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  • Obamacare Open Enrollment 2.0
    Nov 15 2014
    jaredsxtn
    0
    1.7k
    Obamacare Open Enrollment 2.0
    The second round of open enrollment for Obamacare begins today, allowing those who didn't obtain health insurance last year the opportunity to get covered. If you are one of those individuals who didn't get health insurance during the first open enrollment, or if you are like me and want to search for new options, you have until February 15, 2015 to make your decision.
  • Super-Centers Are Leaving Part-Time Workers To Fend For Themselves
    Oct 08 2014
    sbfriedman
    1
    2k
    Super-Centers Are Leaving Part-Time Workers To Fend For Themselves
    Walmart, our nation's largest retailer, is cutting some 30,000 part-time employee's health care benefits, due to the rising costs for the company.
  • Obamacare Deadline is March 31st - What You Need to Know
    Mar 30 2014
    jaredsxtn
    0
    2.9k
    Obamacare Deadline is March 31st - What You Need to Know
    The deadline to sign up for coverage under the Affordable Care Act is fast approaching. For those of you who have not signed up for coverage yet, there are some very important things that you will need to know going forward. Let's start with the most important update. If you do not sign up for coverage by the end of the day on March 31, you may have some wiggle room to sign up.
  • Everyone Should Be Able To Afford Healthcare
    Mar 28 2014
    sbfriedman
    0
    3.5k
    Everyone Should Be Able To Afford Healthcare
    According to the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), the national poverty rate for the continental US (for 2014) is $11,670/year. That's for one person, living by themselves. For every extra person in the household, you add $4,060.
  • Medicare: America's First Single-Payer System
    Feb 17 2014
    jaredsxtn
    0
    2k
    The single greatest legislative accomplishment in the second half of the twentieth century came on July 30, 1965, the date President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Social Security Amendments that created Medicare and Medicaid.
  • The Republican Obamacare "Replacement": Let's Go Back to the Good Ol' Days
    Feb 06 2014
    jaredsxtn
    0
    2.1k
    It has only taken them five years, but the Republicans have finally rolled out a healthcare plan of their own. And what a plan it is. The Republicans have hammered the President and Democrats for instituting "the biggest tax hike in history" on the American people.
Related Member Blog Articles
  • Black Friday Will Only Destroy Thanksgiving If We Allow It To
    Nov 24 2014
    sbfriedman
    2
    2.7k
    Black Friday Will Only Destroy Thanksgiving If We Allow It To
    The day American shoppers lose their minds for moderately awesome, limited supply discounting is upon us! Black Friday is here, and some of the largest retailers across the country are following the annoyingly disturbing trend of opening their doors even earlier this year than the last.
  • Obama's Climate Agreement With China Just Might Save the World
    Nov 13 2014
    jaredsxtn
    5
    3.2k
    Obama's Climate Agreement With China Just Might Save the World
    President Obama's deal with China to dramatically cut greenhouse gas emissions may go down as one of his lasting legacies once everything is said and done with his Administration. The deal, which was announced at a joint press conference, set far reaching goals of reducing carbon emissions that surprised most everyone over how much the two countries agreed to cut.
  • Nov 23 2015
    Politicians slam tax-avoiding Pfizer-Allergan mega-deal
    Politicians slam tax-avoiding Pfizer-Allergan mega-deal
    Nov 23 2015reuters.com
    Pharmaceutical Industry
    Democratic politicians condemned Pfizer Inc's tax-avoiding "inversion" deal with Ireland's Allergan Plc on Monday, bringing another round of Washington hand-wringing over corporate taxes, but probably no immediate legislative action. Hillary Clinton, the front-runner for the Democratic presidential nomination, blasted Pfizer for using legal loopholes to avoid paying its "fair share" of U.S. income taxes in a deal she said "will leave U.S. taxpayers holding the bag."
  • Nov 02 2015
    Will cheaper health insurance really raise wages? The evidence is thin.
    Will cheaper health insurance really raise wages? The evidence is thin.
    Nov 02 2015vox.com
    Obamacare & Health Insurance Industry
    Economists believe something that on its face sounds absolutely bizarre to a normal human being: Obamacare's tax on expensive health insurance will give Americans a pay raise. Here's the argument: Economic theory predicts that companies have a set amount they're willing to pay a worker, given her specific talents and skills. Under this theory, companies are agnostic to whether they spend that money on a salary, a health plan, maybe a gym subsidy, or even a free puppy. What's important is attracting the best workers, and companies will use that money however is necessary in order to get those workers and keep them happy.
  • Mar 21 2015
    The drugs don’t work
    The drugs don’t work
    Mar 21 2015economist.com
    Capital Punishment & Pharmaceutical Industry
