SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — A Utah senator says he’s trying to promote self-reliance and discourage “socialism” by proposing to make new legal immigrants wait five years before receiving coverage through government health insurance programs. The Salt Lake Tribune reported Thursday that critics of State Sen. Allen Christensen’s plan says it’s mean-spirited and will strip […]
Reported by Seattle Times 11 hours ago.
Utah lawmaker’s plan would kick immigrant kids off insurance
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Congress faces pressing issues upon its return
Deadlines looming on difficult issues - including how to fund the government, stabilizing the nation's health insurance program for poor children, and immigration
Reported by nola.com 9 hours ago.
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Ringing in the New Year with a Forecast of the Top 10 Carbon Market Trends
The Climate Trust’s annual predictions on carbon market policies and ideas that will matter in 2018
PORTLAND, Ore. (PRWEB) January 02, 2018
The Climate Trust, a mission-driven nonprofit that specializes in mobilizing finance for conservation projects, announced its fifth annual prediction list of carbon market trends.
The trends, which range from the maritime industry following aviation’s lead in carbon reduction commitments to increased dismantling of federal agencies addressing climate change, were identified by The Climate Trust based on interactions with their diverse group of working partners—government, investors, project developers, corporates, and the philanthropic community.
“In the face of federal inaction, the momentum around climate action in 2017 was extraordinary,” said Sean Penrith, Executive Director for The Climate Trust. “When our team gathered together to discuss our predictions for the New Year, it quickly became apparent that despite the big lift ahead of the U.S. (and the world) related to climate change, the room was filled with an overwhelming sense of positivity and anticipation to see what we could collectively accomplish in another year’s time. We hope that sentiment is reflected in our forecast.”
1. More links will be added to the cap and trade chain gang. North America has had two regional cap and trade markets operating the last several years, the Western Climate Initiative (WCI), involving California, Ontario and Quebec, and the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI), involving nine northeastern states. Mexico has just crashed the party announcing in mid-December plans to launch a national mandatory market in August 2018. The list of jurisdictions linking up with cap and trade markets will only grow in 2018. New Jersey and Virginia are on a clear pathway to join RGGI, and several states that are already part of RGGI are considering expanding cap and trade to the transportation sector. Oregon is also poised to join WCI in 2018, as passing cap and trade legislation is one of the Governor’s top priorities. Ontario is facing political uncertainty around its future in WCI with the party leading the polls pledging to pull out of WCI and pass a revenue neutral carbon tax instead. Despite this pledge, the challenges of pulling out of the linked market and broad business support in Ontario belie that a change in government doesn’t necessarily mean the end of cap and trade in Ontario. A dark horse jurisdiction may also emerge in 2018. Expect 2018 to be the year of continued momentum towards expanding cap and trade markets, and the emergence of new states examining whether such an approach makes sense for them.
2. States, U.S. cities will quicken the pace in developing climate change adaptation plans. 2017 was a horrific year for natural disasters that wrought havoc throughout the United States. By October, natural disasters had already cost the United States over $25 billion according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and that was before wildfires broke out in southern California. PBS reports that 2017 is on track to break records for the number of major natural disasters in a year. With many of these events crippling major U.S. cities, officials and citizens will be thinking hard about how to prepare their cities for a future with more frequent and stronger disasters. Some cities have already taken the lead on developing and implementing climate adaptation strategies, such as Miami Beach’s efforts to elevate streets and install pumps. In 2018, we predict that a record number of cities will begin the process of developing climate change adaptation plans.
3. Institutional investors will increasingly count social and environmental impact as part of their fiduciary obligation. Foundations will follow McKnight's early lead by committing to invest endowment dollars (not just grant money) into climate mitigation and social improvement projects. Likewise, university endowments will adopt policies that address climate change in their investment portfolios as an integral part of their fiduciary commitment.
4. Shipping will follow aviation’s lead and agree to a carbon reduction commitment that will rely on offsets at the onset. A few years ago, the biggest future carbon market you’ve never heard of was created when the international aviation sector agreed to carbon reduction targets. Given the international nature of airline travel, aviation emissions have proven difficult to regulate. The establishment of a commitment, overseen by the United Nations International Civil Aviation Organization, and the creation of an offset market to allow the sector time to develop biofuels and fuel-efficient fleets, has provided a roadmap for other multi-national industries to follow. The clear candidate to follow this blueprint is the maritime industry. Although a growing number of shippers have called for some form of regulation, developing countries, which are dependent on ships to transport their manufactured goods to major markets in developed countries, have called for a go-slow approach. However, annual shipping emissions are already 30% greater than those from air travel and forecast to grow by another 17% if left unchecked. Meeting the Paris commitments will require progress on developing and agreeing to a framework for the shipping industry—just like in the aviation sector.
5. The first year of the Trump administration has seen deregulation and dismantling at agencies working to combat climate change. While President Trump has made broad and sweeping actions to reverse progress on addressing climate change, such as withdrawing the United States from the Paris Agreement, deliberate and quiet efforts are having a powerful effect at the agency level. Scott Pruitt, Director of the EPA, has taken a meticulous approach to deconstructing decades of regulation and basic environmental protections, including repeal of the Obama-era Clean Power Plan, which sought to curb greenhouse gas emissions. The Department of the Interior announced plans to hold the largest-ever auction of oil and gas leases in the Gulf of Mexico, and many scientific and administrative posts have been filled with people hostile to curbing greenhouse gas emissions. With at least three more years of the Trump presidency to go, we predict that the EPA and offices focused on climate change in other agencies will see further deconstruction in 2018.
6. The Trump administration’s intransigence on climate science will backfire in the 2018 midterms. Republicans remain the only major party in a global democracy to deny basic climate science. With intensifying weather, scientific consensus that anthropogenic greenhouse gases are to blame, and cheap renewables and electrified transportation demonstrating that mitigation can be affordable and improve our lives, the position of the Trump administration and many Republican party members simply cannot be sustained. In 2018, we expect Democrats to increasingly fight for the economic and environmental benefits of carbon pricing and look to chastise climate-denying legislators for their ignorance and intransigence. This strategy (which David Roberts calls “agnoism”) will pay dividends in the 2018-midterm elections, and Republicans will (slowly) reconsider the tenability of their outdated position on climate change.
7. U.S. companies will voluntarily, and increasingly, report on financial policies and performance related to the environment and social responsibility. The Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB) recently published its Exposure Draft Standards for 79 industries, with the public comment period having closed on December 31, 2017. We predict there will be a continued increase in the number of U.S. companies that choose to include discussion of their policies and performance regarding the environment, social responsibility and similar matters in their required external reports or in what is often referred to as a sustainability report. Even though the standards are not legal requirements, we predict an upturn in voluntary acceptance that will inspire other companies to feel obligated to provide similar disclosure to their stakeholders. Due to the prominence and credibility of the SASB Board members, the SASB has generated considerable momentum in a short period. The end result is a win-win for the companies and capital markets because the disclosures are not onerous and focus on financially material sustainability factors that result in providing extremely useful information for investors.
8. Public support of dairy digester development will shift to credit enhancements to mitigate risks for private investors. Explosive growth in the development of California digesters will continue in 2018. In 2017, California awarded grants to build 18 new digesters over the next two years (which will almost double the number of digesters in the state). With double the funding available in 2018, we expect more than 35 new projects to be supported. As projects become more cost-effective, their technology becomes increasingly understood and their impacts are proven, private capital can, and should, play a greater role in building new digesters to meet the state’s goals—significantly reducing methane emissions. To encourage this transition, expect climate-policy advocates, project developers, and the dairy industry to increasingly advocate for shifting public support from grant making to credit enhancements that mitigate risks for private investors in dairy digesters. In 2018 we expect to see a final design for California’s pilot financial mechanism to be proposed. We also expect a large number of advocates will line up to fund this mechanism, with at least $25 million to backstop price guarantees for the environmental markets that drive project economics but face real regulatory risk.
