Commentary
Commentary
Mandating dental coverage will drive up the cost of insurance
The Biden administration finalized a rule last month allowing states to mandate that most individual and small-group health plans, including those for sale on Obamacare‘s exchanges, cover adult dental services. Mandating coverage of dental benefits may be politically appealing. But it will end up leaving a bitter taste in people’s mouths. Mandates cost money. Implementing ...
Commentary
Read the latest on drug pricing
Inflation Reduction Act Will Destroy Drug Access
Last month at a White House event, President Joe Biden and Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., took a victory lap for supposedly having “beat Big Pharma” through drug-pricing provisions in the Inflation Reduction Act. Beaming with pride, they hailed new powers for Medicare to “negotiate” drug prices as a historic achievement. But their self-congratulation rests ...
Commentary
Congress should take action to make telemedicine permanent
Congress faces a year-end deadline to extend its relaxed pandemic-era rules permitting greater use of telehealth by Medicare beneficiaries. If our lawmakers fail to step up, millions of seniors as well as privately insured patients could lose access to what has become an essential form of medical care. The expansion of ...
Business & Economics
Read the latest on carbon accounting proposals
Activists Use Shareholder Rights To Undermine Shareholders’ Interests
Led by CalPERS, the pension fund for California public workers, activist investors may oppose re-electing ExxonMobil ExxonMobil 0.0% chief executive Darren Woods to the company board. His sin: seeking greater clarification regarding proposals that shareholders have previously rejected multiple times. The issue arises because Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) activist investors Arjuna Capital and Follow ...
Commentary
Read the latest on short-term health plans
Biden Goes “Over The Top” In Latest Offensive Of The War Over Obamacare
The Biden administration just launched a new offensive in the decade-long regulatory war over Obamacare. It finalized a rule earlier this spring that severely restricts Americans’ ability to purchase short-term health plans—effectively rolling back a Trump administration rule that had greatly expanded access to them. The White House claims the new rule ...
California
Read about Gov. Newsom's "May Revise" budget proposal
May Revise sets up California for painful spending choices and tax increases
Giving credit where it is due, Gov. Newsom’s “May Revise” budget proposal recognizes the seriousness of the situation. He proposes real cuts, opposes tax increases, and suggests some efficiency improvements – which are all positive steps. Unfortunately, the proposal still relies on too many budget gimmicks and fund shifts. The Newsom plan also underestimates the severity of the current budget shortfall that must be addressed. Making matters worse, growing economic headwinds, including the tech industry laying off over 81,000 people and California’s subpar personal income growth, raises concerns that the ...
Commentary
Read the latest on Medicare spending
Focus Medicare’s Dwindling Resources to Those Most in Need
Medicare’s trustees released their annual report this week. It paints a bleak picture of the program’s future. Total spending on the healthcare entitlement for seniors exceeded $1 trillion last year, the trustees note — some $12 billion more than the program took in. If current trends continue, Medicare’s Part A hospital insurance ...
Commentary
Read the latest on medical debt proposals
Medical Debt-Relief Can Backfire on Patients
Americans collectively owe some $220 billion in medical debt. In response, a growing number of states, including New Jersey and Connecticut, are using public funds to relieve those debts. Gov. Josh Shapiro, D-Pa., proposed doing something similar in his state earlier this year. But is canceling medical debt the best way to help cash-strapped Americans? Click to ...
Commentary
Read how overregulation is having negative effects on nursing homes
Government shouldn’t micromanage nursing homes
The Biden administration published regulations last month requiring most nursing homes to maintain specific staffing levels. As a result, roughly three in four nursing homes will have to hire additional personnel. Progressives argue the rules will lead to better care. “For residents, this will mean more staff, which means fewer ER visits potentially, more ...
Business & Economics
Read on the negative effects of raising minimum wage
$20 Minimum Wage for Restaurant Workers is Only the Beginning
It was bound to happen. Less than a month after the $20-an-hour fast-food restaurant minimum wage kicked in, activists are demanding that all other minimum-wage workers, who got a bump to $16 an hour on Jan. 1, which will be elevated to $18 an hour if voters approve November’s Minimum ...
