Capitol Comments
Colorado Joins States Reporting Price of Health Care Procedures
By Debra Miller | Wednesday, May 16, 2012 at 10:44 amColorado, by 2013, will have on-line a searchable database to allow consumers to compare health costs across hospitals and doctors. Thirteen other states have or are implementing All Payer Claims Databases, according to the All-Payer Claims Database Council.
The move by Colorado began with passage of a bill in 2010 establishing an advisory council to make recommendations on setting up the database.
Insurance Companies Owe $1.3 Billion Back to Policy Holders
By Debra Miller | Tuesday, May 15, 2012 at 3:58 pmAccording to early estimates, health insurance companies will be issuing rebate checks later this summer totaling $1.3 billion. The checks are due because of a provision of the Affordable Care Act that large group health insurance plans must spend 85 percent of premium income on health care claims and quality improvement. For small group plans and individual plans, the requirement is 80 percent. The remaining 15 or 20 percent may be used for administrative expenses, including claims processing, marketing, and earning profits for investors.
EIA Shows Coal Fired Power Generation on the Decline in Early 2012
By Brydon Ross | Monday, May 14, 2012 at 2:47 pmAccording to recent figures by the Energy Information Administration (EIA), the percentage of electric power generation from coal fell by 19% in the first quarter of 2012 compared to the same time period in 2011. Overall, coal-fired power made up 36% of US electricity generation in the first quarter of 2012 and in the first quarter of 2011 that figure was 44%. EIA went on to estimate in its short-term energy outlook that coal consumption will fall by 14% in 2012.
NJ Governor's Veto Leaves States with Health Insurance Exchange Authority at Thirteen
By Debra Miller | Friday, May 11, 2012 at 10:50 amNew Jersey Gov. Chris Christie vetoed a bill that would have set up a health insurance exchange as required by the Affordable Care Act. In his veto message, Christie advocated that the state wait until the Supreme Court has ruled on the constitutionality of the ACA.
Christie’s action leaves the total number of states with legal authority to establish health insurance exchanges at thirteen.
Court of Appeals Ruling Could Weaken Interstate Compact Power
By JC Hendrickson | Thursday, May 10, 2012 at 3:00 pmOn Monday, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit issued a decision in United States v. Pleau, siding with the federal government.
CSG Urges Congress to Act on Cyber-Security Legislation, Consider Key Principles
By JC Hendrickson | Wednesday, May 9, 2012 at 4:51 pmToday, The Council of State Governments joined The National Emergency Management Association and eight other organizations representing state and local government officials to urge Congress to consider key principles while developing legislation to protect the nation’s information infrastructure.
DHS Announces Major Cyber Attacks Found on Nation's Natural Gas Pipeline System
By Brydon Ross | Tuesday, May 8, 2012 at 1:09 pmYesterday's Christian Science Monitor ran a story that several major cybersecurity attacks on our nation's natural gas pipeline system are underway, based on alerts from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). According to the story, at least three private alerts were sent by DHS to pipeline companies since March 29, that a wave of attacks have been occurred for months and could impact Canadian pipeline companies as well.
Weight of the Nation: Will You Watch?
By Hannah Oglesby | Tuesday, May 8, 2012 at 9:10 amThe Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, CDC, began a conference series that started yesterday titled “Weight of the Nation”. This conference coincides with a public health HBO project that involves CDC, the Institute of Medicine (IOM), National Institutes of Health (NIH), the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation and Kaiser Permanente.
Kentucky to launch new, more rigorous education assessment
By Tim Weldon | Monday, May 7, 2012 at 3:49 pmNew academic standards in Kentucky will bring with it a new way to measure whether students are learning what they’re supposed to learn. In Kentucky, which became the first of 46 states to adopt common core state standards, it’s a case of out with the old and in with the new. Until this year, the state used an end-of-year assessment known as the Commonwealth Accountability Testing System – or CATS – to measure academic proficiency in its 174 school districts. Beginning this month, however, a new assessment called Unbridled Learning will launch from the starting gate.
Vermont Likely to Become the First State to Ban Hydraulic Fracturing
By Brydon Ross | Monday, May 7, 2012 at 1:18 pmOn Friday, the Vermont House of Representatives overwhelmingly approved a ban, by a vote of 103-36, to become the first state to enact an outright prohibition on the use of hydraulic fracturing. Last year, New Jersey's legislature passed a similar fracking ban that was initially vetoed by Governor Chris Christie and a temporary, one-year prohibition was passed in its place. Vermont's Governor, Peter Shumlin, is widely expected to sign the legislation, which was heralded by environmentalists and opposed by industry groups that viewed it as reactionary and unnecessary since there are no active permits to use the fracking process in the state.
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