9. Climate smart agriculture and soil health will gain prominence in 2018. Collective activities in agriculture, forestry, and land use change are responsible for 21% of our global emissions, second only to the energy sector. The international 2017 climate talks in Bonn released the blockade restraining the agricultural sector from playing an active role in solutions for climate change. At the 23rd Conference of Parties (COP), the Subsidiary Body for Implementation (SBI) and the Subsidiary Body for Scientific and Technological Advice (SBSTA) took up the charge to “address issues related to agriculture.” The path set by the SBI and the SBSTA now engages agriculture as a strategic priority to develop on-the-ground practices that help curb greenhouse gas emissions. The Nature Conservancy found that natural climate solutions offers over one-third of the cost-effective climate mitigation we need by 2030 to achieve our Paris target of a less than 2 °C world. We will witness agriculture step up and adapt to climate friendly practices in the face of global population growth and the impacts of rising temperatures on smallholder farmers. The Sustainable Development Goal of achieving a hunger-free world by 2030 is being challenged by these mounting influences. The outcome of COP23 means that the theory, research, and discussions on agriculture will finally turn into tangible action on the ground.
10. Global health implications of climate change will sound an alarm for insurance markets. Climate change is on track to deliver “the biggest global health threat of the 21st century,” according to the British medical publication, The Lancet. Increasing global temperatures will aid the spread of vector-borne diseases like Malaria, Lyme disease, Zika virus, and water born illnesses such as Cholera and Toxoplasmosis. We have already begun experiencing the increased mortality risks from flooding, intense precipitation, and high summer temperatures and fires. Sadly, we will witness even more pronounced health impacts this year. While the property and casualty insurance market has become aware of the effects of a changing climate, the healthcare sector is just starting to understand the import that this will have on health care costs, services, and delivery. Ceres conducted research that ranked 148 of the largest insurance companies in the country. While Blue Cross Blue Shield of MA recognizes climate change as a significant threat to public health, a few companies surveyed by Ceres stated that they do not believe climate change is a material business risk. We will see an awakening in the health insurance sector in 2018 and an effort to follow European insurers who are active in combatting and adapting to climate change. The former CEO for AXA SA, Henri de Castries, said in his 2016 speech, “We have no choice, a 2°C world might be insurable, a 4°C world certainly would not be.” The alarm clock for the health insurance industry will sound off loud and clear in 2018.
“The Trust’s two decades of expertise in this space has laid the foundation for our team to make sound carbon market predictions year after year,” said Sheldon Zakreski, Director of Asset Management for The Climate Trust. “In fact, a record number of our 2017 predictions hit the mark, including environmental justice groups taking an active role in climate policy decisions, private industry picking up U.S. government slack, the California Air Resources Board prevailing in a high-profile lawsuit, China taking the lead in carbon markets, as well as an alarming number of U.S. citizens becoming climate refugees, with a related surge in momentum for global climate litigation.”
Director of Investments, Kristen Kleiman, added, “In particular, California’s move to recommit to their cap and trade system provided a valuable market signal to support linkages and increase jurisdictional participation in offset markets. Riding this wave of market interest, The Trust is now poised to fully commit our $5.5M pilot carbon investment fund, and launch our $100M 10-year private equity Fund II in 2018.”
Building upon a legacy of innovation and leadership in the carbon market, The Climate Trust mobilizes conservation finance to maximize environmental returns. We value air, water and soil through the development, purchase and sale of qualified offsets and a relentless investment in people and projects with environmental purpose | http://www.climatetrust.org | @climatetrust | facebook.com/TheClimateTrust Reported by PRWeb 21 hours ago.
PORTLAND, Ore. (PRWEB) January 02, 2018
The Climate Trust, a mission-driven nonprofit that specializes in mobilizing finance for conservation projects, announced its fifth annual prediction list of carbon market trends.
The trends, which range from the maritime industry following aviation’s lead in carbon reduction commitments to increased dismantling of federal agencies addressing climate change, were identified by The Climate Trust based on interactions with their diverse group of working partners—government, investors, project developers, corporates, and the philanthropic community.
“In the face of federal inaction, the momentum around climate action in 2017 was extraordinary,” said Sean Penrith, Executive Director for The Climate Trust. “When our team gathered together to discuss our predictions for the New Year, it quickly became apparent that despite the big lift ahead of the U.S. (and the world) related to climate change, the room was filled with an overwhelming sense of positivity and anticipation to see what we could collectively accomplish in another year’s time. We hope that sentiment is reflected in our forecast.”
1. More links will be added to the cap and trade chain gang. North America has had two regional cap and trade markets operating the last several years, the Western Climate Initiative (WCI), involving California, Ontario and Quebec, and the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI), involving nine northeastern states. Mexico has just crashed the party announcing in mid-December plans to launch a national mandatory market in August 2018. The list of jurisdictions linking up with cap and trade markets will only grow in 2018. New Jersey and Virginia are on a clear pathway to join RGGI, and several states that are already part of RGGI are considering expanding cap and trade to the transportation sector. Oregon is also poised to join WCI in 2018, as passing cap and trade legislation is one of the Governor’s top priorities. Ontario is facing political uncertainty around its future in WCI with the party leading the polls pledging to pull out of WCI and pass a revenue neutral carbon tax instead. Despite this pledge, the challenges of pulling out of the linked market and broad business support in Ontario belie that a change in government doesn’t necessarily mean the end of cap and trade in Ontario. A dark horse jurisdiction may also emerge in 2018. Expect 2018 to be the year of continued momentum towards expanding cap and trade markets, and the emergence of new states examining whether such an approach makes sense for them.
2. States, U.S. cities will quicken the pace in developing climate change adaptation plans. 2017 was a horrific year for natural disasters that wrought havoc throughout the United States. By October, natural disasters had already cost the United States over $25 billion according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and that was before wildfires broke out in southern California. PBS reports that 2017 is on track to break records for the number of major natural disasters in a year. With many of these events crippling major U.S. cities, officials and citizens will be thinking hard about how to prepare their cities for a future with more frequent and stronger disasters. Some cities have already taken the lead on developing and implementing climate adaptation strategies, such as Miami Beach’s efforts to elevate streets and install pumps. In 2018, we predict that a record number of cities will begin the process of developing climate change adaptation plans.
3. Institutional investors will increasingly count social and environmental impact as part of their fiduciary obligation. Foundations will follow McKnight's early lead by committing to invest endowment dollars (not just grant money) into climate mitigation and social improvement projects. Likewise, university endowments will adopt policies that address climate change in their investment portfolios as an integral part of their fiduciary commitment.
4. Shipping will follow aviation’s lead and agree to a carbon reduction commitment that will rely on offsets at the onset. A few years ago, the biggest future carbon market you’ve never heard of was created when the international aviation sector agreed to carbon reduction targets. Given the international nature of airline travel, aviation emissions have proven difficult to regulate. The establishment of a commitment, overseen by the United Nations International Civil Aviation Organization, and the creation of an offset market to allow the sector time to develop biofuels and fuel-efficient fleets, has provided a roadmap for other multi-national industries to follow. The clear candidate to follow this blueprint is the maritime industry. Although a growing number of shippers have called for some form of regulation, developing countries, which are dependent on ships to transport their manufactured goods to major markets in developed countries, have called for a go-slow approach. However, annual shipping emissions are already 30% greater than those from air travel and forecast to grow by another 17% if left unchecked. Meeting the Paris commitments will require progress on developing and agreeing to a framework for the shipping industry—just like in the aviation sector.
