Ever since there have been economists, there have been debates between economists about the impact of a minimum wage (pdf). Few research topics feature so many twists and turns. Many economists once presumed that higher w...
obamacare
American men, it’s time to start talking about your abortions
Sometimes, men and women have sex, but don’t want to have a baby together. And no method of contraception is 100% effective, except not having sex. Consequently, humans have been aborting unwanted pregnancies since at least Biblical times. By age 45, about one in four American ...
New insurance rates prove Trump’s policies have increased Obamacare premiums
Early signs show health insurance companies are trying to exponentially raise prices for plans sold on the Affordable Care Act (ACA) marketplace — and for people who don’t qualify for federal assistance, there’s no relief in sight.
Insurers in Maryland and Virginia are asking for double-digit premium increases to 2019 monthly plans. CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield CEO Chet Burrell said that Maryland’s exchange is in the “advanced stages of a death spiral.̶...
Tennessee governor to sign Medicaid work requirement funded by welfare dollars
A philosophical change to the country’s largest public health insurance program is underway, as states one-by-one try to implement Medicaid work requirements. Tennessee is the latest state to try to make work conditional of Medicaid eligibility. At least 22,300 are expected to drop health insurance, according to the state’s own estimate.
On Thursday, the state Senate sent Gov. Bill Haslam (R) a bill that directs Tennessee to submit a federal waiver to impose work require...
From mandatory sick leave to Obamacare safeguards, New Jersey had a good healthcare week
A trove of progressive health care bills are now on the desk of New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy (D). On Thursday, lawmakers in the state sent him several measures like mandatory paid sick leave, knowing the governor is all but certain to sign them — unlike his Republican predecessor Chris Christie.
Once the bills are signed, New Jersey would become the 10th state to enact a paid sick leave law — a critical workplace benefit that helps employees balance work, family, and medi...
Trump administration issues new rule chipping away at Obamacare
The Trump administration issued a ton of regulatory changes Monday that chip away at the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Moving forward, states will have more flexibility to set their own standards and people will be given new exemptions to avoid the health care law’s individual mandate penalty.
The 523-page regulation is one that comes out every year, and is intended to outline what ACA plans will look like for consumers next year.
Monday’s rule gives consumers two ne...
An obscure court order should terrify anyone who depends on Obamacare
Last month, Texas federal Judge Amos Mazzant handed down an order in Nevada v. the United States Department of Labor. Everything about this order is bizarre.
The order concerns a pair of lawsuits asking whether an Obama administration rule expanding the class of workers that are entitled to receive overtime pay. It also concerns Judge Mazzant’s apparent belief that he should be allowed to impose his view of this question on federal district judges throughout the count...
Surprise! The Trump administration just admitted it has to follow Obamacare
In an unexpected development, the Department of Health and Human Services sent a letter to Idaho Gov. Butch Otter (R) on Thursday reluctantly conceding that Obamacare “remains the law and we have a duty to enforce and uphold the law.”
The letter, from Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Administrator Seema Verma, informs Idaho that insurers will not be allowed to sell illegal plans within that state which threatened to destabilize Idaho’s insurance markets...
Obamacare repeal is back, and it is stupider than ever
The sun rises. The sun sets. Young people fall in love. Taxes are paid. People die. And Republicans make newer, dumber attempts to repeal Obamacare.
It’s an endless, unbreakable cycle of meritless lawsuits, half-baked legislation, and disingenuous political rhetoric. It would be hilarious if hundreds of thousands of lives weren’t at stake.
The latest effort to kill Obamacare is a lawsuit brought by 20 Republican governors and attorneys general alleging that, since...