Mandating dental coverage will drive up the cost of insurance
The Biden administration finalized a rule last month allowing states to mandate that most individual and small-group health plans, including those for sale on Obamacare‘s exchanges, cover adult dental services. Mandating coverage of dental benefits may be politically appealing. But it will end up leaving a bitter taste in people’s mouths. Mandates cost money. Implementing ...
Read the latest on drug pricing
Inflation Reduction Act Will Destroy Drug Access
Last month at a White House event, President Joe Biden and Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., took a victory lap for supposedly having “beat Big Pharma” through drug-pricing provisions in the Inflation Reduction Act. Beaming with pride, they hailed new powers for Medicare to “negotiate” drug prices as a historic achievement. But their self-congratulation rests ...
Congress should take action to make telemedicine permanent
Congress faces a year-end deadline to extend its relaxed pandemic-era rules permitting greater use of telehealth by Medicare beneficiaries. If our lawmakers fail to step up, millions of seniors as well as privately insured patients could lose access to what has become an essential form of medical care. The expansion of ...
Read the latest on carbon accounting proposals
Activists Use Shareholder Rights To Undermine Shareholders’ Interests
Led by CalPERS, the pension fund for California public workers, activist investors may oppose re-electing ExxonMobil ExxonMobil 0.0% chief executive Darren Woods to the company board. His sin: seeking greater clarification regarding proposals that shareholders have previously rejected multiple times. The issue arises because Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) activist investors Arjuna Capital and Follow ...
Read the latest on short-term health plans
Biden Goes “Over The Top” In Latest Offensive Of The War Over Obamacare
The Biden administration just launched a new offensive in the decade-long regulatory war over Obamacare. It finalized a rule earlier this spring that severely restricts Americans’ ability to purchase short-term health plans—effectively rolling back a Trump administration rule that had greatly expanded access to them. The White House claims the new rule ...
Read about Gov. Newsom's "May Revise" budget proposal
May Revise sets up California for painful spending choices and tax increases
Giving credit where it is due, Gov. Newsom’s “May Revise” budget proposal recognizes the seriousness of the situation. He proposes real cuts, opposes tax increases, and suggests some efficiency improvements – which are all positive steps. Unfortunately, the proposal still relies on too many budget gimmicks and fund shifts. The Newsom plan also underestimates the severity of the current budget shortfall that must be addressed. Making matters worse, growing economic headwinds, including the tech industry laying off over 81,000 people and California’s subpar personal income growth, raises concerns that the ...
Read the latest on Medicare spending
Focus Medicare’s Dwindling Resources to Those Most in Need
Medicare’s trustees released their annual report this week. It paints a bleak picture of the program’s future. Total spending on the healthcare entitlement for seniors exceeded $1 trillion last year, the trustees note — some $12 billion more than the program took in. If current trends continue, Medicare’s Part A hospital insurance ...
Read the latest on medical debt proposals
Medical Debt-Relief Can Backfire on Patients
Americans collectively owe some $220 billion in medical debt. In response, a growing number of states, including New Jersey and Connecticut, are using public funds to relieve those debts. Gov. Josh Shapiro, D-Pa., proposed doing something similar in his state earlier this year. But is canceling medical debt the best way to help cash-strapped Americans? Click to ...
Read how overregulation is having negative effects on nursing homes
Government shouldn’t micromanage nursing homes
The Biden administration published regulations last month requiring most nursing homes to maintain specific staffing levels. As a result, roughly three in four nursing homes will have to hire additional personnel. Progressives argue the rules will lead to better care. “For residents, this will mean more staff, which means fewer ER visits potentially, more ...
Read on the negative effects of raising minimum wage
$20 Minimum Wage for Restaurant Workers is Only the Beginning
It was bound to happen. Less than a month after the $20-an-hour fast-food restaurant minimum wage kicked in, activists are demanding that all other minimum-wage workers, who got a bump to $16 an hour on Jan. 1, which will be elevated to $18 an hour if voters approve November’s Minimum ...