5. The first year of the Trump administration has seen deregulation and dismantling at agencies working to combat climate change. While President Trump has made broad and sweeping actions to reverse progress on addressing climate change, such as withdrawing the United States from the Paris Agreement, deliberate and quiet efforts are having a powerful effect at the agency level. Scott Pruitt, Director of the EPA, has taken a meticulous approach to deconstructing decades of regulation and basic environmental protections, including repeal of the Obama-era Clean Power Plan, which sought to curb greenhouse gas emissions. The Department of the Interior announced plans to hold the largest-ever auction of oil and gas leases in the Gulf of Mexico, and many scientific and administrative posts have been filled with people hostile to curbing greenhouse gas emissions. With at least three more years of the Trump presidency to go, we predict that the EPA and offices focused on climate change in other agencies will see further deconstruction in 2018.
6. The Trump administration’s intransigence on climate science will backfire in the 2018 midterms. Republicans remain the only major party in a global democracy to deny basic climate science. With intensifying weather, scientific consensus that anthropogenic greenhouse gases are to blame, and cheap renewables and electrified transportation demonstrating that mitigation can be affordable and improve our lives, the position of the Trump administration and many Republican party members simply cannot be sustained. In 2018, we expect Democrats to increasingly fight for the economic and environmental benefits of carbon pricing and look to chastise climate-denying legislators for their ignorance and intransigence. This strategy (which David Roberts calls “agnoism”) will pay dividends in the 2018-midterm elections, and Republicans will (slowly) reconsider the tenability of their outdated position on climate change.
7. U.S. companies will voluntarily, and increasingly, report on financial policies and performance related to the environment and social responsibility. The Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB) recently published its Exposure Draft Standards for 79 industries, with the public comment period having closed on December 31, 2017. We predict there will be a continued increase in the number of U.S. companies that choose to include discussion of their policies and performance regarding the environment, social responsibility and similar matters in their required external reports or in what is often referred to as a sustainability report. Even though the standards are not legal requirements, we predict an upturn in voluntary acceptance that will inspire other companies to feel obligated to provide similar disclosure to their stakeholders. Due to the prominence and credibility of the SASB Board members, the SASB has generated considerable momentum in a short period. The end result is a win-win for the companies and capital markets because the disclosures are not onerous and focus on financially material sustainability factors that result in providing extremely useful information for investors.
8. Public support of dairy digester development will shift to credit enhancements to mitigate risks for private investors. Explosive growth in the development of California digesters will continue in 2018. In 2017, California awarded grants to build 18 new digesters over the next two years (which will almost double the number of digesters in the state). With double the funding available in 2018, we expect more than 35 new projects to be supported. As projects become more cost-effective, their technology becomes increasingly understood and their impacts are proven, private capital can, and should, play a greater role in building new digesters to meet the state’s goals—significantly reducing methane emissions. To encourage this transition, expect climate-policy advocates, project developers, and the dairy industry to increasingly advocate for shifting public support from grant making to credit enhancements that mitigate risks for private investors in dairy digesters. In 2018 we expect to see a final design for California’s pilot financial mechanism to be proposed. We also expect a large number of advocates will line up to fund this mechanism, with at least $25 million to backstop price guarantees for the environmental markets that drive project economics but face real regulatory risk.
9. Climate smart agriculture and soil health will gain prominence in 2018. Collective activities in agriculture, forestry, and land use change are responsible for 21% of our global emissions, second only to the energy sector. The international 2017 climate talks in Bonn released the blockade restraining the agricultural sector from playing an active role in solutions for climate change. At the 23rd Conference of Parties (COP), the Subsidiary Body for Implementation (SBI) and the Subsidiary Body for Scientific and Technological Advice (SBSTA) took up the charge to “address issues related to agriculture.” The path set by the SBI and the SBSTA now engages agriculture as a strategic priority to develop on-the-ground practices that help curb greenhouse gas emissions. The Nature Conservancy found that natural climate solutions offers over one-third of the cost-effective climate mitigation we need by 2030 to achieve our Paris target of a less than 2 °C world. We will witness agriculture step up and adapt to climate friendly practices in the face of global population growth and the impacts of rising temperatures on smallholder farmers. The Sustainable Development Goal of achieving a hunger-free world by 2030 is being challenged by these mounting influences. The outcome of COP23 means that the theory, research, and discussions on agriculture will finally turn into tangible action on the ground.
10. Global health implications of climate change will sound an alarm for insurance markets. Climate change is on track to deliver “the biggest global health threat of the 21st century,” according to the British medical publication, The Lancet. Increasing global temperatures will aid the spread of vector-borne diseases like Malaria, Lyme disease, Zika virus, and water born illnesses such as Cholera and Toxoplasmosis. We have already begun experiencing the increased mortality risks from flooding, intense precipitation, and high summer temperatures and fires. Sadly, we will witness even more pronounced health impacts this year. While the property and casualty insurance market has become aware of the effects of a changing climate, the healthcare sector is just starting to understand the import that this will have on health care costs, services, and delivery. Ceres conducted research that ranked 148 of the largest insurance companies in the country. While Blue Cross Blue Shield of MA recognizes climate change as a significant threat to public health, a few companies surveyed by Ceres stated that they do not believe climate change is a material business risk. We will see an awakening in the health insurance sector in 2018 and an effort to follow European insurers who are active in combatting and adapting to climate change. The former CEO for AXA SA, Henri de Castries, said in his 2016 speech, “We have no choice, a 2°C world might be insurable, a 4°C world certainly would not be.” The alarm clock for the health insurance industry will sound off loud and clear in 2018.
“The Trust’s two decades of expertise in this space has laid the foundation for our team to make sound carbon market predictions year after year,” said Sheldon Zakreski, Director of Asset Management for The Climate Trust. “In fact, a record number of our 2017 predictions hit the mark, including environmental justice groups taking an active role in climate policy decisions, private industry picking up U.S. government slack, the California Air Resources Board prevailing in a high-profile lawsuit, China taking the lead in carbon markets, as well as an alarming number of U.S. citizens becoming climate refugees, with a related surge in momentum for global climate litigation.”
Director of Investments, Kristen Kleiman, added, “In particular, California’s move to recommit to their cap and trade system provided a valuable market signal to support linkages and increase jurisdictional participation in offset markets. Riding this wave of market interest, The Trust is now poised to fully commit our $5.5M pilot carbon investment fund, and launch our $100M 10-year private equity Fund II in 2018.”
Building upon a legacy of innovation and leadership in the carbon market, The Climate Trust mobilizes conservation finance to maximize environmental returns. We value air, water and soil through the development, purchase and sale of qualified offsets and a relentless investment in people and projects with environmental purpose | http://www.climatetrust.org | @climatetrust | facebook.com/TheClimateTrust Reported by PRWeb 21 hours ago.
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January is going to get wild for Trump and Congress as a government shutdown looms
**· *2018 kicks off with a busy month for Congress, which has until January 19 to pass a bill to fund the government.*
· *Democrats and Republicans want to address in the package issues like Obamacare stabilization, immigration, and government surveillance.*
· *Republicans and President Donald Trump are also eyeing other legislative plans for the year.*
--------------------President Donald Trump and his congressional counterparts are about to face a slew of deadlines that could result in a shutdown to begin the new year.
