Problems with Medicare Policy

Concerns are rising about the way federal funding for hospitals is being distributed. The Obama administration recently published a report that calls for change in payment policy from federal insurance programs, such as Medicare, to hospitals. The report showed that hospitals are increasingly getting rewarded or punished based on their performance. For example, hospitals lose federal funding if the number of treated patients who return within the next month is above average. This is a problem because funding is being awarded to high-tech hospitals, and taken away from hospitals that need drastic upgrades. Many also fear that current policy benefits hospitals with generally high-income patients, whereas it takes funding away from hospitals with low-income patients.

 

 

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/04/28/us/politics/health-laws-pay-policy-is-skewed-panel-finds.html?ref=policy&_r=0

Man Disturbs Supreme Court in Protest (Unit 4 Judiciary)

The Supreme Court strictly forbids any video recording during their hearings. This is why Noah Kai Newkirk, a man who recorded Supreme Court actions and posted them on line, has served time in jail. Newkirk disagreed with a Supreme Court ruling from 2010 which exempted some interest groups and corporations from limits on campaign spending. He says he intended to protest and expose the "unprecedented amount of money" that corporations are allowed to spend. In addition to spending a night in jail, Newkirk has been banned from the Supreme Court grounds for a year. The Supreme Court building intends to tighten its security now that footage from a hearing has been posted online for the first time.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/man-who-disrupted-supreme-court-gets-time-served/2014/04/15/2db2368c-c4bd-11e3-9ee7-02c1e10a03f0_story.html

A Word on Whistleblowers

My opinion of whistleblowers is that anybody who bravely reveals injustice to the public deserves praise. Among these is Professor Matthew Woessner, who recently exposed a "wellness" program at Penn State that he felt was degrading and forced students to reveal personal information. Huffington Post journalist Robert Moranto recently provided an interesting approach to looking at whistleblowers, dividing them into four (perhaps sterotypical and over-generalizing) groups. These are bureaucrats who reveal information to the public about financial waste, "megalomaniacs" who "feel that only they know the truth," "Machiavellian infighters" like those who exposed Nixon's scandal, and "cornered whistleblowers" who choose to obey the law even when their bosses try to tell them to break it. I don't think these archetypes are to be taken that seriously, but this article still offered an interesting perspective on whistleblowers.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/robert-maranto/thinking-about-whistleblo_b_3830426.html

Obama and Ukraine

President Obama  recently stated that the United States will "do everything we can to support Ukraine and the Ukrainian people. He has not stated any specific plans, saying that he does not wish to make promises to the Ukrainian people that he can not keep. This shows that president's informal roles as head diplomat and moral guide for the American people. Technically, the issue could involve the president's formal role as Commander-in-Chief if he chose to send military aid to the country. The president is monitoring the negotiating between Kiev and Russia, and if he chooses to become involved in the agreement, this would further express his power to make treaties (thought the Senate must ratify them) and hold diplomatic relationships with other nations.

http://www.cnn.com/2014/03/27/politics/obama-europe/index.html?hpt=po_c2

President Obama at Democratic National Committee Meeting

The commitment that many people feel to their respective political parties is probably single strongest reason why our two-party system is still in place. This week, President Obama spoke for the Democratic National Committee to discuss the issues he is facing during his presidency, and how the Democratic Party has solved these issues or plans to. The president "contrasted the values of the Democratic and Republican parties" by talking about the difference between Democratic and Republican responses to issues. The event was scheduled to spark enthusiasm to vote in the midterm elections.

http://www.c-span.org/video/?318040-1/president-obama-addresses-dnc

Public's Immigration Priorities Changing

http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2014/02/17/polls-publics-immigration-priorities-changing/?hpt=po_c2

Peoples' views on immigration- a sore subject for many Americans- seem to be changing. A recent Gallup poll showed that 44% of American citizens think it is more important to help illegal immigrants become legal residents of this country than to focus on border control. This is a big change from just three years ago, when most citizens seemed to want to make it more difficult for immigrants to enter the United States.
The poll was conducted by interviewing 1,023 adults by telephone, and the sampling error is suspected to be plus or minus about four percent. Even with this consideration, the poll shows a shift in American views. I think the integration of immigrants is a prime example of progressivism and the way things can change for the better for all U.S. citizens.

A very interesting example of how gun control issues are not black and white...

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/02/04/nikki-haley-guns-_n_4725822.html