded, net income attributable to equity holders of the parent stands at €3.4bn, up 7.6% compared with 2015.

Despite the difficult environment, Groupe BPCE revenues only declined by 1.1%3 in 2016. The fine performance achieved by Natixis with 2.9%3 growth in the revenues posted by its business lines (the Corporate & Investment Banking division, in particular) have partially offset the -2.2%4 decline in income generated by the retail banking activities. This decline, the result of low interest rates, was contained by strong commercial dynamics.

Other highlights of the results for 2016 include the low level of the Group's cost of risk during the year (22 basis points ^[7] ) - a level lower than the business cycle average of 30 to 35 basis points - and a decline in taxation, more than a third of which derived from a structural effect.

Groupe BPCE boasts a robust - and further reinforced - financial structure with a Common Equity Tier 1 (CET1) ratio of 14.3%5 at December 31, 2016 and a TLAC ratio (including the issue of senior non-preferred debt in January 2017 for a total of €1.6bn) equal to 19.4%5, close to the January 1 ^st , 2019 requirement, bearing in mind that the Group enjoys a strong capacity to generate capital and only has a limited need to issue senior non-preferred debt.

Groupe BPCE is also preparing a new strategic plan for 2018-2020 and will be presenting, on February 21, its plans for the transformation of its retail banking activities.

Revenue and cost synergies

In 2016, Groupe BPCE continued to strengthen its cost and revenue synergies.
Additional revenues for a total of €623m generated since the 2014-2017 plan was first launched had been recorded at December 31, 2016 between the Banque Populaire banks, the Caisses d'Epargne and Natixis, for a target of €870m in 2017. The strong development of synergies in insurance is fully in line with the Group's ambitions. The relations forged between the Banque Populaire and Caisse d'Epargne retail banking networks on the one hand, and Natixis on the other, have been intensified, especially with the Sureties & Guarantees and the Lease Financing business lines. The contribution made by the Group's Insurance activities accounts for 57% of aggregate revenue synergies while the consumer loans business contributes 19% and the remaining 24% is divided equally between the Sureties & Guarantees and Other business lines.

With regard to cost synergies, savings had been made for a total of €686m at December 31, 2016 for a 2017 target of €900m, i.e. more than 75% of the ultimate target has been achieved three-quarters of the way into the plan. These cost synergies have led to an acceleration in savings generated by the structural reforms completed in 2015 and by the earlier-than-anticipated savings generated by the centralization of IT production facilities within BPCE Infogérance & Technologies. Organizational changes accounted for 66% of these synergies, information systems were responsible for 25% while processes contributed 9%.

*1.1* *Consolidated results* 6 *for* *2016: published net income attributable to equity holders of the parent of €4bn*

For full-year 2016, the *net banking income* ^[8] of Groupe BPCE stands at €23,397m, reflecting a limited decline of 1.1% compared with 2015 thanks to its full-service universal banking model. The revenues posted by the business lines of Natixis, up 2.9%8 on a year-on-year basis, have partially offset the decline in income generated by the retail banking activities (-2.2%)4.

The Group's *operating expenses* 8 rose by 1.6% year-on-year to reach a total of €16,497m. However, if the significant increase in the SRF contribution of €123m in 2016 is excluded, the Group's operating expenses only increased by 0.9%. Operating expenses saw a 3.3% increase in the business lines of Natixis owing to growth in their business activities (chiefly the Corporate & Investment Banking division). In 2016, operating expenses declined by 0.6%8 in the retail banking activities.

The Group's *gross operating income* 8 *stands at* €6,900m, down 7.1% compared with 2015.

The Group's *cost of risk* came to a total of €1,448m8 for 2016 as a whole. Compared to 2015, it recorded a significant drop of 14.7%8 in absolute value and a decline of 7 basis points7 in relative value, standing at 22 basis points in 2016 versus 29 basis points in 2015. This low level is even lower than the business cycle average (30 to 35 basis points). The ratio of non-performing loans to gross loan outstandings has also declined, falling from 3.7% at December 31, 2015 to 3.4% at December 31, 2016, and the impaired loans coverage ratio (including guarantees related to impaired outstandings) came to 83.5% at December 31, 2016 (against 81.0% at December 31, 2015).

· For the Banque Populaire and Caisse d'Epargne retail banking networks, the decline in the cost of risk confirms the downward trend observed for individual and collective provisions in an environment that shows signs of improvement in France
 
· For the business lines of Natixis (Investment Solutions, Corporate & Investment Banking, Specialized Financial Services), the constantly improving cost of risk for 2016 as a whole came to 34 basis points7 (against 36 basis points in 2015 and 38 basis points in 2014) despite the drive to book provisions for the Oil & Gas sector in the first half of 2016.

The Group's *income before tax* 8 *has declined by* 3.1% to stand at €5,816m for 2016 as a whole.

*Income tax* 8 payable by the Group amounts to €1,900m, down 17.7% compared with 2015. More than one third of this reduction can be attributed to a structural effect (discontinuation of the exceptional contribution of 10.7%).

*Net income attributable to equity holders of the parent* 8 has increased by 7.6% compared with 2015 to stand at €3,395m. The *cost/income ratio* 8 of the Group has risen by 1.9 percentage points to 70.5%. The Group's *ROE* 8 is equal to 5.9%, stable year-on-year.
             
After accounting for non-economic and exceptional items, the *published net income attributable to equity holders of the parent* stands at €3,988m, reflecting the positive impact of the capital gains generated on the sale of Visa Europe.

*1.2* *Consolidated results* 6 *for the fourth quarter of* *2016: net income attributable to equity holders of the parent equal to* *€572m* ^[9] *, up 2.8%*

In the fourth quarter of 2016, the *net banking income* 8 of Groupe BPCE came to €5,977m, up 0.9% compared with the same period in 2015. The revenues posted by the business lines of Natixis rose by 2.8 % during the quarter to reach €2.1bn, with a significant contribution from the Corporate & Investment Banking division and the Insurance business. The revenues posted by the retail banking activities (excluding changes in provisions for home purchase savings schemes) achieved 0.6% growth against a backdrop of persistently low interest rates.

The Group's *operating expenses* 8 have been kept under tight control and were subject to an extremely limited increase (+0.3%), reaching a total of €4,228m.

The Group's *gross operating income* 8 *stands at* €1,750m, up 2.4% compared with the 4 ^th quarter of 2015.

The Group's *cost of risk* came to a total of €405m8 in the 4 ^th quarter of 2016. It has declined in terms of both absolute (-9.1%)8 and relative value (down 6 basis points to 22bp, versus 28bp in the 4 ^th quarter last year), chiefly in the Corporate & Investment Banking division.

The Group's *income before tax* 8 *came to €* 1,409m in the 4 ^th quarter of 2016, up 6.2% year-on-year.

When restated to account for the impact of the IFRIC 21 standard and excluding exceptional and non-economic items:

· *Net income attributable to equity holders of the parent* has risen by 2.8% to €572m.
· The *cost/income ratio* has risen by 0.1 point and now stands at 72.7%.
· The *ROE* is equal to 4.2%, stable compared to last year.

After accounting for non-economic and exceptional items, and cancelling restatements made to account for the impact of IFRIC 21, *published net income attributable to equity holders of the parent* stood at €541m.