Congress must pass legislation to fund the government by January 19 to avoid a partial government shutdown. Negotiations look set to be fraught, as Republicans and Democrats alike will attempt to resolve a series of legislative issues by attaching other agenda items to the must-pass bill.
Not only does Congress have to deal with the mandatory deadlines: GOP leadership is also likely to set its sights on the next big legislative push after completing their massive tax code overhaul. What that will be remains up in the air.
*The 'need to pass' legislation*
After punting repeatedly on substantial fiscal deadlines in 2017, the route to avoiding a shutdown appears much more complicated this time around.
Here's a rundown of just some of the issues that members of Congress want to include as part of the funding negotiations:
· *Deferred Actions for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program:* The Obama-era immigration program, which protects more than 700,000 unauthorized immigrants that arrived in the US as minors, is set to expire in March after Trump gave Congress a six-month deadline to codify the program. Democrats have made the program a top priority in the funding negotiations.
· *Obamacare stabilization:* Republican leaders assured GOP Sen. Susan Collins amid tax-bill negotiations that they would hold a vote on the bipartisan Alexander-Murray bill, which would stabilize the Affordable Care Act's individual insurance markets. The vote was delayed until 2018, however.
· *Children's Health Insurance Program:* Congress authorized $3 billion more for the CHIP program before the holiday to prevent children from losing health coverage. But they still have not come to a long-term solution. Democrats want a simple extension of the funding, while the GOP wants to pair the extension with cuts to healthcare spending elsewhere.
· *Government surveillance powers:* Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, which authorized the National Security Agency and others to collect large amounts of data and communications, is set to expire January 19. Many Democrats and Republicans alike want to curtail the surveillance powers, and adjustments to the program could be included in the funding bill.
· *Disaster relief: *The White House and lawmakers from areas affected by hurricanes and other natural disasters in 2017 have asked for billions more in additional aid to rebuild those areas.
Congress punted twice on dealing with government funding before the holiday break, extending it for weeks-long periods as Republicans rushed to pass their tax bill. With the tax bill passed, the probability of a shutdown this time around is higher, said Isaac Boltansky and Lukas Davaz, analysts at the research firm Compass Point.
"Our sense is that the successful enactment of tax reform has left neither party eager to compromise on other issues," Boltansky and Davaz wrote in a note to clients. "We peg the odds of a government shutdown in mid-January at 60% given the current state of play in DC."
*
The next GOP push*
The new year also provides Republicans the chance to lay out their next big legislative item.
Republican leaders have floated several options. For instance, House Speaker Paul Ryan immediately began to set his sights on entitlement reform in the form of cuts to programs like Medicaid and Medicare. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said that the slim 51-49 majority for the GOP in the Senate likely means that wouldn't be an option.
Additionally, Trump has told Republican lawmakers that he plans to deal with the issue of entitlements in his second term, should he get one.
"We are bearish on efforts to curtail entitlement spending in this Congress given the lack of Democratic support for the effort in the Senate, tentativeness among certain Republicans, and a basic lack of procedural bandwidth before the midterms," they said.
Another option on the table, and perhaps a more palatable one, is an infrastructure package. Trump promised during the campaign to spend $1 trillion on new infrastructure projects with a combination of private and public money.
After the tax bill passed, many Trump officials began to talk up the possibility of moving forward on the package — including Marc Short, White House director of legislative affairs, and Gary Cohn, the National Economic Council director.
McConnell said an infrastructure push was on the table but that it would likely need Democratic support.
Chris Kreuger, an analyst at Cowen Washington Research Group, said a large package could be difficult since there are a slew of policy differences on infrastructure between the parties — such as how to pay for it.
"Infrastructure is very hard to shoe-horn into a reconciliation bill, so Democratic Senate votes will be needed (at least nine)," Kreuger said in a note. "The House Freedom Caucus is lukewarm on public works spending, so there is a real arithmetic problem."
Trump, McConnell, and Ryan are set to meet at Camp David over the weekend to hash out the strategy for year two of the Trump presidency — both in the immediate fights over funding and the longer-term push.
*SEE ALSO: Here's how the newly passed GOP tax bill will impact the economy, businesses, the deficit, and your wallet*
Join the conversation about this story »
NOW WATCH: Trump's family church explains why he refuses to accept failure Reported by Business Insider 14 hours ago.
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Congress’ new year has tough to-do list
Congress comes back to work with deadlines on difficult issues — how to fund the government and avoid a shutdown, stabilizing the nation’s health-insurance program for poor children, and whether to shield young undocumented immigrants from deportation.
Reported by Seattle Times 15 hours ago.
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Former Obama Treasury Secretary says the GOP tax law is a 'ticking time bomb'
**· *Former Treasury Secretary Jack Lew said the GOP tax bill is the opposite of what the US economy needs at this point in the economic cycle.*
· *Lew said that the increased debt load from the bill will also lead Republicans to believe that key social programs like Medicare need to be cut to deal with the issue.*
--------------------Former Treasury Secretary Jack Lew, who served under President Barack Obama, slammed the recently passed Republican tax law as counterproductive for the US economy, saying it could lead to cuts to important government programs.
In an interview with Bloomberg, Lew said the tax law could end up doing the "exact opposite of what anxious and angry voters were calling for" during the 2016 election.
"What we've seen is a tax cut that spends money we don't have to have very concentrated benefits for global corporations and the top 1%," Lew said. "It's leaving us broke so that we cannot deal with these fundamental problems."
Lew said the projected $1.5 trillion in new deficits would add to the "ticking time bomb in terms of the debt."
With the economy currently in a cycle of expansion, Lew said the US economy does not need broad fiscal stimulus from the tax bill but targeted investment in areas like education and training to help boost workers getting left behind by shifts in industries.
The former Treasury secretary also said he is concerned that after increasing the debt load due to the bill, Republicans will use the growing deficit to target essential programs for many Americans.
"I fear that the next shoe to drop is an attack on the most vulnerable in our society," Lew said. "How are we going to pay for the deficit caused by the tax cut? We are going to see proposals to cut health insurance for poor people, to take basic food support away from poor people, to attack Medicare and Social Security. One could not have made up a more cynical strategy."
Lew also said that changes in foreign policy and trade policy under the Trump administration could pop up as a surprise for financial markets going forward, despite relative calm in the markets during 2017.
"You look at markets over the last year, the calmness of markets, the enthusiasm of markets almost suggests that there's been a decision to look beyond all this chaos and uncertainty becuase there's nothing we an do about it," Lew said. "But, the moment comes when something happens that is a surprise that shouldn't be a surprise, I worry about binary changes."
*Watch the interview via Bloomberg:*
*SEE ALSO: January is going to get wild for Trump and Congress as a government shutdown looms*
Join the conversation about this story »
NOW WATCH: A mother and daughter stopped speaking after Trump was elected — here's their emotional first conversation after the long silence Reported by Business Insider 12 hours ago.
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Conservative groups appeal in public-pay abortion challenge
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) — Anti-abortion groups are appealing after a judge dismissed a lawsuit to stop a law that’ll expand Medicaid and state-employee group health insurance to cover abortions. A Sangamon County judge ruled last week that courts shouldn’t intervene in General Assembly “political questions.” The Catholic Thomas More Society filed a notice of appeal […]
Reported by Seattle Times 9 hours ago.
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Daughter of former mayor admits to stealing $1M from town
TRENTON, N.J. (AP) — The daughter of a former New Jersey mayor has been sentenced to prison on charges of stealing nearly $1 million from Brick Township’s health insurance program. Attorney General Christopher Porrino says 52-year-old Kim Bogan was sentenced Tuesday in Trenton to five years in prison. NJ.com reports she pleaded guilty in October […]
Reported by Seattle Times 2 hours ago.
