Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen told lawmakers Wednesday that the department is looking into ways to expand on the limited direct file pilot program with possible extensions in functionality and applicable tax credits up for debate.
The free program, which is like a scaled-down version of the popular tax preparation software, has encountered fierce opposition from Republicans and the tax preparation industry, which once maintained a noncompete clause with the IRS specifically ...
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Federal court says states can’t exclude gender-affirming care
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Transgender care polices in W.Va., NC are discriminatory, judge rules
State health care plans and government-funded insurance programs cannot exclude coverage for gender-affirming medical care, a federal appeals court ruled Monday.
The 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled 8-6 to affirm two lower court rulings ordering North Carolina and West Virginia to roll back policies that exclude coverage for gender-affirming care. North Carolina’s state health plan does not cover treatment “in connection with sex changes or modifications and relate...
Texas AG sues Biden administration over Title IX rules that expand transgender student protections
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton (R) on Monday sued the Biden administration over new federal nondiscrimination protections for transgender students.
The Education Department this month finalized a set of sweeping changes to Title IX, the federal civil rights law that prohibits sex-based discrimination in schools and education programs that receive federal funding, after more than a year of delays. The new regulations, which are slated to take effect Aug. 1, cover d...
White House throws cold water on menthol ban
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White House bolsters transgender health protections, rolls back Trump admin rule
The Biden administration is bolstering health care protections against discrimination for gay and transgender people, reversing a Trump administration rule that gutted the protections.
In a wide-ranging final rule released Friday, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) strengthened the Affordable Care Act's (ACA) rules that prohibit discrimination on the basis of sex, including on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity, in certain health programs ...
We’re paying off medical debt wrong
Medical debt imposes a crushing burden on millions of Americans. More than 40 percent of Americans owe medical debt, with 18 percent owing $2,500 or more.
Concerned by this issue, states and local governments have passed or are considering programs to fund debt relief. On Monday, Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker announced a plan to eliminate $1 billion in medical debt per year. This adds to more than $12 billion in passed or proposed medical debt relief by 20 other states or local ...
Is Trump founding a dynasty?
It makes sense that Donald Trump thinks in terms of dynasties. After all, although he claims to be a self-made man, an investigation by the New York Times in 2018 reported that he had received the equivalent of $413 million from his father Fred, a New York City property developer. He is head of the Trump Organization, based at Trump Tower on Fifth Avenue, where his sons Donald Jr. and Eric are executive vice presidents.
Trump also regards his name as a powerful brand....
Budget 2024: Liberals look to offset drug plan cost with higher smoking, vaping taxes
The increased cash flow coincides with the launch of a new $1.5-billion drug plan to offer universal coverage for contraceptive and diabetes medications.
Becerra says rural health would improve if states expand Medicaid
Rural health outcomes would improve if more states expanded Medicaid, Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Xavier Becerra told a Senate panel Tuesday.
During a hearing on the administration's budget request, Sen. Cindy-Hyde Smith (R-Miss.) said she is particularly worried about maternal care deserts caused by hospital closures. Mississippi sees some of the worst maternal health outcomes in the country, she said, and often leads the country in infant mortality.
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