    IN 1996 the state of Utah put John Albert Taylor, a man who had raped and murdered an 11-year-old girl, to death by firing squad. Chris Zimmerman, a retired police officer who investigated the murder, witnessed the execution. “Off to our left was Mr Taylor, off to the right, behind a wall, was the firing squad,” he remembers. “There was a countdown, and the firing squad were ordered to aim and fire. I heard a simultaneous explosion—you couldn’t tell the guns apart. He clenched his fists, his chest rose a little, like it was suddenly filled with gas. Then he unclenched his fists, the doctor walked out with a stethoscope and checked his pulse, and it was over.”
  • Mar 16 2015
    16 Million Fewer Uninsured Thanks To Obamacare
    16 Million Fewer Uninsured Thanks To Obamacare
    Mar 16 2015huffingtonpost.com
    Medicaid, Obamacare & Health Insurance Industry
    More than 16 million Americans gained health coverage because of the Affordable Care Act, mainly via the law's health insurance exchange and Medicaid expansion, according to an analysis published Monday by the Department of Health and Human Services. The government estimate is consistent with numerous surveys taken over the past two years. The Health and Human Services report issued Monday is based in part on findings from the polling company Gallup, which found the uninsured rate has fallen from 20.3 percent in October 2013, when Obamacare sign-ups began, to 12.3 percent during the first quarter of this year.
  • Mar 09 2015
    Once again, Obamacare is turning out to be cheaper than expected
    Once again, Obamacare is turning out to be cheaper than expected
    Mar 09 2015motherjones.com
    Health & Welfare, Obamacare & Health Insurance Industry
    Here's some good news: the latest report from the CBO has reduced its estimate of the cost of Obamacare. This is due partly to a slight decrease in the number of people CBO expects to be covered, but mostly due a lower estimate of the cost of insurance premiums. Thanks to this, federal subsidies are estimated at $209 billion less over a ten-year period, and the cost of CHIP and Medicaid is estimated at $73 billion less. However, there are also reductions in expected revenues from Obamacare's excise tax, so the net reduction amounts to $142 billion over ten years. The table below tells the story. Sarah Kliff has more details here.
  • Jan 06 2015
    GOP Congress' first priority: yanking health insurance from 1.5 million Americans
    GOP Congress' first priority: yanking health insurance from 1.5 million Americans
    Jan 06 2015motherjones.com
    Obamacare, Barack Obama, Republican Party & Health Insurance Industry
    One of the first things House Republicans plan to do after Congress reconvenes Tuesday is vote on a bill that would gut Obamacare—and could deprive up to 1.5 million Americans of their employer-sponsored health insurance. After the GOP-controlled House passes the bill, the newly Republican Senate is likely to pass the measure too. What's more, President Barack Obama may be forced to sign this legislation if it is attached to a must-pass budget bill later this year.
  • Dec 16 2014
    The Obamacare paradox: the law looks terrible but is doing great
    The Obamacare paradox: the law looks terrible but is doing great
    Dec 16 2014vox.com
    Health & Welfare, Obamacare, Barack Obama & Health Care Industry
    Politically, Obamacare has had a terrible past few weeks. First there was inaccurate enrollment data (the administration wrongly included dental plans). Then there were Jon Gruber's comments on "the stupidity of American voters." And it was capped off with Sen. Chuck Schumer saying that passing the law was a mistake. That led to headlines like: "Dark days ahead for Obamacare," "The Obamacare controversy grows" and my own "Obamacare's terrible, horrible, no good very bad month."
  • Dec 01 2014
    The Real Threat to Obamacare
    The Real Threat to Obamacare
    Dec 01 2014newyorker.com
    Obamacare, Supreme Court Cases, Consumers & Health Insurance Industry
    Obamacare has had a rough month: it’s being challenged in a Supreme Court case; House Republicans are trying to undermine it with a lawsuit; and its poll numbers are terrible. But on the ground the Affordable Care Act—which is starting its second open-enrollment period—looks robust. Most people in the program say they’re happy with their plans, and new insurers are entering the market. Prices are pretty good, too: estimates suggest that premiums for the second-cheapest of the “silver” plans, which is the benchmark used to set subsidies, have risen by an average of just two to five per cent. Still, one fundamental challenge remains: if Obamacare is to succeed in holding down premiums over the long run, it needs consumers to shop around.

Liberal Legislation that Affects the Health Care Industry

DatePositive Result\BenefitLawRank
02/22/12Cuts in Medicare physician payment rates averted with extension of existing rates through 2012Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act
03/23/10Insurance companies must spend 80% of the money raised from consumers premiums on health care and quality improvementObamacare
03/23/10Health insurance companies can not charge higher premiums for out of network emergency room careObamacare
03/23/10Insurance companies must provide consumers a short, easy to understand summary of their benefits and coverageObamacare
03/23/10Mental health and drug addiction coverage is an "essential benefit" that can not be deniedObamacare
03/23/10Preventative services will be covered at no additional costObamacare
03/23/10Women are no longer charged higher premiums because of their genderObamacare
03/23/10Consumers are guaranteed the right to appeal decisions made by their health insurance providerObamacare

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