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StartUp Health Raises $19.3M Led by Ping An Global Voyager Fund, GuideWell and Masimo
StartUp Health Transformer Fund II Is Investing In Companies Focused on Achieving Health Moonshots
NEW YORK (PRWEB) January 03, 2018
StartUp Health, which is organizing, supporting and investing in a global army of Health Transformers to achieve 10 Health Moonshots, announced today that it has raised $19.3M from Ping An Global Voyager Fund, GuideWell, Masimo Corporation and a consortium of partners through StartUp Health Transformer Fund II.
“We are inspired by StartUp Health’s bold plan for solving the world's biggest health challenges and are very pleased to embark on this partnership to support a generation of health entrepreneurs together,” said Jonathan Larsen, Chief Innovation Officer of Ping An Group and Chairman & CEO of Ping An Global Voyager Fund. “StartUp Health has created a health moonshot factory which brings us early access to the innovators transforming health on a global level. Together, we will be able to speed up innovation cycles and make a significant impact on people's lives.”
“We are excited to partner with StartUp Health for their unparallelled ability to identify, attract, evaluate and support entrepreneurs who are shaping the future of health from key areas of interest to us,” said Sarah Iselin, Senior Vice President and Chief Strategy Officer at GuideWell. “We are excited about the impact we can make on solving real health challenges together.”
“Our purpose is to bring extraordinary technologies to market to improve people’s health. Our partnership with StartUp Health will help us to continue to fulfill that purpose by connecting us into a global network of entrepreneurs and innovators,” said Joe Kiani, CEO of Masimo Corporation.
A key part of the StartUp Health’s plan since they launched in 2011 is to leverage the network effect by organizing entrepreneurs (“Health Transformers”) and to partner with the world’s leading organizations who can support these Health Transformers with capital, expertise and opportunities to scale. StartUp Health has amassed the world’s largest portfolio of over 200 digital health companies from 5 continents and 19 countries, and has created a global network of over 30,000 investors, customers, and partners.
“From day one, we’ve had a synced vision and mindset with Ping An, GuideWell and our extraordinary network of partners committed to supporting health innovation,” said Steven Krein, Co-founder and CEO of StartUp Health. “We believe unique collaborations are required between those entrepreneurs pushing innovation forward and the world’s industry leaders in order to fix today’s most complex healthcare challenges.”
“When you are sprinting a marathon as so many Health Transformers are, there’s nothing better than having batteries included partners by your side coaching you to success,” said Unity Stoakes, President and Co-founder of StartUp Health. “We are thrilled to have partners like Ping An, GuideWell and Masimo Corporation, who are so aligned with our vision for transforming health.”
Following the completion of StartUp Health’s inaugural fund which included 100 digital health companies, the StartUp Health Transformer Fund II will support and invest in more than 200 companies focused on achieving Health Moonshots over the next two years. Fund II already has more than 100 companies in its portfolio from 13 countries including Australia, Brazil, Canada, England, Finland, Germany, Israel, Kenya, Mexico, Netherlands, Nigeria, Spain, and the U.S.
Companies can apply to the StartUp Health Moonshot Academy at http://www.startuphealth.com/apply.
About Ping An Group
Ping An Insurance (Group) Company of China, Ltd. ("Ping An" or "the Group") is dedicated to becoming a world-leading personal financial services provider. Ping An is the No.1 insurance group globally in terms of market capitalization and the 39th largest company in the 2017 Global Fortune 500. As at 30 June 2017, the Group had over 143 million individual customers and over 400 million digital users across all of its platforms. As at the end of June 2017, the Group's consolidated total assets reached USD 917 billion and currently has a market capitalization of over USD 190 billion. Ping An has also incubated leading app-based portals such as Lufax (the largest digital wealth management platform in China with over 30 million users) and Ping An Good Doctor (the largest telemedicine platform in the world with over 140 million users). The Ping An Global Voyager Fund was launched in May 2017 with an initial scope of USD1Bn with a mission to invest in fintech and digital health opportunities globally to deliver strategic capabilities to Ping An Group.
About GuideWell
GuideWell Mutual Holding Corporation (GuideWell) is a not-for-profit mutual holding company and the parent to a family of forward-thinking companies focused on transforming health care. The GuideWell organization includes the leading health insurance company in Florida; a portfolio of clinical delivery organizations; a health care consumer marketing, sales and engagement company; a provider of administrative services to state and federal health care programs; and a leader in risk adjustment and population care management. For more information, visit http://www.guidewell.com.
About StartUp Health
In 2011, StartUp Health introduced a revolutionary new model for transforming health by organizing and supporting a global army of entrepreneurs called Health Transformers™. The Company is investing in 10 Health Moonshots, with the long-term goal of improving the health and wellbeing of everyone in the world. StartUp Health has the world’s largest digital health portfolio (over 200 companies spanning five continents, 19 countries and 60+ cities). Founded by Steven Krein and Unity Stoakes, StartUp Health is chaired by former Time Warner CEO Jerry Levin. Notable strategic partners and investors include Allianz, Aurora Health Care, Bayer, California Health Care Foundation, Steve Case, Mark Cuban, Esther Dyson, Brad Feld, Genentech, GE Ventures, GuideWell, Kaiser Permanente Ventures, Masimo Corporation, Ping An, SAP, and SeventySix Capital. Reported by PRWeb 1 day ago.
NEW YORK (PRWEB) January 03, 2018
StartUp Health, which is organizing, supporting and investing in a global army of Health Transformers to achieve 10 Health Moonshots, announced today that it has raised $19.3M from Ping An Global Voyager Fund, GuideWell, Masimo Corporation and a consortium of partners through StartUp Health Transformer Fund II.
“We are inspired by StartUp Health’s bold plan for solving the world's biggest health challenges and are very pleased to embark on this partnership to support a generation of health entrepreneurs together,” said Jonathan Larsen, Chief Innovation Officer of Ping An Group and Chairman & CEO of Ping An Global Voyager Fund. “StartUp Health has created a health moonshot factory which brings us early access to the innovators transforming health on a global level. Together, we will be able to speed up innovation cycles and make a significant impact on people's lives.”
“We are excited to partner with StartUp Health for their unparallelled ability to identify, attract, evaluate and support entrepreneurs who are shaping the future of health from key areas of interest to us,” said Sarah Iselin, Senior Vice President and Chief Strategy Officer at GuideWell. “We are excited about the impact we can make on solving real health challenges together.”
“Our purpose is to bring extraordinary technologies to market to improve people’s health. Our partnership with StartUp Health will help us to continue to fulfill that purpose by connecting us into a global network of entrepreneurs and innovators,” said Joe Kiani, CEO of Masimo Corporation.
A key part of the StartUp Health’s plan since they launched in 2011 is to leverage the network effect by organizing entrepreneurs (“Health Transformers”) and to partner with the world’s leading organizations who can support these Health Transformers with capital, expertise and opportunities to scale. StartUp Health has amassed the world’s largest portfolio of over 200 digital health companies from 5 continents and 19 countries, and has created a global network of over 30,000 investors, customers, and partners.
“From day one, we’ve had a synced vision and mindset with Ping An, GuideWell and our extraordinary network of partners committed to supporting health innovation,” said Steven Krein, Co-founder and CEO of StartUp Health. “We believe unique collaborations are required between those entrepreneurs pushing innovation forward and the world’s industry leaders in order to fix today’s most complex healthcare challenges.”
