WASHINGTON — With spending cuts central to the debate on the national debt, health interests are understandably nervous. Advocate for the poor worry about Medicaid. Hospitals already are airing commercials, pre-emptively defending against cuts in Medicare and Medicaid reimbursements. But doctors’ groups, led by the American Medical Association, have a different outlook. They see the […]
Deirdre Shesgreen
Posted inPolitics
Tong, Murphy tout strength in Senate campaign organizations
William Tong may have to keep up-or even speed up-his fundraising pace, given the campaign staff he’s assembled for his U.S. Senate bid. In a release Wednesday, Tong, a state representative from Stamford, touted the political talent he’s hired for his campaign to replace retiring Sen. Joseph Lieberman. Among the recruits are Jim Jordan, a […]
Posted inMoney
Lieberman lukewarm, Blumenthal mum on Senate Dems 2012 budget plan
Senate Democratic leaders unveiled a 2012 budget blueprint Wednesday, discussing the document behind closed doors during a policy lunch. After emerging from the session, Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal declined to comment on the measure, which comes as Congress faces an increasingly tight deadline to craft a debt-and-budget deal. But Sen. Joseph Lieberman, an independent who […]
Posted inMoney, Politics
Tong raises more than $500,000 for U.S. Senate bid
William Tong said he’s raised about $550,000 in the 53 days since he jumped into the 2012 U.S. Senate contest. Tong’s campaign said Tuesday that he ended the 2nd fundraising quarter, which ran from April through June, with more than $500,000 cash on hand. Tong, a Democrat and state representative from Stamford, is in a […]
Posted inHealth
Mini-med plans explained
Federal health reform was supposed to limit so-called “mini-med” plans-health insurance plans that cap how much health care they cover. But federal officials have granted some of these plans waivers from the law, out of fear that employers would drop any insurance option if they had to comply with the new rules. The Kaiser Family […]
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State delegation waiting in the wings while debt talks go on
WASHINGTON–Freshman Sen. Richard Blumenthal concedes he’s not the “linchpin” to resolving the partisan standoff between Congressional Republicans and the White House over raising the debt ceiling. Nonetheless, Blumenthal said he’s happy to clear his schedule of Connecticut meetings and events next week to stay in Washington, as the Senate cancelled its week-long 4th of July […]
Posted inMoney
Larson blasts Colombia trade deal
Rep. John Larson said Thursday that he would “actively oppose” a free-trade deal with Colombia negotiated by the White House. Larson said the deal would be bad for workers in the U.S. and in Colombia, because Republican had blocked the inclusion of provisions aimed at improving labor rights in the deal. Here’s Larson’s full statement: […]
Posted inHealth
New report highlights hurdles for small medical practices in adopting electronic records
Connecticut doctors have been slow to adopt electronic medical records, in part because a majority of the state’s physicians work in groups with four doctors or fewer. That means they don’t have a big institution, with deep resources, to help make some of the large technological investments needed to switch over to an electronic system. […]
Posted inMoney
Blumenthal, Himes appear in “It Gets Better” videos
Rep. Jim Himes, D-4th District, and Sen. Richard Blumenthal, a Connecticut Democrat, both appear in new videos made for the “It Gets Better” project. The project began last year after several gay and lesbian youths committed suicide after being harassed, bullied, or shunned because of their sexual orientation. The videos, now numbering more than 10,000, encourage […]
Posted inNews
Senators examine high court record on cases against business
WASHINGTON–The Supreme Court’s recent decision in the Wal-Mart v. Dukes sex discrimination lawsuit was re-litigated on Wednesday–in the political arena, with the debate focused on the court’s approach to corporate cases. The Wal-Mart case was Exhibit A at a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing probing whether the nation’s highest court has tilted too much toward big […]
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Supreme Court spurns CT Green Party case
The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday declined to take up an appeal from the Green Party of Connecticut, contesting the state’s requirements for third-party candidates to qualify for public financing. The justices made the decision without comment. The Green Party suit, filed in 2006, said the thresholds set for participation in Connecticut’s Citizen Election Program […]
Posted inNews
Lieberman, Coburn offer Medicare plan ‘nobody’s going to like’
WASHINGTON–Here’s a political pitch you don’t hear too often: “Nobody’s going to like this plan. We understand that.” That’s how Sen. Tom Coburn, a hard-edged fiscal conservative from Oklahoma, described the Medicare reform proposal he’s been working on with Sen. Joseph Lieberman, a Connecticut independent. Sen. Joseph Lieberman (l) with Sen. Tom Coburn: ‘Some strong […]
Posted inHealth, Money
Lieberman, Coburn to unveil Medicare proposal
Sen. Joseph Lieberman appears to have found an ally in his bid to remake Medicare, and along the way, possibly earn himself a spot in the debt-reduction debate that has dominated Washington in recent months. Today, Lieberman will team up with Sen. Tom Coburn, a conservative from Oklahoma, in touting a proposal to overhaul Medicare, […]
Posted inNews
Food safety advocates say administration is stalling on E. coli rules
WASHINGTON–Rep. Rosa DeLauro and other food-safety advocates say the Obama Administration is holding up a new rule that could protect Americans from potentially deadly outbreaks of emerging food-borne pathogens. The issue has taken on fresh urgency in the wake of the devastating outbreak in Germany, where more than 35 people have died and more than […]
Posted inNews
Supreme Court: matching grants in public financing are unconstitutional
WASHINGTON–A narrowly-divided U.S. Supreme Court on Monday ruled that supplemental grants triggered by an opponent’s spending in state public funding systems are unconstitutional. The 5-to-4 decision means Connecticut will not be able to revive the matching grants that helped fuel the bids of both Democrat Dannel P. Malloy and Republican Michael C. Fedele in last […]