*
*

*2016 CONSOLIDATED RESULTS OF GROUPE BPCE*

In millions of euros *2016* *Impact of non-economic and exceptional items*   *2016 underlying*
Net banking income 24,158 762   23,397
Operating expenses -16,673 -176   -16,497
*Gross operating income* *7,485* *586* * * *6,900*
Cost of risk -1,423 25   -1,448
*Income before tax* *6,370* *554* * * *5,816*
Income tax -1,882 18 * * -1,900
Minority interests - 500 22 * * - 522
Cost/income ratio 69.0%     70.5%
ROE             6.9%     5.9%
* Net income attributable
to equity holders of the parent * *3,988* *593* * * *3,395*

In millions of euros *2015 pf* *Impact of non-economic and exceptional items*   *2015 pf underlying* *2016 underlying /*
*2015 pf underlying*
% change
Net banking income 23,682 23   23,659 -1.1%
Operating expenses -16,249 -19   -16,230 +1.6%
*Gross operating income* *7,434* *5* * * *7,429* *-7.1%*
Cost of risk -1,831 -133   -1,698 -14.7%
*Income before tax* *5,936* *-66* * * *6,003* *-3.1%*
Income tax -2,257 51 * * -2,308 -17.7%
Minority interests - 531 8 * * - 540 - 3.3 %
Cost/income ratio 68.6%     68.6% 1.9 pt
ROE             5.9%                 5.9%  
* Net income attributable
to equity holders of the parent * *3,148* *-7* * * *3,155* *+7.6%*

2015 pro forma, cf. the note on methodology at the end of this press release

*
*

*CONSOLIDATED RESULTS OF GROUPE BPCE FOR THE 4TH QUARTER OF 2016*

In millions of euros *Q4-16* *Impact of non-economic and exceptional items*   *Q4-16 underlying*
Net banking income 6,049 72   5,977
Operating expenses -4,348 -120   -4,228
*Gross operating income* *1,701* *-49* * * *1,750*
Cost of risk -379 25   -405
*Income before tax* *1,308* *-101* * * *1,409*
Income tax -598 8 * * -606
Minority interests -169 -28 * * -141
*Net income attributable to equity holders of the parent* *541* *-121* * * * 662*
Restatement to account for the IFRIC 21 impact              -90     -90
*Net income attributable to equity holders of the parent* *451* *-121* * * *572*
Cost/income ratio 73.8%     72.7%
ROE 4.0%     4.2%
Add-back to net income of the IFRIC 21 impact              90      90
* Published net income attributable
to equity holders of the parent * *541* *-121* * * *662*

In millions of euros *Q4-15pf* *Impact of non-economic and exceptional items*   *Q4-15pf underlying* *Q4-16 underlying /*
*Q4-15 pf underlying*
% change
Net banking income 5,897 -27   5,924 0.9%
Operating expenses -4,223 -9   -4,215 0.3%
*Gross operating income* *1,673* *-36* * * *1,709* *2.4%*
Cost of risk -445   -445 -9.1%
*Income before tax* *1,276* *-50* * * *1,326* *6.2%*
Income tax -533 12 * * -546 11.0%
Minority interests -159 -2 * * -158 -10.6%
*Net income attributable to equity holders of the parent* *584* *-39* * * * 623* *6,3%*
Restatement to account for the IFRIC 21 impact              -67     -67  
*Net income attributable to equity holders of the parent* *517* *-39* * * *556* *2.8%*
Cost/income ratio 73.1%     72.6% +0.1 pt
ROE 4.4%     4.2%  
Add-back to net income of the IFRIC 21 impact              67      67  
* Published net income attributable
to equity holders of the parent * *584* -39 * * *623* *6.3%*

2015 pro forma, cf. the note on methodology at the end of this press release

*
*

*2.* *ROBUST GENERATION OF CAPITAL, making the Group well-placed to comply with future regulatory requirements*

*2.1* *Significant ability to generate CET1, chiefly via retained earnings*

The CET1 ratio ^[10] of Groupe BPCE continued to progress in 2016, reaching a level estimated at 14.3% at December 31, 2016, up from 13.0% at January 1, 2016 (on a pro-forma basis), equal to an increase of 130 basis points. This increase in the CET1 ratio reflects the strong generation of Common Equity Tier 1, chiefly via retained earnings, which has had an impact of 73 basis points since January 1, 2016 (if the Visa Europe transaction is excluded).

The phased-in CET1 ratio10 of Groupe BPCE, estimated at 14.14% at December 31, 2016, is significantly higher than the level required by the European Central Bank (ECB) as defined in the 2016 Supervisory Review and Evaluation Process (SREP). The CET1 ratio requirement laid down by the ECB, which includes the "Pillar 2 requirement," is 7.75% as of January 1, 2017. To this should be added the part of the regulatory requirement of 1.50% of additional Tier-1 capital (AT1), which is met by the CET1 (estimated at 1.17% at December 31, 2016) to reach a level of CET1 requirement equal to 8.92%. The CET1 surplus is consequently equal to 522 basis points.

In all, the total phased-in capital ratio, estimated at 18.48% at December 31, 2016, is 723 basis points higher than the level required by the ECB (11.25%), divided into 522 basis points of CET1 surplus and 201 basis points of Tier-2 surplus.

*2.2* *The 19.5% TLAC ratio* 10 *required for early 2019 is already nearly satisfied*

Total loss-absorbing capacity (TLAC) ^[11] stood at €75.8bn10 at end-2016, including the issue of senior non-preferred debt for a total of €1.6bn in January 2017.

The TLAC ratio10, estimated at 19.4% at December 31, 2016, should enable the Group to respect the TLAC level required in early 2019 - i.e. 19.5% - without the Group needing to issue senior preferred debt, and by issuing senior non-preferred debt for between €1.5bn and €3.5bn per year.

Risk-weighted assets remain under tight management, equal to €391bn at December 31, 2016, stable compared with their level at December 31, 2015 (at current exchange rates).

At December 31, 2016, the leverage ratio under Basel 3 ^[12] was equal to 5.0% versus 4.7% at December 31, 2015.

*2.3* *Reinforced liquidity reserves*

At December 31, 2016, Groupe BPCE's total liquidity reserves ^[13] stood at €230bn at December 31, 2016, including €93bn in available assets eligible for central bank funding, €66bn in securities eligible for the LCR, and €71bn in cash13 placed with central banks.

The stock of short-term funds has increased, rising from €93bn at December 31, 2015 to €119bn at December 31, 2016, thanks to the strengthening of liquidity reserves.

At December 31, 2016, the total liquidity reserves of Groupe BPCE covered 158% of total short-term funding outstandings and medium-/long-term debt maturing within one year or less (against 168% at end-2015). It should be emphasized, however, that in fact the coverage rate increased in 2016 to the extent that total liquidity reserves increased more than outstanding short-term funding and short-term maturities of medium-/long-term debts (+€34bn versus +€29bn).

The Liquidity Coverage Ratio (LCR) remained in excess of 110% at December 31, 2016.

