Monthly Archives: March 2013

Federal judge strikes down Missouri’s Obamacare birth control coverage exemption

"A federal judge has struck down a Missouri law exempting moral objectors from mandatory birth control coverage because it conflicts with an insurance requirement under President Barrack Obama’s health care law. Some backers of Missouri’s law said the court ruling could result in churches and other religious organizations having to accept insurance policies that include contraception coverage. The Missouri law requires insurers to issue policies without contraception coverage if individuals or employers assert that the use of birth control violates their 'moral, ethical or religious beliefs.'" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingFederal judge strikes down Missouri’s Obamacare birth control coverage exemption

CVS requires employees to report weight or pay a fine under new health care rules

"CVS pharmacy company is requiring all employees to submit detailed health profiles to their insurance company or pay a monthly fine to continue receiving health coverage. According to ABC News, all employees must submit their weight, body fat levels, blood glucose levels and other vital statistics before May 1, 2014, or face a monthly $50 fine — $600 per year. Employees who comply with the testing, the company said, will see no change in their monthly insurance rate. Those who do not will pay the fine or risk being dropped from their health plan." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingCVS requires employees to report weight or pay a fine under new health care rules

CBO: Up to 20 Million Could Be Pushed Off Employer Health Insurance Because of Obamacare

"In February, the Congressional Budget Office said that 7 million will likely lose their employer coverage thanks to ObamaCare — nearly twice its previous estimate. That number could be as high as 20 million, the CBO says. In December, state insurance commissioners warned Obama administration officials that the law's market regulations would likely cause 'rate shocks,' particularly for younger, healthier people forced by ObamaCare to subsidize premiums for those who are older and sicker." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingCBO: Up to 20 Million Could Be Pushed Off Employer Health Insurance Because of Obamacare

Obamacare Horror Story #2

"The news has just gotten worse on the Obamacare front. A friend tells me about terrible news his wife received on Friday. She is a college professor on a non-tenure track. The college just notified their non-tenure track teachers that because of Obamacare they will not be able to continue to employ them on a full-time basis. My wife's friend is now teaching 5 courses. Starting in the Fall, she will only be allowed to teach 3 courses and she will not be allowed to teach summer school classes." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingObamacare Horror Story #2

An Obamacare Chart to Make You Cry…Balanced by Obamacare Cartoons to Make You Laugh

"I’ve shared a nightmarish flowchart to show the Byzantine complexity of America’s healthcare system under Obamacare. Sort of makes you wonder whether the healthcare system will now be more complicated than the internal revenue code. But some people may be skeptical because this flowchart was prepared by Republicans from the Joint Economic Committee. Well, here’s a flowchart from the pro-Obamacare Washington Post, and it shows how just one small piece of the law will require complicated gymnastics." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingAn Obamacare Chart to Make You Cry…Balanced by Obamacare Cartoons to Make You Laugh

Companies cut hours of full-time employees to avoid providing health care under new rules

"Three years after the passage of Barack Obama’s signature healthcare law, labor advocates are warning that it could have the unforeseen consequence of harming some of the very low-wage employees it seeks to aid. The legislation’s incentive scheme, they say, could cause a shift toward part-time work that extends beyond companies like Papa John’s and Darden Restaurants, which last year publicized their plans to cut employee hours to avoid costs under the new law. Such worries are reflected in California, where the state union federation is exploring legislation to lay over the Affordable Care Act to fix the potential problem." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingCompanies cut hours of full-time employees to avoid providing health care under new rules

NATO airstrike kills two Afghan children

"A NATO helicopter strike killed two children in southern Afghanistan on Saturday, officials said, in the latest civilian casualties to beset the coalition’s war against Taliban militants. The operation close to Ghazni city was conducted after local people complained of a Taliban post targeting traffic convoys in the area, Mohammad Ali Ahmadi, the deputy governor of Ghazni province, said. 'It was a joint (Afghan and coalition) operation conducted this morning that killed nine Taliban. Unfortunately, two school children were also killed and seven other civilians were wounded,' he said." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingNATO airstrike kills two Afghan children

Alfred Anaya Put Secret Compartments in Cars. So the DEA Put Him in Prison

"The technically savvy are on notice that they must be very careful about whom they deal with, since calculated ignorance of illegal activity is not an acceptable excuse. But at what point does a failure to be nosy edge into criminal conduct? The challenge for anyone who creates technology is to guess when, exactly, they should turn their back on paying customers. Take, for example, a manufacturer of robot kits for hobbyists. If someone uses those robots to patrol a smuggling route or help protect a meth lab so that traffickers can better evade law enforcement, how will prosecutors determine whether the company acted criminally?" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingAlfred Anaya Put Secret Compartments in Cars. So the DEA Put Him in Prison

Missouri man facing charges for using fake penis to pass drug test

"A 34-year-old St. Louis man is facing criminal charges after he allegedly attempted to use a prosthetic penis to pass a drug test. According to FoxNews.com, Sydney Levin was arrested and charged with 'possession of a forging instrument.' He was caught attempting to use the Whizzinator Touch, a device designed to fool drug tests by creating body-temperature synthetic urine that will test negative for drugs. Police arrested Levin and released him when he posted $25,000 bond. In 2010, Gerald Willis of Los Angeles was sentenced to six months in federal prison for running the company that sold the Whizzinator. Willis’ company no longer exists." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingMissouri man facing charges for using fake penis to pass drug test

Idaho teacher investigated for saying ‘vagina’ during biology lesson

"A high school science teacher in Idaho is under investigation by the state’s professional standards commission because he reportedly used the word 'vagina' during a biology lesson. Tim McDaniel, who teaches 10th grade science at Dietrich School, told the Twin Falls Times-News that four parents were upset when they learned that his lesson included the word 'vagina' and information about the biology behind female orgasm." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingIdaho teacher investigated for saying ‘vagina’ during biology lesson