From NPR: …Nonprofit hospitals, including Mount Carmel, pay no federal, state or local taxes, giving them a competitive edge over their for-profit counterparts. In return, nonprofits are expected to offer a community benefit, including free and discounted care for low-income patients.
Month: April 2012
What are we to think of a country where…?
ROME: A simple task: Exchange $100 US for Euros. To get a good rate, it is best to visit a bank. First we had to pass though a chamber where one door opened and closed behind and then a second door opens. Mrs. Watchdog and I tried to go together but the second door would not permit two at a time. Can’t be too careful.
US economic growth of 2.2% disappoints
From the FINANCIAL TIMES: The US economy grew a disappointing rate of 2.2 per cent in the first quarter of 2012 as inventories piled up and the federal government cut spending.
With Bo Xilai’s ouster, China’s premier pushes more reform
WASHINGTON POST: Chinese Prime Minister Wen Jiabao has seized upon the ouster of his Communist Party rival Bo Xilai to reinvigorate what had until recently seemed a lonely campaign for Western-style economic liberalization and a battle against corruption… It was only last year that Wen appeared to have been marginalized on the reform front after […]
Not Guilty Verdict in Crane Collapse Trial
From NEW YORK CHANNEL 4: A construction crane owner was acquitted of manslaughter and all other charges Thursday in the May 2008 collapse of a 200-foot-tall rig that snapped apart, killed two workers and fueled concerns about crane safety…
Heavy debt loads may be holding down consumer spending
From USA TODAY: Households have whittled down the massive debt they racked up in the mid-2000s credit bubble, but apparently not enough to nudge them into a spending binge that could jump-start the recovery, some economists say. Household debt is closely watched by economists because consumers burdened by big monthly payments for mortgage, credit card and student loan obligations are less likely to splurge on clothing, furniture and travel.
Chrysler first-quarter profit up more than 300%
USA TODAY: …The profit was on net revenue of $16.4 billion, up 25% from a year ago. And its net debt has been cut to $1.3 billion as of March 31 vs. $3.4 billion a year ago… And in the key U.S. market, upon which Chrysler still is more dependent than most other automakers, the […]
Obama Explains Increasing Medical Marijuana Crackdowns, Raids In ‘Rolling Stone’ Interview
HUFFINGTON POST: Amid an increased crackdown on medical marijuana producers across the nation, including a recent high-profile raid on a California training school, President Barack Obama faced questions in a new interview with Rolling Stone about the seeming disconnect between his 2008 campaign rhetoric and his administration’s actions since he took office… “What I specifically […]
Voters show off their IDs, or don’t
PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER: Defiantly, begrudgingly or compliantly, Pennsylvania voters took the test run of the state’s new voter ID requirement in stride Tuesday, generally producing photo identification as requested but occasionally registering protests. Whether they offered identification or not, registered voters who showed up at their old polling places were ushered to voting machines and permitted […]
Fed sees economy recovering gradually
FINANCIAL TIMES: Federal Reserve officials left monetary policy unchanged as they upgraded their forecasts for US economic growth for 2012, predicted lower unemployment rates and suggested the appropriate time for interest rate hikes was sooner than previously thought. US central bankers are expecting growth in gross domestic product between 2.4 and 2.9 per cent this […]
Kathleen Kane’s AG candidacy faces resistance from both parties
It will be apparent to those who have read Bill Keisling’s articles on Pennsylvania politics that the nomination for Attorney General of a Democrat who is not a part of the political establishment and not beholden to special interests poses a grave threat to those who have milked and bilked Harrisburg and much of the rest of the state for decades.
Capitolwire: Kane defeats Murphy, becomes first woman nominated to run for attorney general.
SCRANTON (April 24) – Kathleen Kane became the first women nominated by any party to run for state attorney general. Kane defeated former congressmen Patrick Murphy for the Democratic Party’s nomination Tuesday.
HUFFINGTON POST
“John Edwards Trial Turns Tragedy Into Crime, Says Eliot Spitzer” is the heading on the web site. Article reports “ …Here is an excerpt from Spitzer’s remarks, via ABC News: “’This is an unfortunate tragedy of a story, where the jury, at the end of the day, will have to distinguish, based upon what will […]
Debt Collector Is Faulted for Tough Tactics in Hospitals
From the NEW YORK TIMES: Hospital patients waiting in an emergency room or convalescing after surgery are being confronted by an unexpected visitor: a debt collector at bedside. This and other aggressive tactics by one of the nation’s largest collectors of medical debts, Accretive Health, were revealed on Tuesday by the Minnesota attorney general, raising concerns that such practices have become common at hospitals across the country.