Today certainly was a disappointing day for congressional Republicans. Since March 23, 2010, seven years ago yesterday, Republicans have wanted to repeal and replace the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, better known as Obamacare. But, House Republican leadership was unable to satisfy enough members in their caucus to vote for their repeal and replacement bill, H.R. 1628, […]
Time to Address FCC’s Privacy Order
There is a point where over-regulation can lead to uncertainty. Such is the case with the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) Privacy Order. While the protection of individual privacy is important, the FCC’s Privacy Order, adopted on October 27, 2016, imposes a burdensome set of restrictions on providers and throws consumers a confusing set of options to decide how […]
American Health Care Act — A Bill to Repeal and Replace Obamacare
The House Republicans have introduced a bill that will begin the process to repeal and replace Obamacare, entitled the American Health Care Act of 2017 (AHCA). Obamacare is collapsing and Congress must act to stabilize and prevent further turmoil in the individual and small group health insurance market. For example, there are more than 1,000 […]
Smoke and Mirrors: Teenage E-Cigarette Use Down
There is a lot of misinformation regarding e-cigarettes. If you’re the parent of a teen, you have probably seen the sensational headlines about “studies” concluding that teens are vaping at “record highs” because it’s now what the “cool kids” are doing. However, this “fact” couldn’t be further from the truth. A debate is ongoing about […]
The Debt Ceiling: Extraordinary Measures and Where to Find Them
On March 7, 2017, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) announced that if the debt ceiling was not raised or extended before March 16, the Treasury will be unable to borrow funds for standard operating procedures. In order to avoid breaching the debt ceiling, the Treasury will be forced to take extraordinary measures so that it […]
Flake, et al. to POTUS: Veto Earmarks!
On Tuesday, March 7, 2017, at a time when the U.S. House of Representatives is contemplating a return to the “insidious” practice of “earmarking,” U.S. Sen. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.), joined by a handful of his colleagues, wrote to President Donald J. Trump urging the nation’s chief executive to veto any legislation that includes earmarks. According […]
Pentagon Obscures Cost Growth of “Little Crappy Ship”
According to a March 2017 Government Accountability Office (GAO) report, the Defense Office of Prepublication and Security Review, which is charged with reviewing information to be released to the public, blocked awkward information regarding cost growth in a historically wasteful program. The GAO was forced to delete cost increases of two Littoral Combat Ships (LCS) […]
Bernie’s Bereft and Bogus Bill
On February 28, 2017, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) introduced, S. 469, the “Affordable and Safe Prescription Drug Importation Act.” As of March 3, the bill is co-sponsored by 20 of his Democratic colleagues. In a February 28 press release, the sponsors challenged President Trump to “support our efforts” and to “encourage his Republican colleagues to […]
An Obamacare Repeal/Replace First Draft
On February 16, an “Obamacare Repeal and Replace Policy Brief and Resources” document was released that laid out the following points: Obamacare has failed; it will only get worse; that repealing the law will provide relief combined with a stable transition to something new; and the Republicans in Congress have a better way to deliver […]
Tackling Obamacare Through Administrative Action
The process of repealing and replacing the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA), better known as Obamacare, is underway. While Republicans in Congress are anxious for Obamacare to disappear as soon as possible, most Democrats want the healthcare reform law to be preserved and “fixed.”