Posts Tagged “health care”
- Just two days after the House soundly defeated the financial rescue bill worked out by Congressional leaders and the White House, the Senate will vote on a modified version of the bill Wednesday that is likely to pass. It will contain tax breaks that some House members oppose, but the Senate’s quick action in passing it could pressure them into siding with it–it sounds just like Thanksgiving at my house, only with money instead of sweet potatoes and giblet gravy…
 The stock market, after a record one-day loss Monday, rebounded Tuesday to post its third-highest gain ever–a 485 point jump in the Dow Jones averages. Generally I’m a fan of rollercoasters, but this is just one big tummy ache…- Both Barack Obama and John McCain, who will return to Washington Wednesday to vote on the Senate version of the financial rescue bill, both called for providing banks with greater security by raising the amount of FDIC-insured funds in accounts to $250,000. That provision is included in the Senate bill, which means McCain still might be able to take credit for personally saving the American economy…
- Thursday’s debate between vice-presidential candidates Joe Biden and Sarah Palin is an unusually-anticipated event, with more media credentials issued than for any other VP debate. I imagine many reporters want to be on hand for a night of potentially historic statements–some because they defy logic, others because they defy the dimension of time…
- A new genetic test for for the flu virus just approved by the the government will allow labs across the US to identify flu strains in a matter of hours instead of days–which could be crucial if a deadly new strain suddenly appears. This is a great achievement–I can’t wait for when they finally can quickly identify a potential hangover…
 The Chicago White Sox became the last Major League Baseball team to make the postseason Wednesday night when they beat the Minnesota Twins 1-0 in a tie-breaker game for the American League Central Division championship. Chicago’s pitching was outstanding, giving up only two hits–one to each of the twins, I presume…
Tags: Barack Obama, financial bailout, health care, Joe Biden, John McCain, Major League Baseball, Sarah Palin, Senate, Wall Street
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- Congressional leaders say they will act quickly on a plan from Fed chairman Ben Bernanke and Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson to buy up bad mortgages and other investments that are putting banks and other financial institutions in danger of collapse. Of course, now that the price tag is somewhere just south of a trillion bucks, that seems about as smart a re-election move as admitting you’re a distant relative of Osama bin Laden…
 Nearly a week after Hurricane Ike struck south Texas, Houston is beginning to return to normal with electricity restored to nearly a million homes and traffic returning to normal–but Galveston Island remains closed and residents ordered to stay away while officials struggle to get just basic services restored. I can’t help but think of that classic Glen Campbell song: "Galveston, oh Galveston…I am so afraid my house is floating…" (watch out–audio is old and scratchy!)- The American Medical Association and the American Academy Of Pediatrics, along with twenty other medical groups, say public confidence in vaccine safety must be restored , amid reports of measles outbreaks at a 10-year high and a quarter of all toddlers not sufficiently immunized. The primary reason is that some parents fear that they cause autism–which is about as likely (to them, I’m sure) that they also cause homosexuality…
  A new poll has found that support for a California constitutional amendment to ban same-sex marriage is fading and now trails by a 17-point margin. I believe there are two major reasons–one, that Ellen DeGeneres has done it, and Anne Heche hasn’t… Federal law enforcement officials say former congressman Mark Foley likely won’t face charges for all those inappropriate emails and instant messages he sent to underaged pages. That may seem like another politician getting a break from the law, but I think the fact that Foley is now a political zero has probably punished him worse than any fine or jail time…- New Jersey’s attorney general has ordered an end to plea-bargains for teenagers ticketed for driving offenses, saying it undermines the state’s graduated license program–which mandates an improvement program for those offenders before a standard license is issued. It could have unforseen economic consequences–too many teens without cars could wipe out the Paramus Mall…
Tags: autism, Ben Bernanke, California, Financial meltdown, Galveston, gay marriage, health care, Henry Paulson, Houston, Hurricane Ike, Mark Foley, New Jersey
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- The American Academy of Pediatrics is recommending that some children as young as 8 be given cholerterol-fighting drugs to help fight future heart problems. Physicians would make the determination based on family history, current levels of both "good" and "bad" chloresterol, and the child’s daily intake of bacon-and-bacon sandwiches…
- Cooler, more humid air Sunday gave firefighters in California a tiny break in their battle to control another wildfire threatening 2,700 homes in the Santa Barbara area. Maybe it was just the Governator channeling Mr. Freeze from Batman And Robin…
