WASHINGTON — While they had reservations about some provisions of the bill, Sens. Richard Blumenthal and Chris Murphy joined an overwhelming majority in the U.S. Senate to approve a bill preventing a 21 percent cut in Medicare fees for doctors.
Richard Blumenthal
Richard Blumenthal, Connecticut’s senior U.S. senator, was first elected in 2011. Sen. Blumenthal has supported stricter gun legislation and support for veterans.
Posted inPolitics
Bank that boosts Connecticut exports under fire
WASHINGTON – For years Connecticut companies, large and small, have benefitted from a federally backed bank that helps them sell their goods overseas — but a bitter fight over whether the Export Import Bank is taxpayer-funded corporate welfare has put its future in question.
Posted inHealth, Politics
CT official: VA’s failure to share data hurts vets at risk of prescription abuse
WASHINGTON — Connecticut veterans are escaping the notice of a state program aimed at combating prescription painkiller abuse, an epidemic among those veterans; and the federal government’s Department of Veterans Affairs is to blame, a state official says.
Posted inHealth, Politics
Medicare fees to drop sharply as Senate falters on ‘doc fix’ bill opposed by CT senators
Updated at 10:43 a.m. Friday
WASHINGTON – The Senate’s failure to act on a bill, opposed by Connecticut’s senators, means fees paid to doctors who treat Medicare patients will drop sharply at the end of the month. If Congress, which left on a two-week Easter recess, acts as soon as it returns, the government says it may be able to avoid the fee cuts.
Posted inMoney, Politics
Blumenthal: Effort to block recognition of CT tribes faces challenges
WASHINGTON – Rules under consideration that would make it easier for Indian tribes to win federal recognition have a carve-out aimed at denying that status to several Connecticut tribes, but Sen. Richard Blumenthal has joined others in saying the provision may be unconstitutional.
Posted inHealth
Op-Ed: CT assembly should enact informed consent law for nursing home elders
We have a responsibility to protect our elders from harm and assure that they receive the best care possible. The Connecticut General Assembly should act swiftly to pass a law requiring informed consent before the administration of pharmacological dementia treatment to senior citizens in long-term care.
Posted inPolitics
CT lawmakers tackle Social Security solvency problem
WASHINGTON – Connecticut lawmakers are promoting a plan they say would shore up the solvency of the Social Security system for 75 years — and give about 11 million seniors a tax break. U.S. Rep. John Larson, D-1st District, and U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., introduced bills in the House and Senate Tuesday they say would eliminate a projected shortfall in the Social Security program.
Posted inPolitics
DeLauro reproves UTC chief over possible Sikorsky selloff
WASHINGTON – Rep. Rosa DeLauro, a Democrat who represents a congressional district that is home to Sikorsky Aircraft, blasted United Technology Corp. CEO Greg Hayes on Thursday, saying he is going back on his word to keep the helicopter maker in Stratford.
Posted inMoney, Politics
CT senators vow to block high-speed rail that bypasses state
Updated 5:48 p.m. March 6
WASHINGTON – Both of Connecticut’s U.S. senators on Friday vowed to stop a proposal approved in the House of Representatives this week that would require Amtrak to study the feasibility of a new high-speed train from Washington, D.C., to Boston — with no stops in Connecticut.
Posted inPolitics
CT lawmakers split on Netanyahu speech
WASHINGTON – One Connecticut lawmaker decided to skip his speech to a joint session of Congress and others had differing reactions to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin “Bibi” Netanyahu’s forceful condemnation of U.S. efforts to reach an agreement with Iran over nuclear weapons.
Posted inPolitics
Texas Court delays, but doesn’t end, hopes for CT immigrant youths
WASHINGTON – Katia and Kiara Ruesta, 18-year-old twin sisters who live in Vernon and are undocumented, were on the verge of applying for provisional legal status before the ruling of a Texas judge put their hopes on hold. “I was kind of shocked; it was a huge surprise,” said Katia Ruesta, a student at Manchester Community College.
Posted inEducation, Politics
Himes, Blumenthal press for ‘Darwin Day’
WASHINGTON – Americans observe Feb. 12 as President Abraham Lincoln’s birthday, but Rep. Jim Himes and Sen. Richard Blumenthal want that date also celebrated as the birthday of Charles Darwin.
Posted inPolitics
CT lawmakers wary of Obama’s war powers request
WASHINGTON – Connecticut lawmakers were skeptical and cautious in their response to President Obama’s request for authorization to expand the U.S. military campaign against the Islamic state, especially when it came to the president’s request to allow troops to operate on the ground for limited periods.
Posted inPolitics
Homeland Security: Assessing the impact of a shutdown in CT
What would be the impact in Connecticut of a shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security? The risks depend on who you ask. But among the certainties are that TSA workers at Connecticut airports and most staff at the Coast Guard Academy in New London would be working without pay.
Posted inPolitics
CT lawmakers will attend Netanyahu’s speech — with misgivings
Washington – At least four of Connecticut’s Democratic lawmakers say they’ll attend Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin “Bibi” Netanyahu’s controversial address to Congress next month, even as some criticize the way House Speaker John Boehner made the invitation.