“When you are sprinting a marathon as so many Health Transformers are, there’s nothing better than having batteries included partners by your side coaching you to success,” said Unity Stoakes, President and Co-founder of StartUp Health. “We are thrilled to have partners like Ping An, GuideWell and Masimo Corporation, who are so aligned with our vision for transforming health.”
Following the completion of StartUp Health’s inaugural fund which included 100 digital health companies, the StartUp Health Transformer Fund II will support and invest in more than 200 companies focused on achieving Health Moonshots over the next two years. Fund II already has more than 100 companies in its portfolio from 13 countries including Australia, Brazil, Canada, England, Finland, Germany, Israel, Kenya, Mexico, Netherlands, Nigeria, Spain, and the U.S.
Companies can apply to the StartUp Health Moonshot Academy at http://www.startuphealth.com/apply.
About Ping An Group
Ping An Insurance (Group) Company of China, Ltd. ("Ping An" or "the Group") is dedicated to becoming a world-leading personal financial services provider. Ping An is the No.1 insurance group globally in terms of market capitalization and the 39th largest company in the 2017 Global Fortune 500. As at 30 June 2017, the Group had over 143 million individual customers and over 400 million digital users across all of its platforms. As at the end of June 2017, the Group's consolidated total assets reached USD 917 billion and currently has a market capitalization of over USD 190 billion. Ping An has also incubated leading app-based portals such as Lufax (the largest digital wealth management platform in China with over 30 million users) and Ping An Good Doctor (the largest telemedicine platform in the world with over 140 million users). The Ping An Global Voyager Fund was launched in May 2017 with an initial scope of USD1Bn with a mission to invest in fintech and digital health opportunities globally to deliver strategic capabilities to Ping An Group.
About GuideWell
GuideWell Mutual Holding Corporation (GuideWell) is a not-for-profit mutual holding company and the parent to a family of forward-thinking companies focused on transforming health care. The GuideWell organization includes the leading health insurance company in Florida; a portfolio of clinical delivery organizations; a health care consumer marketing, sales and engagement company; a provider of administrative services to state and federal health care programs; and a leader in risk adjustment and population care management. For more information, visit http://www.guidewell.com.
About StartUp Health
In 2011, StartUp Health introduced a revolutionary new model for transforming health by organizing and supporting a global army of entrepreneurs called Health Transformers™. The Company is investing in 10 Health Moonshots, with the long-term goal of improving the health and wellbeing of everyone in the world. StartUp Health has the world’s largest digital health portfolio (over 200 companies spanning five continents, 19 countries and 60+ cities). Founded by Steven Krein and Unity Stoakes, StartUp Health is chaired by former Time Warner CEO Jerry Levin. Notable strategic partners and investors include Allianz, Aurora Health Care, Bayer, California Health Care Foundation, Steve Case, Mark Cuban, Esther Dyson, Brad Feld, Genentech, GE Ventures, GuideWell, Kaiser Permanente Ventures, Masimo Corporation, Ping An, SAP, and SeventySix Capital. Reported by PRWeb 1 day ago.
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Aging, Undocumented And Uninsured Immigrants Challenge Cities And States
Most older undocumented people lack health insurance. The Affordable Care Act doesn’t cover them, and they don’t qualify
Reported by Huffington Post 19 hours ago.
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Repeal of fine for not having health insurance set for 2019
You’re still mandated to have health insurance this year, but next year the fine for those who don’t have it goes away, and an insurance broker said it will be nice when the dust settles.
Reported by Harrison Daily 20 hours ago.
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Your health care and Republican careers, at stake in Congress starting in 3-2-1 …
How the party decides to handle the Children's Health Insurance Program as part of the 2018 budget process will set a clear tone for the year.
Reported by USATODAY.com 20 hours ago.
Reported by USATODAY.com 20 hours ago.
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Over 2 million children and pregnant women are on the brink of losing health insurance
· *If Congress doesn't reauthorize longterm funding for the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP), millions of children could lose health care coverage.*· *A handful of states are expected to run out of money in the coming months. *
· *Medical officials in those states are already sending out termination notices, warning families that plans could be canceled. *
· *Even if Congress does eventually restore CHIP money, the delay in funding will have already cost taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars.*
--------------------Health insurance for millions of children is still on the line as Congress remains divided over how to fund the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP), a crucial government program that has provided healthcare to millions of Americans and helped to drastically reduce the uninsured rate of children since its implementation in 1997.
Before breaking for the holiday recess month, Congress passed a short-term funding measure that allocated close to $3 billion to CHIP. It's estimated that this additional funding will allow the program to run through March.
"This alleged extension until March doesn’t cut it as states freeze enrollment & send out letters warning that coverage will end," former Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton tweeted on Tuesday. "This is frightening to parents & wreaks havoc for states."
"Enough is enough," added Clinton, who played a significant role in getting CHIP passed back in the '90s while serving as first lady.
A lack of long-term funding could result in roughly 2 million children losing coverage and becoming uninsured, according to a recent report from Georgetown University's Center for Children and Families.
"These are families making $8, $10, or $12 an hour that don't have insurance. And they're going to get letters saying 'your insurance is canceled,'" Ohio Sen. Sherrod Brown said during a debate on the Senate floor November 30. "How can we let that happen?"
The reauthorization deadline for CHIP passed September 30 without Congress agreeing to an extension, making it the longest lapse in funding since the program was first introduced.
"The politics are ugly. This should not be a Republican or Democratic issue," Colorado Lt. Gov. Donna Lynne told Business Insider. "There's never been any talk of it not making sense."
"I feel like there's a little hostage taking with kids and pregnant women in the middle," she added.
*Time is running out*
Now that Congress is back in session after the holiday recess, CHIP proponents are holding out hope that both parties can come together to secure a 5-year funding extension.
Such a move would be the quickest way to end concerns families may have about the future of their coverage, said Tricia Brooks, a healthcare policy expert and former CHIP director for New Hampshire.
"We are guardedly hopeful because unlike all of the other health policy initiatives Congress has tackled this year, CHIP actually has bipartisan agreement in the House and Senate," Brooks told Business Insider.
"The fact that states had leftover funds and that there was emergency money distributed to states gave Congress the feeling that were wasn't as much urgency," she added. "But that cushion is getting extremely thin. Congress needs to act."
The only other time Congress failed to reauthorize it was in 2007, when then-President George W. Bush vetoed reauthorization because he believed the Democrats' proposal to spend billions more on the program would encourage families to leave the private insurance market. After just five days, lawmakers compromised and funding was quickly reissued.
Today's gap in funding has forced states around the country to rely on leftover funds and emergency government grants to maintain coverage for the millions of people who might otherwise be uninsured. But those temporary funds are quickly disappearing.
"We're concerned about the cost to the people and the magnitude of the anxiety it is producing," Lynne said. "Imagine if you're a pregnant woman and you're going to lose your insurance?"
*'We don't have any money anymore'*
CHIP itself is not controversial. It has wide bipartisan support as Brooks says.
But exactly how the annual $15.6 billion program should be paid for is the issue under dispute.
Republicans have proposed cutting back the Affordable Care Act to pay for CHIP while Democrats have proposed tying the program's reauthorization in with measures to stabilize the law, more commonly known as Obamacare.
"We're going to do CHIP. There's no doubt about it in my mind, " said Sen. Orin Hatch of Utah, who helped craft the program with Sen. Ed Kennedy of Massachusetts in the 1990s. "But the reason CHIP is having trouble is because we don't have any money anymore."
CHIP currently provides health insurance for roughly 9 million children nationwide who come from families with incomes just above Medicaid eligibility levels.
The program also includes coverage for more than 327,000 pregnant women through the "unborn child option." Technically, these recipients are classified as children even though the women are the ones who are actually being treated.