*2.4* *A wholesale medium-/long-term funding plan for 2017 already 34% completed as at January 31, 2017 and smaller in scale than in 2016*

Groupe BPCE's ability to access major debt markets allowed it to raise medium-/long-term (MLT) resources for an aggregate total of €23.9bn at December 31, 2016, equal to 104% of the revised 2016 program (€23bn). The average maturity at issue stands at 7.2 years and the average interest rate is equal to mid-swap +36 basis points. In 2016 as a whole, 47% of MLT funding was completed in the form of public bond issues and 53% in the form of private placements.

The €23.9bn raised as at December 31, 2016 can be broken down as follows:

· A total of €16.6bn (€14.2bn in senior debt and €2.4bn in the form of Tier-2 debt instruments) was raised in the form of unsecured issues, representing 69% of the 2016 MLT funding structure, in line with the Group's objectives. Aggregate Tier-2 debt issued in 2016 is equal to €3.0bn if account is taken of the bond issue distributed via the Banque Populaire et Caisse d'Epargne retail banking networks,
· A total of €7.3bn was raised in the form of covered bond issues (31% of the funding structure raised in 2016, in line with the information given to the market in early 2016).

In 2016, Groupe BPCE continued to raise substantial funds thanks to the considerably broad diversification of its investor base. As a result, 37% of the bonds issued in the unsecured segment were placed in currencies other than the euro (notably 26% in US dollars and 7% in the Japanese yen).

The target amount of funding adopted for the projected 2017 wholesale MLT funding plan is equal to €20bn. Unsecured bond issues should account for €13bn (or 65% of the plan) including €9.5bn to €11.5bn in preferred senior debt and €1.5bn to €3.5bn in senior non-preferred debt. Covered bond issues should amount to €7bn (representing 35% of the overall plan).

At January 31, 2017, a total of €6.8bn had already been raised, equal to 34% of the projected funding plan (75% in the form of unsecured bond issues and 25% in the form of covered bonds). This total includes $1.85bn raised in a pre-funding operation for 2017, completed on November 29, 2016. More particularly, Groupe BPCE issued in January 2017 €1.6bn in the form of senior non-preferred debt in very good conditions: €1bn in the Euro market and the equivalent of €0.6bn denominated in JPY in the Japanese market, the first issue of this type in this market).

*
*

*3.* *Results* ^[14] *OF THE BUSINESS LINES: COMMERCIAL ACTIVITY REMAINS BUOYANT*

*3.1* *Commercial Banking & Insurance: resilience of net banking income linked to the buoyancy of commercial activities*

The Commercial Banking & Insurance business line groups together the activities pursued by the Banque Populaire and Caisse d'Epargne retail banking networks, and those of the Other Networks division comprised of the subsidiaries of BPCE International, Banque Palatine, Crédit Foncier and the minority interest in CNP Assurances, consolidated using the equity method.

The Commercial Banking & Insurance business line preserved a strong commercial momentum throughout 2016. With new loan production reaching €100bn in 2016, the business line is playing an active role in financing the French economy. Loan outstandings are rising steadily, standing at €514bn at December 31, 2016, equal to year-on-year growth of 3.7% since December 31, 2015, and growth of 6.3% since December 31, 2014. More particularly, Commercial Banking & Insurance has increased its share ^[15] of the consumer loans markets by 70 basis points in the space of a year, to 16.3%. New loan production was dynamic in the corporate customer segment, with medium-/long-term commitments up 12.2% compared with 2015.

Deposits & savings entrusted to the Commercial Banking & Insurance business line stood at €663bn at December 31, 2016, up by 1.7% since December 31, 2015 (i.e. by €12bn) and by 5.7% since December 31, 2014. This growth is largely due to the increase in on-balance sheet savings driven, in particular, by growth in demand deposits (+8.5%).

Synergies generated between Natixis and Commercial Banking & Insurance business line were further strengthened in 2016:

· In Insurance activities, with the successful rollout of the life-insurance offering in the Caisse d'Epargne network and an increase in P&C insurance contracts (+9% to 5.3 million contracts) in the Banque Populaire and Caisse d'Epargne retail banking networks,
· Via an intensification of relations between Natixis' Specialized Financial Services division and the Banque Populaire and Caisse d'Epargne banking networks. The Sureties & Guarantees and Lease Financing businesses both put up a fine performance.

*Financial results* 14 * of the Commercial Banking & Insurance business line for full-year 2016 and the 4 ^th quarter of 2016 *

The *revenues* generated by the Commercial Banking & Insurance business line came to €14,949m (excluding changes in provisions for home purchase savings schemes), down 2.7%, year-on-year. Revenues stood at €3,722m (excluding changes in provisions for home purchase savings schemes), in the 4 ^th quarter of 2016, up 0.6%. The prevailing context of historically low interest rates continues to weigh down one customer net interest income. Commissions generated on customers' use of banking products and services and insurance continue to increase thanks, in particular, to growth in the customer base. Commissions earned on early loan redemption continued to decline compared with the major volumes recorded in 2015, along will commissions related to centralized savings owing to the reduction in the commissioning rate. When restated to account for €73m in capital gains booked in the 3 ^rd quarter of 2015, net banking income (excluding changes in provisions for home purchase savings schemes) only declined by 2.2%.

*Operating expenses* ^[16] excluding exceptional items, came to €9,952m for 2016 as a whole, virtually the same as in 2015 (-0.6%). Expenses stand at €2,519m for the 4 ^th quarter of 2016, down by 2.1% compared with the 4 ^th quarter of 2015.

*Gross operating income* 16 *,* excluding exceptional items, declined by 5.6% in 2016 to €4,998m. It enjoyed 11.4% growth in the 4 ^th quarter of 2016 to stand at €1,246m.

The *cost of risk,* which came to €1,163m for 2016 as a whole, has improved significantly (-17.1%). In the 4 ^th quarter of 2016, it stood at €372m, equal to a decline of 6.2%.

The *contribution of the Commercial Banking & Insurance business line to the Group's income before tax* , excluding exceptional items16, came to €4,108m for 2016 as a whole, virtually unchanged (+0.1%) compared with 2015. Income before tax rose sharply during the 4 ^th quarter (+22.3%) compared with the same period in 2015, to reach €942m.

Restated to account for the impact of IFRIC 21 and excluding exceptional items16:

· The *cost/income ratio* displays a 1.2-point year-on-year increase, standing at 66.6%. In the 4 ^th quarter of 2016 is improved by 2.9 percentage points to reach 68.0%.
· The *ROE* for full-year 2016 comes to 10%, up 1 point year-on-year. Return on equity for the 4 ^th quarter of 2016 stands at 9%, reflecting a 3 percentage-point increase compared to the 4 ^th quarter of 2015.
· *Income before tax* came to €4,108m for 2016 as a whole, stable year-on-year (0.1%). This item stands at €902m in the 4 ^th quarter of 2016, up 23.7% year-on-year.

*3.1.1* *Banque Populaire: increase in the customer base*

The Banque Populaire network comprises the 15 Banque Populaire banks, including CASDEN Banque Populaire and Crédit Coopératif and their subsidiaries, Crédit Maritime Mutuel and the Mutual Guarantee Companies.

· *Customer base*

The Banque Populaire retail banking network is pursuing its strategy of providing its customers with greater banking services and products, leading to a 2.3% year-on-year increase in the number of principal active customers aged 25 or more using banking services (+74,400 clients). In this customer segment, customer using banking services and insurance products increased by 9.9% in the space of one year (+111,200 customers).
CASDEN Banque Populaire, a bank initially dedicated to civil servants working in education, research, and culture, broadened its remit in February 2016 to include the entire French civil service, which accounted for 70% of the 164,000 new members recorded during 2016.