- Congress returns from a week-long holiday break with plans to provide foreclosure relief, stop Medicare cuts and broaden intelligence agencies’ ability to track suspected terrorists–all planned for completion by early August, when members will break for another month and likely begin re-election campaigns in earnest. So they’re cramming a ton of work into just a few weeks’ time–this is gonna turn out just like my last home remodeling project…
- Health experts warn that John McCain’s plan to tax health insurance premiums as income and then give those paying them a tax credit would lead many employers to stop providing it as a benefit, since many of their employees could buy individual polices for less than the tax credit they would receive. This sounds like a great plan–if geometrically increasing the nation’s uninsured is what you had in mind…
- The United Arab Emirates has agreed to cancel $7 billion of Iraq’s debt and has moved to restore diplomatic relations there, a sign of improved security and acceptance of their Shiite government. And as a thanks to US efforts there, the UAE promised that Americans would never pay more than $20 a gallon for gas…
- The latest edition of Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary features some new additions–"Texas Hold-’Em" and "dirty bomb", as well as the lesser-known "Norovirus", "edamame", and "pescatarian". Just missing this year’s list: "K-Fed", "baby mama", and "Britney-tized"…
Tags: California, Children, Congress, forest fires, health care, Iraq, John McCain
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- The Supreme Court Thursday struck down as unconstitutional a Washington, DC ban on handgun ownership, a ruling which many are calling the most significant Second Amendment decision ever rendered–likely because no court until now ever weighed in on whether the amendment actually protects the right to "bear arms", or that the privilege was tied to service in a state militia. Who besides me thinks that Charlton Heston is somewhere, collecting on a bet he made with George Washington?
- President Bush signaled a major thaw in relations between the US and North Korea Thursday when he lifted key trade sanctions and removed them from a terrorism blacklist–all as a reward for disclosure of their existing nuclear programs. For now, the president is not insisting that leader Kim Jung-Il wear business suits and start combing his hair…
- The stock market dropped nearly 360 points to its lowest level in almost two years, largely on news of another record price of just under $140 a barrel. In other words, Americans are nearly-just under-almost ready to string up everybody on Wall Street…
- The makers of anti-flu drug Tamiflu are offering employers an opportunity to pay an annual fee to reserve enough of the vaccine to protect every worker in case a new super-flu strikes again. It certainly makes for a cost-effective way to eliminate an awfully convenient sick day excuse…
- The Democratic National convention in Denver may be a real challenge to its attendees, but it will be healthy–the catering guidelines specifically insist that no fried foods be served, and that every meal should be nutritious and include, "at least three of the following colors: red, green, yellow, purple/blue and white". Coincidentally, these are the identical colors that many Southern delegates will turn when they discover this…
- A House panel learned that a record 36 percent of commercial bee colonies have been lost to mysterious causes this year, which is twice the normal loss following winter. We haven’t seen a honey drop-off this significant since the local Hooters was closed…
Tags: Democratic Party, Gas prices, health care, House, North Korea, President Bush, stock market, Supreme Court
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- Barack Obama announced that he would bypass public financing for his general election campaign–the first candiate to do so since the system went into effect in 1976. It frees his incredibly successful fundraising machine from contribution limits–and saves registered voters $85 million…
- A GAO report found that some 27,000 Medicare health-care providers owe the IRS back taxes–and almost half are payments withheld from employees’ paychecks for Medicare premiums diverted into the personal accounts of nursing home and hospital owners. Talk about biting the hand that feeds you…
- The Supreme Court ruled Thursday that a mentally-ill patient found competent to stand trial doesn’t necessarily have the right to act as his own attorney. I’m guessing the justices figure there are enough loony lawyers out there as it is…
- The Bush administration wants Congress to move quickly to give the Federal Reserve new authority to protect the nation’s financial system. That way, they can use taxpayer dollars to bail out even more greedy brokerage firms…
- A heat wave in Southern California has driven temperatures above 100 degrees in many areas, including Thursday’s high temperature of 113 in Los Angeles. Look out–that’s hot enough to melt a starlet’s silicone implants…
- An evangelical group has abandoned efforts to overturn Maine’s law protecting gays and lesbians from discrimination, saying that California’s move to grant marriage licenses to same-sex couples made it tougher to recruit volunteers who, quote, "don’t want to be aligned with bigotry and homophobia and hatred". I’m sure if you eat a few lobster rolls and some blueberry pie, you could feel that way too…
Tags: Barack Obama, Bush administration, Federal Reserve, GAO, gay marriage, health care, Medicare, Supreme Court
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