How states can respond to a loss of federal funds depends on how they implemented CHIP in the first place.
For states that used the money to expand Medicaid to insure more children, they will still have to cover those recipients, albeit with some other source of funding, even if the government no longer helps.
For states that created separate CHIP programs, those recipients are likely to lose coverage completely, or at best, receive more expensive coverage through employer-sponsored or marketplace exchange alternatives if their families can afford those options.
Some states have a combination of CHIP-funded Medicaid expansion and separate CHIP programs, complicating the situation even further.
*States plan emergency measures*
Late night host Jimmy Kimmel brought his newborn son on stage in December to make an emotional plea for Congress to restore CHIP funding.
"Now CHIP — [it] has become a bargaining chip," Kimmel said, cradling his son Billy, who received life-saving open heart surgery just hours after birth earlier this year.
"It's on the back burner while they work out the new tax plans," he continued. "Parents of children with cancer, diabetes and heart problems are about to get letters saying their coverage could be cut off next month. Merry Christmas, right?"
A handful of states are on the brink of running out of money, some as soon as next month.
Carrie Williams, a spokesperson for Texas' Health and Human Services Commission, told Business Insider last month that without Congressional action, the Lone Star State would be forced to end CHIP coverage by February 1 for more than 450,000 children.
But on December 15, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, which administers CHIP, guaranteed Texas $135 million in funds to continue coverage until March.
Under state law, HHSC must notify families that their plans are being canceled at least 30 days before termination.
Texas' situation is especially dire because of the damage caused by Hurricane Harvey. After the disaster struck, the government waived co-pays and enrollment fees for CHIP recipients. That meant the state would be collecting less money, which is why they're relying on the federal government for additional grants. Texas has the most CHIP recipients in the country after California.
Other states continue to weigh their options in light of the roughly $3 billion in funding Congress allocated to states last month.
Officials overseeing the West Virginia Children's Health Insurance Program (WVCHIP) have gone so far as to already approve a plan to close its program — which covers 21,321 children — by February 28.
But the plan won't be finalized until the program's board members know how much of the $3 billion in funding the state will receive. For now, West Virginia's Department of Health and Human Resources will delay sending termination notifications to families and providers, according to communications director Allison Adler.
*'We've never had to do this before'*
The longer Congress delays funding, the more states like West Virginia will prepare contingency plans in the event that money is not restored.
But it's hard for medical officials to gauge exactly when they should take action — such as sending out notice letters to families and doubling up on call center staffing for the inevitable barrage of inquiries — since they have to rely on Congress to make the next move.
"They [states] are trying to hold off on taking action as long as possible because they don't want to cause concern among families," Samantha Artigo, an analyst at the Kaiser Family Foundation, told Business Insider. "But as we get further along, they are really going to be bumping up against difficult deadlines where they will need to begin taking action. It cannot be done overnight."
Medical officials in Colorado have already sent notice letters to the families of the roughly 75,000 children and 800 pregnant women who might lose coverage in that state. Last month, state lawmakers approved a $9.6 million stopgap measure to allow CHIP to survive an extra month, according to The Denver Post. Previous estimates predicted coverage would end January 31.
Shelisha Coleman, a spokesperson for Florida's Agency for Health Care Administration, told Business Insider in December that the state had enough funding to last until the beginning of February. The healthcare of 198,605 children in Florida is on the line.
On December 1, Nevada received a nearly $5.6 million grant to provide coverage through the end of the year and into the new year. Utah also warned recipients that it will exhaust funds by the end of of this month.
The Department of Social Services in Connecticut announced that it has enough money to last through February 28. Officials in Virginia and Pennsylvania began notifying families last month that they could lose coverage if Congress continues to stall.
"We've never had to do this before," Linda Nablo, an official with Virginia's Department of Medical Assistant Services, told Kaiser Health News. "How do you write the very best letter saying, 'Your child might lose coverage, but it's not certain yet. But in the meantime, these are some things you need to think about'?"
Families are preparing, too.
Myra Gregory is the mother of 11-year-old Roland, who has a rare form of lung cancer. In November, Gregory wrote an op-ed in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch asking Congress to get its act together.
"If Congress forces Missouri to drop Roland's coverage, our family will be in an impossible situation. I don't have the savings to pay for Roland's care out of pocket," Gregory said. "I don't have family and friends — much less a bank — who will loan us tens of thousands of dollars for Roland's treatment."
Gregory created a GoFundMe page to raise money for her son.
*A lose-lose for the taxpayer*
The kicker is that states will still lose money even if Congress restores funding.
Writing, printing, and mailing termination notices to families requires time and money. So does notifying insurance providers and other stakeholders, submitting paperwork to the CMS, and paying call center staff overtime for helping concerned parents figure out how to proceed in the absence of CHIP.
A Georgetown University study estimated that ending CHIP will cost Colorado, for example, at least $300,000.
"Inaction by Congress costs states time and money as officials grapple with various 'what if' scenarios," the study's authors wrote.
In early November, the House passed a bill that would provide funding for CHIP for five years. That bill stalled in the Senate. Subsequent proposals, meanwhile, have been few and far between, leaving state budgets in limbo and families fearing the worst.
"There's no question that if CHIP isn't refunded, we're going to do a turn on the success in covering children that we've had," said Brooks, the healthcare expert. "Where are the values in this country?"
*SEE ALSO: Congress is about to miss a major deadline on an important healthcare program — and some states could start to panic*
*DON'T MISS: Hurricane Harvey throws another wrinkle into Congress' wild 'budget brawl'*
Join the conversation about this story »
NOW WATCH: The woman behind the #MeToo movement on why she would never meet with Trump Reported by Business Insider 13 hours ago.
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What happened to Trump's big plans for health insurance?
President Trump boasted last week that millions of people are joining association health plans, one alternative to Obamacare that he's planning to expand.
Reported by CNNMoney 12 hours ago.
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What happened to Trump's health insurance plans?
President Trump issued two executive orders on health insurance in October. But regulators have yet to release preliminary rules.
Reported by CNNMoney 10 hours ago.
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Maryland health exchange enrollment drops slightly for 2018
BALTIMORE (AP) — Enrollment for private health insurance through Maryland’s health exchange dropped slightly for 2018. The Maryland Health Benefit Exchange reported Thursday that nearly 154,000 Marylanders signed up for coverage in 2018 during the open enrollment period that closed last month. That’s a 3 percent drop from the exchange enrollment a year ago. Nevertheless, […]
Reported by Seattle Times 7 minutes ago.
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Trump administration takes first step toward clearing path for sale of health insurance across state lines
WASHINGTON (AP) — Trump administration takes first step toward clearing path for sale of health insurance across state lines.
Reported by SeattlePI.com 23 hours ago.
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New Executive Survey Finds Convergence of Health and Dental Insurance Plans is Happening
A new report published by West Monroe Partners found that 96 percent of insurance executives believe the embedding of dental benefits into medical plans is already happening, or will happen.
CHICAGO (PRWEB) January 04, 2018
A new executive survey published by West Monroe Partners today found that 96 percent of insurance executives believe the embedding of dental benefits into medical plans is already happening, or will happen. Today, 99 percent of commercial dental insurance plans are purchased through standalone dental insurers.
Competitive margins and profitability, relative benefit simplicity, customer retention, and the increasing proof of correlation between oral health and overall health are driving more health insurers to experiment and invest in adding dental benefits to their plans. Convergence opportunities exist between health and dental insurers, especially as both face significant technical investments necessary to modernize core platforms and address consumer demands. As such, standalone dental insurance plans are attractive targets for health plans – either for acquisition or partnership. In fact, 100 percent of surveyed health plan executives whose companies don’t already offer dental benefits plan to do so in the near future.