· *Loan outstandings*

             * *
Customer loan outstandings stood at €182bn at end-December 2016, recording growth of 5.6% compared with the same date in 2015, and growth of 8.8% compared with the end of 2014.

· *Deposits & savings*

             * *
Customer deposits & savings stood at €241bn at December 31, 2016, equal to growth of 11.2% compared with December 31, 2014

· *Insurance*

             * *
Insurance activities continued to grow, with a 10.3% year-on-year growth in the portfolio of P&C/non-life insurance contracts and 9.9% growth for provide & health insurance.

· *Financial results*

             * *
*Net banking income* for full-year 2016 came to €6,302m (excluding changes in provisions for home purchase savings plans), down 3.2% versus 2015. This change is notably the result of a 6.2% decline in the net interest margin on customer operations (excluding changes in provisions for home purchase savings plans) and 0.6% drop in commissions. Net banking income for the 4 ^th quarter of 2016 stands at €1,580m (excluding changes in provisions for home purchase savings plans), equal to growth of 1.7% compared with the 4th quarter of 2015. When restated to account for capital gains of €73m realized on the disposal of an office building booked in the 3 ^rd quarter of 2015, net banking income (excluding changes in provisions for home purchase savings plans) for full-year 2016 shows a 2.1% decline compared with 2015.

*Operating expenses* for full-year 2016, which came to €4,271m (excluding exceptional items16), remain virtually stable (-0.2%) compared with 2015. In the 4 ^th quarter of 2016, expenses amounted to €1,072m, representing a decline of 1.5%

*Gross operating income* for full-year 2016 is equal to €2,024m (excluding exceptional items16), down 8.7% compared with full-year 2015. This item came to €519m in the 4 ^th quarter of 2015, up 11.6%.

The *cost of risk* in full-year 2016, equal to €508m, reflects a significant 18.7% decline compared with 2015. The cost of risk for the 4 ^th quarter of 2016 amounts to €149m, down by 16.8% compared with the 4 ^th quarter of 2015.

*Income before tax* (excluding exceptional items16) for full-year 2016 stands at €1,589m, down 2.3% compared with full-year 2015. This item is positive (+2.0%) when income before tax is restated to account for capital gains of €73m realized on the disposal of an office building booked in the 3 ^rd quarter of 2015.
In the 4 ^th quarter of 2016, income before tax (excluding exceptional items16) stands at €382m, up 32.4% compared with the same period in 2015. When restated to account for the impact of IFRIC 21, it comes to €367m, up 34.4%.

The *cost/income ratio* (excluding exceptional items16 and restated to account for the impact of IFRIC 21) increased by 2.0 percentage points in full-year 2016 to stand at 67.8%. It improved by 2.7 percentage points, to 68.3%, in the 4 ^th quarter of 2016.

*3.1.2* *Caisse d'Epargne: commercial performance buoyed up by the distribution of banking services and new share of the corporate & professional markets*

Caisse d'Epargne network comprises the 17 individual Caisses d'Epargne along with their subsidiaries.

· *Customer base*

The strategy of increasing the delivery of banking services to individual customers of the Caisse d'Epargne network was pursued in 2016 and led to 1.4% growth in the number of principal active customers aged 25 years or more using banking services, i.e. 73,500 additional customers. Within this customer segment, customers using banking services increased by 3.6%, representing a total of 114,000 customers. In the professional customer segment, the strategy of winning new customers led to a 5.4% increase in the number of active professional customers (+9,500 new customers in the space of one year). In the corporate customer segment, the number of active corporate customers has risen by 4.6% (+800 customers).

· *Loan outstandings*

Customer loan outstandings stood at €236bn at December 31, 2016, equal to growth of 5.1% compared with December 31, 2015 and 10.4% compared with December 31, 2014.

· *Deposits & savings*

Aggregate customer deposits & savings stood at €399bn at December 31, 2016, equal to growth of 2.9% compared with December 31, 2014.

· *Insurance*

The Caisse d'Epargne retail banking network continued to pursue strong growth in its insurance activities, leading to 7.6% growth in its portfolio of P&C/non-life contracts and growth of 9.7% in the provident and health insurance segment.

· *Financial results*

*Net banking income* for full-year 2016 stands at €7,208m (excluding changes in provisions for home purchase savings plans), down 0.9% compared with 2015. This decline is chiefly the result of a 6.2% decrease in customer net interest income (excluding changes in provisions for home purchase savings plans) and a 1.2% reduction in commissions. In the fourth quarter of 2016, net banking income (excluding changes in provisions for home purchase savings plans) stood at €1,758m, down 0.4%.

*Operating expenses* , excluding exceptional items16, slightly decreased compared with 2015 (-1.0%) and come to a total of €4,747m for full-year 2016. In the fourth quarter of 2016, they amount to €1,207m, down 2.7% compared with the fourth quarter of 2015.

*Gross operating income* , excluding exceptional items16, is equal to €2,468m for full-year 2016, up 0.9% compared with 2015. In the fourth quarter of 2016, it comes to €583m, reflecting a year-on-year increase of 12.7%.

The *cost of risk* , equal to €419m for full-year 2016, has fallen by a total of 26.4% compared with 2015. In the fourth quarter of 2016, it stood at €149m, down 0.2% compared with the 4 ^th quarter of 2015.

*Income before tax* , excluding exceptional items16, stands at €2,045m for full-year 2016, up 8.8% year-on-year, and at €433m for the fourth quarter, representing 16.0% growth in the space of one year. If the results are restated to account for the impact of IFRIC 21, income before tax comes to €415m in the fourth quarter of 2016, equal to 16.8% growth compared with the same period in 2015.

The *cost/income ratio* (excluding exceptional items16 and after restated to account for the impact of IFRIC 21) improved by a 0.4 percentage point, rising to 65.8% for full-year 2016. In the fourth quarter, it stands at 68.4%, equal to a 3.2-point decrease.

*3.1.3* *Other networks*

The Other networks business line groups together the activities pursued by Crédit Foncier, Banque Palatine, BPCE International and the minority equity interest in CNP Assurance (consolidated using the equity method).

· *Real estate financing*

Crédit Foncier is the principal entity contributing to the Real estate Financing business line.

Crédit Foncier's activities remained buoyant in 2016. Aggregate new loan production came to €9.6bn, including €7.1bn of home loans granted to individual customers.

In the 4 ^th quarter of 2016, aggregate new loan production stood at €3.2bn, including €2.3bn of home loans granted to individual customers.  

· *BPCE International*

BPCE International represents all the international subsidiaries of Groupe BPCE, with the exception of Natixis.

Loan outstandings stand at €5.7bn, down 3.5%; home loan outstandings boast 6.5% growth while equipment loans are down by 6.5%.
Customer deposits & savings, which stand at €5.3bn, have decreased by 1.1%, despite 2.6% growth of demand deposits.

· *Banque Palatine*

Buoyed up by the production of new home loans (+5.5%), the average position of aggregate loan outstandings enjoyed 3.7% growth to reach a total of €8.1bn.
Within the framework of the policy to keep a tight management over the cost of resources, the average position of customer deposits & savings declined by 6.8% overall, to €16.5bn, including a 13.7% decrease in demand deposits. *
*
*3.2* *Business lines of Natixis* ^[17] * ^,* ^[18] *(Investment Solutions, Corporate & Investment Banking and Specialized Financial Services): net revenues of more than €8.1bn in 2016*

The *net banking income* ^[19] of the business lines of Natixis (Investment Solutions, Corporate & Investment Banking, and Specialized Financial Services) came to 8,105 million euros at December 31, 2016, up 2.9% year-on-year (Investment Solutions -4.3%, CIB +11.0%, SFS +3.2%). In the 4 ^th quarter of 2016 it stood at 2,141 million euros, reflecting 2.8% growth compared with the 4th quarter of 2015 (Investment Solutions - 10.2%, CIB +20.8%, SFS +2.1%).

The *operating expenses* of the business lines of Natixis amounted to 5,262 million euros at December 31, 2016, up 3.3% on a year-on-year basis. These expenses stood at 1,412 million euros in the 4 ^th quarter of 2016, up 3.8% compared with the 4th quarter of 2015.

The *gross operating income* 19 of the business lines of Natixis came to 2,843 million euros at December 31, 2016, representing 2.1% growth compared with December 31, 2015. This item stood at 729 million euros in the 4 ^th quarter of 2016, up 1.1% on a year-on-year basis.

The *cost of risk* of the business lines of Natixis amounted to 252 million euros for 2016 as a whole, down 0.4% compared with full-year 2015. In the 4th quarter of 2016, the cost of risk has improved with a 45.6% reduction, to reach 36 million euros.

The *income before tax* 19 of the business lines of Natixis came to 2,666 million euros at December 31, 2016, up 3.4% on a year-on-year basis. Income before tax stood at 697 million euros in the 4 ^th quarter of the year, up 3.3%.

*Restated to account for the impact of IFRIC 21* , income before tax at December 31, 2016 stands at 2,666 million euros, up 3.4% compared with December 31, 2015. It came to 680 million euros in the 4 ^th quarter of 2016, up 3.5%. On a division-by-division basis, income before tax can be broken down as follows:

· The *Investment Solutions* division reported *income before tax* 19 of 1 045 million euros for 2016 as a whole, down 10.2% compared with full-year 2015. The Investment Solutions division accounted for 39% of the income before tax of the business lines excluding exceptional items. In the 4 ^th quarter of 2016, income before tax stood at 278 million euros, down 23.1% compared with the 4 ^th quarter of 2015.

· In the *Corporate & Investment Banking* division, *income before tax* came to 1178 million euros for 2016 as a whole, up 15.1%. The Corporate & Investment Banking division accounted for 44% of the income before tax of the business lines excluding exceptional items. In the 4 ^th quarter of 2016, income before tax enjoyed growth of 54.4% compared with the 4 ^th quarter of 2015, rising to 299 million euros.

· The *income before tax of the Specialized Financial Services (SFS)* division enjoyed growth of 12.9% for 2016 as a whole, rising to 444 million euros. The Specialized Financial Services division accounted for 17% of the income before tax of the business lines excluding exceptional items. In the 4 ^th quarter of 2016, income before tax rose by 0.9% compared with the 4 ^th quarter of 2015 to reach a total of 103 million euros.

Restated to account for the impact of IFRIC 21, the *cost/income ratio* 19 of the business lines of Natixis is equal to 64.9% at December 31, 2016, representing an increase of 0.3 point. In the 4 ^th quarter of this year, it stood at 66.7%, equal to a 0.5-point improvement.

Restated to account for the impact of IFRIC 21, *ROE* 19 was equal to 13% at December 31, 2016, up one point compared with the same period in 2015. In the 4 ^th quarter of 2016, it rose one point compared with the 4 ^th quarter of 2015 to reach 13%.

(For a more detailed analysis of the business lines and results of Natixis, please refer to the press release published by Natixis that may be consulted online at www.natixis.com ). *
*
*NON-ECONOMIC AND EXCEPTIONAL ITEMS FOR FULL-YEAR 2016*

  *2016*   *2015 pf*
In millions of euros *Income before tax* *Net income attributable to equity holders of the parent*   *Income before tax* *Net income attributable to equity holders of the parent*
*Non-economic items of an accounting nature* *28* *17*   *106* *60*
Revaluation of assets associated with deeply subordinated notes denominated in foreign currencies (Corporate center) 28 17   106 60
*Disposal of non-strategic holdings and assets managed on a run-off basis* *765* *768* * * *32* *66*
Capital gains on the disposal of Visa Europe (Corporate center)             831 797      
Disposal of share capital of Nexity (Corporate center)             39 40   130 126
Disposal of international assets managed on a run-off basis (Corporate center) - 106 - 69   - 98 - 61
*Transformation and reorganization costs* *- 99* *- 89* * * *- 19* *- 12*
Transformation costs (Commercial Banking & Insurance) - 145 - 95   -19 - 12
Coface reorganization              56 11      
Operational Efficiency Transformation Plan (Natixis - Corporate center)             - 9 - 4      
*Legal disputes* *- 69* *- 32* * * *- 30* *- 13*
SWL Natixis legal dispute (CIB) - 69 - 32      
Settlement of 2008 legal dispute (Natixis - Corporate center)                   - 30 - 13
*Impairment of goodwill and others* *- 72* *- 70* * * *- 156* *- 108*
Impairment of goodwill and other gains or losses on other assets (Corporate center) - 57 - 56   -49 - 40
Banca Carige / Prolonged decline in value (Corporate center) - 15 - 15   -4 - 4
Heta Asset Resolution AG (Corporate center)                   -104 - 64
* Total impact
of non-economic and exceptional items * *554* *593* * * *-66* *- 7*

2015 results are presented pro forma (cf. notes on methodology at the end of this press release)

*NON-ECONOMIC AND EXCEPTIONAL ITEMS FOR THE 4TH QUARTER OF 2016*

  *Q4-16*   *Q4-15 pf*
In millions of euros *Income before tax* *Net income attributable to equity holders of the parent*   *Income before tax* *Net income attributable to equity holders of the parent*
*Non-economic items of an accounting nature* *60* *36* * * *26* *14*
Revaluation of assets associated with deeply subordinated notes denominated in foreign currencies (Corporate center) 60 36   26 14
*Disposal of non-strategic holdings and assets managed on a run-off basis* *- 41* *- 27* * * *- 50* *- 31*
Capital gains on the disposal of Visa Europe (Corporate center)                      
Disposal of share capital of Nexity (Corporate center)                      
Disposal of international assets managed on a run-off basis (Corporate center) - 41 - 27   - 50 - 31
*Transformation and reorganization costs* *- 43* *- * *52* * * *- 9* *- 5*
Transformation costs (Commercial Banking & Insurance) - 89 - 59   - 9 - 5
Coface reorganization             56 11      
Operational Efficiency Transformation Plan (Natixis - Corporate center)             - 9 - 4      
*Legal disputes*                      
SWL Natixis legal dispute (CIB)                      
Settlement of 2008 legal dispute (Natixis - Corporate center)                      
*Impairment of goodwill and others* *- 78* *- 78* * * *- 17* *- 17*
Impairment of goodwill and other gains or losses on other assets (Corporate center) - 78 - 78   - 15 -15
Banca Carige / Prolonged decline in value (Corporate center)                   -3 - 3
Heta Asset Resolution AG (Corporate center)                      
* Total impact
of non-economic and exceptional items * *- 101* *- 121* * * *- 50* *- 39*

Q4-15 results are presented pro forma (cf. notes on methodology at the end of this press release)

For further details about the financial results for the 4 ^th quarter and full-year 2016, please consult the Investors/Results section of the corporate website www.bpce.fr

The consolidated financial statements of Groupe BPCE for the fiscal period ended December 31, 2016 approved by the Management Board at a meeting convened on February 6, 2017, were verified and reviewed by the Supervisory Board at a meeting convened on February 9, 2017.