The survey results point toward a gap between market realities and leadership action on the dental side of the industry. Nearly half of dental insurance executives (47 percent) feel convergence is a threat to their business, while 38 percent believe it is both a threat and an opportunity, and 13 percent say it would be “positive” for their business. However, 24 percent plan to proceed with “business as usual,” even while 60 percent of all respondents (both dental and health) think the percentage of standalone dental plans will significantly decrease in the next three to five years
The report, titled “Turning Point: The Fate of Standalone Dental,” examines several scenarios for the future of standalone dental plans:· Dental is absorbed into overall health insurance (one product, one shared premium)
· Dental plans are brought on as partners to health insurance (two products, shared or separate premiums)
· Dental plans diversify, expanding into other ancillary coverage such as life and short-term disability, to remain standalone
“For standalone dental plans, winter is here,” said Will Hinde, managing director of West Monroe’s Healthcare & Life Sciences practice and co-author of the report. “It’s absolutely essential that dental plans prepare to be attractive partners, and understand that standing still, or alone, is no longer an option for plans that want to thrive in the future.”
The survey polled 125 executives at dental plans and health plans across the country. Highlights include:· Dental plan and health plan executives agree that health plans have a clear or significant advantage over standalone dental insurers in a bundled scenario – 82 percent of dental plan execs said so, and 80 percent of health plan execs said so
· The three biggest factors that will drive the embedding of dental insurance into health insurance, according to respondents, rank as follows:
1. Better technology/systems that facilitate a holistic view of covered lives
2. Government actions (e.g. changes to Medicaid/Medicare)
3. The convergence of overall health and oral health· Sixty percent of respondents think the percentage of standalone dental plans will significantly decrease in the next three to five years
· Forty-three percent of dental plans plan to explore offering ancillary products like vision, hearing, life and disability
About West Monroe Partners
West Monroe is a progressive business and technology consulting firm that partners with dynamic organizations to reimagine, build, and operate their businesses at peak performance. Our team of more than 950 professionals is comprised of an uncommon blend of business consultants and deep technologists. This unique combination of expertise enables us to design, develop, implement, and run strategic business and technology solutions that yield a dramatic commercial impact on our clients’ profitability and performance. For more information, visit http://www.westmonroepartners.com.
About West Monroe Partners’ Healthcare & Life Sciences Practice
Healthcare transformation is full-steam ahead, with regulation and consumer expectations driving the industry to invest in solutions and forge strategies that deliver improved outcomes. Helping the marketplace adapt to this dynamic landscape—and optimize for the future—is where West Monroe excels.
Every day, we help payers, health systems, pharmaceutical, and medical technology firms evaluate strategic opportunities that differentiate their businesses, implement better business models, and execute on clear plans to unlock value. For more information, visit wmp.com/healthcare.
Media Contact
Christina Galoozis
Media Relations Manager
cgaloozis@westmonroepartners.com
312.447.6623 Reported by PRWeb 23 hours ago.
CHICAGO (PRWEB) January 04, 2018
A new executive survey published by West Monroe Partners today found that 96 percent of insurance executives believe the embedding of dental benefits into medical plans is already happening, or will happen. Today, 99 percent of commercial dental insurance plans are purchased through standalone dental insurers.
Competitive margins and profitability, relative benefit simplicity, customer retention, and the increasing proof of correlation between oral health and overall health are driving more health insurers to experiment and invest in adding dental benefits to their plans. Convergence opportunities exist between health and dental insurers, especially as both face significant technical investments necessary to modernize core platforms and address consumer demands. As such, standalone dental insurance plans are attractive targets for health plans – either for acquisition or partnership. In fact, 100 percent of surveyed health plan executives whose companies don’t already offer dental benefits plan to do so in the near future.
The survey results point toward a gap between market realities and leadership action on the dental side of the industry. Nearly half of dental insurance executives (47 percent) feel convergence is a threat to their business, while 38 percent believe it is both a threat and an opportunity, and 13 percent say it would be “positive” for their business. However, 24 percent plan to proceed with “business as usual,” even while 60 percent of all respondents (both dental and health) think the percentage of standalone dental plans will significantly decrease in the next three to five years
The report, titled “Turning Point: The Fate of Standalone Dental,” examines several scenarios for the future of standalone dental plans:· Dental is absorbed into overall health insurance (one product, one shared premium)
· Dental plans are brought on as partners to health insurance (two products, shared or separate premiums)
· Dental plans diversify, expanding into other ancillary coverage such as life and short-term disability, to remain standalone
“For standalone dental plans, winter is here,” said Will Hinde, managing director of West Monroe’s Healthcare & Life Sciences practice and co-author of the report. “It’s absolutely essential that dental plans prepare to be attractive partners, and understand that standing still, or alone, is no longer an option for plans that want to thrive in the future.”
The survey polled 125 executives at dental plans and health plans across the country. Highlights include:· Dental plan and health plan executives agree that health plans have a clear or significant advantage over standalone dental insurers in a bundled scenario – 82 percent of dental plan execs said so, and 80 percent of health plan execs said so
· The three biggest factors that will drive the embedding of dental insurance into health insurance, according to respondents, rank as follows:
1. Better technology/systems that facilitate a holistic view of covered lives
2. Government actions (e.g. changes to Medicaid/Medicare)
3. The convergence of overall health and oral health· Sixty percent of respondents think the percentage of standalone dental plans will significantly decrease in the next three to five years
· Forty-three percent of dental plans plan to explore offering ancillary products like vision, hearing, life and disability
About West Monroe Partners
West Monroe is a progressive business and technology consulting firm that partners with dynamic organizations to reimagine, build, and operate their businesses at peak performance. Our team of more than 950 professionals is comprised of an uncommon blend of business consultants and deep technologists. This unique combination of expertise enables us to design, develop, implement, and run strategic business and technology solutions that yield a dramatic commercial impact on our clients’ profitability and performance. For more information, visit http://www.westmonroepartners.com.
About West Monroe Partners’ Healthcare & Life Sciences Practice
Healthcare transformation is full-steam ahead, with regulation and consumer expectations driving the industry to invest in solutions and forge strategies that deliver improved outcomes. Helping the marketplace adapt to this dynamic landscape—and optimize for the future—is where West Monroe excels.
Every day, we help payers, health systems, pharmaceutical, and medical technology firms evaluate strategic opportunities that differentiate their businesses, implement better business models, and execute on clear plans to unlock value. For more information, visit wmp.com/healthcare.
Media Contact
Christina Galoozis
Media Relations Manager
cgaloozis@westmonroepartners.com
312.447.6623 Reported by PRWeb 23 hours ago.
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Proposal Exempts Self-Employed From ACA Health-Insurance Rules
The Trump administration is proposing changes that would let millions of small businesses and the self-employed buy health-insurance plans that don’t comply with all Affordable Care Act requirements, part of an aggressive move to undo the health law through regulatory action.
Reported by Wall Street Journal 22 hours ago.
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Health insurance startup that got $130 million from Google is missing payments and upsetting customers
San Francisco-based health care startup Clover Health is coming under fire this week for allegedly delaying paying bills for its mostly elderly customers to major laboratories and miscalculating how to get the data it needs to create predictive models. CNBC reports that Clover refused to pay lab giants LabCorp and Quest Diagnostics until the companies turned over data Clover wanted, a process which led to the labs billing patients directly. Multiple sources familiar with the matter told CNBC that…
Reported by bizjournals 21 hours ago.
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