The audit procedures relating to the consolidated financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2016 have been substantially completed. The reports of the statutory auditors regarding the certification of these consolidated financial statements will be published following the verification of the Management Report and the finalization of the procedures required for the registration of the reference document.

*Notes on methodology*

* Presentation of 2015 and 2016 pro-forma quarterly results *
The segment information was modified as of Q1-16 after the Equity interests division was subsumed into the Corporate center division.
On September 18, 2015, BPCE International transferred to the Caisse d'Epargne Provence-Alpes-Corse the entire equity interest it held in Banque de la Réunion, Banque des Antilles Françaises and Banque de Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon. The revenues generated by these entities have been attributed retroactively to the Caisse d'Epargne sub-division. This operation has no impact on the Commercial Banking & Insurance division as a whole.
The retroactive application since January 1st, 2015 of the change in the accounting method whereby assets and liabilities denominated in foreign currencies are hedged by currency swaps (with the impacts of the inefficiency of hedging now being recorded in transferable capital) has led to a restatement of the 2015 quarterly reviews; this restatement has no impact on the 2015 annual result.
The series of financial reports for 2015 is also presented pro forma to account for the transfer of expenses from the Corporate Center division to the SFS division.
The method used to account for renegotiation fees charged by the retail networks has been standardized between 2015 and 2016 leading to a pro-forma figure for the 2015 financial year. In 2016, renegotiation fees are accounted for in net interest margin over the period whereas in 2015 certain entities accounted for these fees in commissions, on a one-off basis.
With regard to the CIB division, the presentation has been updated to reflect the new organization announced on March 15, 2016. This update takes account in particular of the creation of the Global finance & Investment banking business line that henceforth encompasses all the Financing activities (structured and plain vanilla) in addition to the M&A, Equity Capital Markets and Debt Capital Markets businesses.
The IFRS 9 standard adopted in November 2016 permits the early adoption - starting with the financial year ended on Dec. 31, 2016 - of regulatory provisions governing the bank's own credit risk, to the effect that all changes will henceforth be recorded in shareholders' equity and no longer as previously in the income statement. The first three quarters of 2016 and the 2015 series of quarterly reviews have been restated accordingly.

* Non-economic and exceptional items *
The non-economic and exceptional items and the reconciliation of the restated income statement with the income statement published by Groupe BPCE are provided in an annex to this document.
As of Q1-16, the contribution to the Single Resolution Fund, accounted for in the operating expenses of the Corporate center, is no longer restated as an exceptional item.
When the Q1-15 results were published, the amount recognized as the Group's contribution to the Single Resolution Fund was based on an estimate. The series of financial reports for 2015 has been restated to reflect the actual amount of the Q1-15 contribution to the SRF as calculated by the supervisory authority. This restatement has no impact on the 2015 annual result. Similarly, following notification of the actual amount of the contribution in Q2-16, the amount of the SRF recognized in Q1-16 has been readjusted.
The Group has launched a number of transformation operations helping to simplify its organizational structure and to generate synergies. The resulting transformation costs (restructuring expenses specific to projects for the combination/merger of entities and the migration to existing IT platforms) have been isolated on a retrospective basis as of Q2-16.

* Net banking income *
Net customer interest income, excluding regulated home savings schemes, is computed on the basis of interest earned from transactions with customers, excluding net interest on centralized savings products (Livret A, Livret Développement Durable, Livret Epargne Logement passbook savings accounts) in addition to changes in provisions for regulated home purchase savings schemes. Net interest on centralized savings are assimilated to commissions.

* Operating expenses *
The operating expenses correspond to the aggregate total of the "Operating Expenses" (as presented in the Group's registration document, note 6.6 appended to the consolidated financial statements of Groupe BPCE) and "Depreciation, amortization and impairment for property, plant and equipment and intangible assets."

* Restatement of the impact of IFRIC 21 *
The results, cost/income ratios and ROE, after being restated to account for the impact of IFRIC 21, are calculated on the basis of one quarter of the amount of taxes and contributions resulting from the interpretation of IFRIC 21 for a given quarter, or one half of the amount of taxes and contributions resulting from the interpretation of IFRIC 21 for a 6-month period. In practice, for Groupe BPCE, the principal taxes concerned by IFRIC 21 are the company social solidarity contribution (C3S) and contributions and levies of a regulatory nature (systemic risk tax levied on banking institutions, contribution to ACPR control costs, contribution to the Single Resolution Fund and the Single Supervisory Mechanism).

* Cost of risk *
The cost of risk is expressed in basis points and measures the level of risk per business line as a percentage of the volume of loan outstandings; it is calculated by comparing net provisions booked with respect to credit risks of the period to gross customer loan outstandings at the beginning of the period.

* Business line performance presented using Basel 3 standards *
The *accounting ROE of Groupe BPCE* is the ratio between the following items:
Net income attributable to equity holders of the parent restated to account for the interest expense related to deeply subordinated notes classified as equity and for non-economic and exceptional items
Equity attributable to equity holders of the parent restated to account for the deeply subordinated notes classified as equity and for unrealized gains and losses
The *normative ROE of the business lines* (Commercial Banking & Insurance; Investment Solutions, Corporate & Investment Banking, and Specialized Financial Services) is the ratio between the following items:
Business line contributory net income attributable to equity holders of the parent, less interest (computed at the standard rate of 3%) paid on surplus equity compared with normative capital and restated to account for non-economic and exceptional items
Normative capital adjusted to reflect goodwill and intangible assets related to the business line
Normative capital is allocated to Groupe BPCE business lines since Q1-15 on the basis of 10% of Basel-3 average RWA.

* Capital adequacy *
* Common Equity Tier 1 * is determined in accordance with the applicable CRR/CRD 4 rules; *fully-loaded* equity is presented without the application of transitional measures, except for deferred tax assets on tax loss carryforwards and pro forma of the additional phase-in of the stock of DTA in accordance with regulation 2016/445.
* Additional Tier-1 capital * takes account of subordinated debt issues that have become non-eligible and subject to ceilings at the phase- out rate in force.
The *leverage ratio* is calculated using the rules of the Delegated Act published by the European Commission on October 10, 2014, without transitional measures, after restating to account for deferred tax assets on tax loss carryforwards. Securities financing operations carried out with clearing houses are offset on the basis of the criteria set forth in IAS 32, without consideration of maturity and currency criteria. Account has been taken in the total leverage exposure of savings deposits centralized with the Caisse des Dépo ts et Consignations since Q1-16.

* Total loss-absorbing capacity *
* The amount of liabilities eligible for inclusion in the numerator used to calculate the TLAC ratio (Total Loss-Absorbing Capacity) * is determined on the basis of our understanding of the Term Sheet published by the FSB on November 9, 2015: "Principles on Loss-Absorbing and Recapitalization Capacity of G-SIBs in Resolution."
This amount is comprised of the following 4 items:

· Common Equity Tier 1 in accordance with the applicable CRR/CRD IV rules,
· Additional Tier-1 capital in accordance with the applicable CRR/CRD IV rules,
· Tier-2 capital in accordance with the applicable CRR/CRD IV rules,
· Subordinated liabilities not recognized in the capital mentioned above and whose residual maturity is greater than 1 year, namely:

· The share of additional Tier-1 capital instruments not recognized in common equity (i.e. included in the phase-out),
· The share of the prudential discount on Tier-2 capital instruments whose residual maturity is greater than 1 year,
· The nominal amount of senior non-preferred securities maturing in more than 1 year.

Eligible amounts differ slightly from the amounts adopted for the numerator of the capital adequacy ratios; these eligible amounts are determined using the principles defined in the Term Sheet published by the FSB on Nov. 9, 2015.

* Liquidity *
* Total liquidity reserves * include:
Central bank-eligible assets include: ECB-eligible securities not eligible for the LCR, taken for their ECB valuation (after ECB haircut), securities retained (securitization and covered bonds) that are available and ECB-eligible taken for their ECB valuation (after ECB haircut) and private receivables available and eligible for central bank funding (ECB and Federal Reserve), net of central bank funding.
LCR eligible assets comprising the Group's LCR reserve taken for their LCR valuation.
Liquid assets placed with central banks (ECB and the Federal Reserve), net of US MMF (Money Market Funds) deposits and to which fiduciary money is added.

* Short-term funding * corresponds to funding with an initial maturity of less than or equal to 1 year, and *the short-term maturities of medium-/long-term debt* correspond to debt with an initial maturity date of more than 1 year maturing within the next 12 months *.*

The Group's *LTD ratio (customer loan-to-deposit ratio)* is the ratio between customer loans and centralized regulated passbook savings accounts in the numerator, and customer deposits in the denominator. The scope of the calculation excludes SCF (Compagnie de Financement Foncier, the Group's société de crédit foncier, a French covered bond issuer). These items are taken from the Group's accounting balance sheet after accounting for the insurance entities using the equity method. Customers' deposits have been subject to the following adjustments:
Addition of security issues placed by the Banque Populaire and Caisse d'Epargne retail banking networks with their customers, and certain operations carried out with counterparties comparable to customer deposits
Withdrawal of short-term deposits held by certain financial customers collected by Natixis in pursuit of its intermediation activities.

* Loan outstandings and deposits & savings *
Restatements regarding transitions from book outstandings to outstandings under management (loans and deposits & savings) are as follows:
Deposits & savings: the scope of outstandings under management excludes debt securities (certificates of deposit and savings bonds)
Loan outstandings: the scope of outstandings under management excludes securities classified as customer loans and receivables and other securities classified as financial operations.

*About Groupe BPCE*
Groupe BPCE, the 2 ^nd -largest banking group in France, includes two independent and complementary cooperative commercial banking networks: the network of 15 Banque Populaire banks and the network of 17 Caisses d'Epargne. It also works through Crédit Foncier in the area of real estate financing. It is a major player in Investment Solutions & Insurance, Corporate & Investment Banking and Specialized Financial Services with Natixis. Groupe BPCE, with its 108,000 employees, serves a total of 31.2 million customers and enjoys a strong local presence in France with 8,000 branches and 9 million cooperative shareholders.

*Groupe BPCE press contacts*
Sabine Baudin: 33-1 58 40 47 62
Anne-Laure Declaye: 33-1 58 40 61 79
Marie de Clercq: 33-1 58 40 59 26
mail: presse@bpce.fr

  *BPCE investor relations*
Roland Charbonnel: 33-1 58 40 69 30
Evelyne Etcheverry: 33-1 58 40 57 46
Geraldine Lamarque : 33-1 58 40 33 96
mail: investor.relations@bpce.fr

         www.bpce.fr * *
--------------------

^[1] 2015 and Q4-15 are presented pro forma (cf. the note on methodology at the end of this press release); unless specified to the contrary, all changes use the same reference base of December 31,2015

^[2] Entities included: CNP Assurances, Natixis Assurances, Prépar vie (gross inflows from the Banque Populaire and Caisse d'Epargne retail banking networks)

^[3] Excluding non-economic and exceptional items

^[4] Excluding changes in provisions for home purchase savings schemes and after restating to account for €73m in capital gains on real estate asset disposal recognized in 2015 

^[5] Estimate at Dec. 31, 2016 - CRR/CRD IV without transitional measures (except for deferred tax assets on tax loss carryforwards and pro forma of the additional phase-in of the stock of DTA in accordance with regulation 2016/445); additional Tier-1 capital takes account of subordinated debt issues that have become ineligible and capped at the phase-out rate in force

^[6] 2015 and Q4-15 are presented pro forma (cf. the note on methodology at the end of this press release); unless specified to the contrary, all changes use the same reference base of December 31,2015

^[7] Cost of risk expressed in annualized basis points on gross customer outstandings at the beginning of the period 

^[8] Excluding non-economic and exceptional items listed on pages 15 and 16 of the press release

^[9] Excluding non-economic and exceptional items and after restating to account for the impact of IFRIC 21 

^[10] CRR/CRD  IV without transitional measures (except for deferred tax assets on tax loss carryforwards - pro forma of the additional phase-in of the stock of DTA in accordance with regulation 2016/445 for periods prior to December 31, 2016); additional Tier-1 capital takes account of subordinated debt issues that have become ineligible and capped at the phase-out rate in force 

^[11] According to the term sheet published by the Financial Stability Board on the Total Loss-Absorbing Capacity dated November 9, 2015 

^[12] Estimate at Dec. 31, 2016 calculated using the rules of the Delegated Act published by the European Commission on October 10, 2014  -CRR / CRD IV without transitional measures, after restating to account for deferred tax assets on tax loss carryforwards and pro forma of the additional phase-in of the stock of DTA in accordance with regulation 2016/445 for periods prior to December 31, 2016; additional Tier-1 capital takes account of subordinated debt issues that have become ineligible and capped at the phase-out rate in force

^[13] Excluding MMF US Natixis deposits 

^[14] 2015 and Q4-15 are presented pro forma (cf. the note on methodology at the end of this press release); unless specified to the contrary, all changes use the same reference base of December 31,2015

^[15] Share of household market, source: Banque de France, Q3-16

^[16] The exceptional items correspond to the transformation costs incurred in the BP and CE retail banking networks and have an impact on the operating expenses

^[17] Contribution figures different from figures published by Natixis

^[18] 2015 and Q4-15 are presented pro forma (cf. the note on methodology at the end of this press release); unless specified to the contrary, all changes use the same reference base of December 31,2015

^[19] Excluding an exceptional item impacting the revenues of the Corporate & Investment Banking division and corresponding to the SWL litigation   

Group BPCE: Q4 and FY results
--------------------This announcement is distributed by NASDAQ OMX Corporate Solutions on behalf of NASDAQ OMX Corporate Solutions clients.

The issuer of this announcement warrants that they are solely responsible for the content, accuracy and originality of the information contained therein.

Source: BPCE via GlobeNewswire

HUG#2077454 Reported by GlobeNewswire 9 hours ago.

HHS Pick Price Made ‘Brazen’ Stock Trades While His Committee Was Under Scrutiny

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Health and Human Services secretary nominee Tom Price showed little restraint in his personal stock trading during the three years that federal investigators were bearing down on a key House committee on which the Republican congressman served, a review of his financial disclosures shows.

Price made dozens of health industry stock trades during a three-year investigation by the Securities and Exchange Commission that focused on the Ways and Means Committee, according to financial disclosure records he filed with the House of Representatives. The investigation was considered the first test of a law passed to ban members of Congress and their staffs from trading stock based on insider information.

Price was never a target of the federal investigation, which scrutinized a top Ways and Means staffer, and no charges were brought. But ethics experts say Price’s personal trading, even during the thick of federal pressure on his committee, shows he was unconcerned about financial investments that could create an appearance of impropriety.

“He should have known better,” Richard Painter, former White House chief ethics attorney under President George W. Bush and a professor at the University of Minnesota Law School said of Price’s conduct during the SEC inquiry.

As Price awaits a Senate vote on his confirmation, Senate Democrats and a number of watchdog groups have asked the SEC to investigate whether Price engaged in insider trading with some of his trades in health care companies. Price has said he abided by all ethics rules, although he acknowledged to the Senate Finance Committee that he did not consult the House Ethics Committee on trades that have now become controversial.

The SEC’s inquiry began in 2013, as it battled Ways and Means for documents to develop its case.

A few weeks ago, the day before President Donald Trump’s inauguration, the SEC quietly dropped its pursuit of committee documents without explanation, according to federal court records. No charges were brought against the staffer, Brian Sutter, who is now a health care lobbyist. Sutter’s lawyer declined to comment.

Craig Holman, government affairs lobbyist with Public Citizen, described Price’s volume of stock trades during the SEC inquiry as “brazen,” given the congressman’s access to nonpublic information affecting the companies’ fortunes.

“The public is seeing this and they really don’t like it,” said Holman whose watchdog group recently filed complaints about Price’s stock trading with both the SEC and the Office of Congressional Ethics.

Trump administration officials and Price have dismissed questions that news reports and lawmakers have raised about stock trades coinciding with official actions to help certain companies, saying Price’s brokers chose the stocks independently and all of his conduct was transparent.

After acknowledging that he asked his broker to buy stock in an Australian drug company, he told the Senate Finance Committee that he did not direct his broker to make other trades.

“To the best of my knowledge, I have not undertaken such actions,” he wrote in response to finance committee questions. “I have abided by and adhered to all ethics and conflict of interest rules applicable to me.”

An analysis of Price’s trades shows that he bought health stocks in 2007, the first year Congress financial disclosures are posted online. In 2011, the the first year Price sat on the health subcommittee, he traded no health-related stocks, according to his financial disclosures filed with Congress.

That same year, members were facing public criticism because of a book detailing how they could use inside information and a “60 Minutes” investigation focused on how members and staff could legally use inside information to gain from their own stock trades.

In 2012, President Barack Obama signed the Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge Act to rein in insider trading by members and require more disclosure. Public watchdog groups suggested at the time that the law would curb the practice.

That year, after his one-year break in health care trades, Price resumed investing in health care companies.

Along with investments in technology, financial services and retail stocks, he also bought and sold stock in companies that could be impacted by actions of his subcommittee, which has a role in determining rates the government pays under the Medicare program.

Health care firms spend heavily to influence members of Congress, lobbying on health matters, funding political campaigns and seeking favor with Medicare officials who decide how much the program will pay for certain drugs and devices. The Food and Drug Administration holds similar power, approving or putting conditions on drug and device use.

Beyond his personal investments in health care companies, Price has also advocated their interests in letters to officials and proposed laws, government records show.

In 2012, disclosure records show Price sold stock in several drug firms, including more than $110,000 worth of Amgen stock. Amgen’s stock price had steadily climbed out of a recession-level slump, but Price’s sale came a few weeks before the company pleaded guilty to illegally marketing an anemia drug.

By 2013, the health subcommittee was at the center of a major conflict between Medicare, which sets Medicare Advantage rates, and the insurance industry. Medicare issued a notice early that year announcing its intention to reduce Medicare Advantage rates by 2.3 percent as part of a major cost-cutting initiative.

That prompted fierce lobbying by the health insurance industry. Members of Congress, including Price, wrote a letter to Marilyn Tavenner, then acting administrator for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, protesting the rate cut, saying the decrease would “disadvantage vulnerable beneficiaries with multiple chronic conditions.”

Ultimately, Medicare decided not to cut rates but instead, to increase them. Yet an hour before Medicare announced the change, a Height Securities analyst fired off a “flash” report to 200 clients that touched off a surge of trading.

The analyst’s report said a political deal was hatched on Capitol Hill to prevent the cuts as a condition for moving forward on Tavenner’s confirmation. Medicare officials increased rates by nearly 4 percent, a change that would positively impact the bottom lines of health insurance companies.

The SEC began looking for the leak’s source, and within weeks, FBI agents began interviewing staffers at the Ways and Means Committee, court records show.

They discovered communications between Sutter and a health care lobbyist. The HHS Inspector General also began a probe, and federal prosecutors briefly examined the matter activity as well.

As the case unfolded, Price bought more health care-related stocks, according to his financial disclosures. He has testified that his broker directed all of the trades, except for his investments in Innate Immunotherapeutics, an Australian company partly owned by Rep. Chris Collins (R-N.Y.), according to Collins’ disclosures. An HHS spokesman said Monday that Price held three broker-directed accounts.

Ethics experts have said that Price should have further distanced himself by placing his assets in a blind trust.

On April 30, 2013, Price bought $2,093 worth of stocks in Incyte, a company that develops cancer drugs; $2,076 in Onyx Pharmaceuticals, a drugmaker that would soon merge with a larger drug firm; and $2,097 in Parexel International, a consultancy that helps drugs and devices win FDA approval, according to the financial disclosure records.

The same day, Price shed shares of Express Scripts, a drug management firm, and Danaher, which makes products hospitals and doctor’s offices using for testing and diagnostics. In August of that year, he bought a $2,429 stake in Jazz Pharmaceuticals, which makes sleep and cancer drugs.

On May 6, 2014, the SEC served its first subpoena for the Ways and Means Committee documents. The committee launched a vigorous fight, appealing a federal district judge’s ruling that it should comply with the SEC subpoena.

Price continued his health stock trades, including $1,000 to $15,000 in drug firms Amgen, Eli Lilly and Co., Pfizer, Biogen and Bristol-Myers Squibb. He also bought stocks in Aetna, a major health insurer, and Athenahealth, which sells electronic medical record and medical billing software. In 2016, he also increased his investment in Innate Immunotherapeutics.

The purchase became controversial because both he and Collins bought stock in a private placement at a discounted price.

“You’re asking for trouble if you have access to nonpublic information about the health care industry and you’re buying and selling health care stocks,” Painter said.

-- 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 6 hours ago.
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