A coalition of health insurers and employer groups is using a targeted ad campaign to call attention to private-public hospital expansions it says leads to higher premiums and out-of-pocket expenses.
The campaign comes as the Ohio State Wexner Medical Center continues to move forward with a $1.9 billion, 1.9-million-square-foot inpatient hospital expected to open in 2026.
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The Founders built America on a rock, but today, because of the Left, the rock is crumbling, and the country must assert moral clarity on several fronts to fix it, said Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin, who fired up the crowd at the Road to Majority Conference Saturday.
“They built it on rock. They unleashed a wave of freedom across the world with the prosperity of seeing a shining sea, the greatest nation ever built,” Youngkin said. “Yet today, we can feel the great American house shaking. Across our college campuses, echoes of extermination speech, while chaos roars across our borders.”
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Legislators pushing a bipartisan bill to legalize recreational marijuana warn that, without action, neighboring states will supply the drug — and carry away the tax revenue.
Reps. Aaron Kaufer, R-Luzerne, and Emily Kinkead, D-Bellevue, will soon introduce their legalization bill, written to closely overlap with a Senate proposal. They want to move fast.
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A temporary worker at the Maricopa County Tabulation and Election Center (MCTEC) was arrested for theft, forcing the county to reprogram its security equipment, which will cost around $20,000.
On Friday, Walter Ringfield, 27, who was on probation for a prior felony, was arrested for allegedly stealing a security fob and keys from MCTEC, KTAR News reported. Ringfield was booked on charges of theft and criminal damage.
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Virginia’s permit-tracking website has expanded from including permits from three state government departments to six.
Virginia residents and businesses can now follow online in real time the permits they’ve submitted to the Virginia Department of Health, Department of Transportation, and Department of Conservation and Recreation, as well as permits from the state Department of Environmental Quality, Virginia Marine Resources Commission and Department of Energy.
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The Ohio Department of Transportation says it needs nearly $2 billion to slow the growth of commute times and make a stretch of highway in one of the state’s fastest-growing counties safer.
Delaware County’s population has more than doubled in more than 20 years and increased by more than 15,000 people in the last three years. That growth has pushed a 23-mile area of U.S. Highway 23 north of Columbus to 30% over its capacity.
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The fiscal 2025 budget, which Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp recently signed, includes $9.2 million for the Child and Parent Services Program and pay increases for direct care workers.
According to a national organization of family caregivers, the rate increases lawmakers passed are $6 per hour for direct care workers helping people with intellectual and developmental disabilities and $3 per hour for direct care workers supporting older adults.
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by Natalia Mittelstadt Two Arizona prosecutors are conducting independent investigations into Gov. Katie Hobbs (D) regarding an alleged pay-to-play scheme, with both accusing the other of having a conflict of interest. Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes (D) and Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell (R) are both investigating Hobbs for alleged criminal conduct, but each are telling the other prosecutor to stand down from their investigation because of potentially improper motivations. Last Friday, Mayes opened a criminal probe into corruption allegations involving Hobbs and donations from a group home business. Mayes notified the state legislature that she had received a criminal referral from a GOP lawmaker involving allegations with Sunshine Residential Homes. “The Criminal Division of the Attorney General’s Office is statutorily authorized to investigate the allegations and offenses outlined in your letter. To that end, the Attorney General’s Office will be opening an investigation,” Mayes wrote. The announcement came after The Arizona Republic reported that the group home business that cares for vulnerable children was approved for a 60% rate hike after it donated about $400,000 to Hobb’s inauguration and the state Democratic Party. Sunshine requested the rate hike to address financial hardships amid the COVID-19 pandemic and inflation, the newspaper…
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The Biden Department of Justice (DOJ) issued a 126-page report on Thursday claiming that it found probable cause after a three year investigation that the Phoenix Police Department (PPD) violated the First, Fourth and Fifth Amendments when dealing with the public. The investigation began in August 2021, alleging five problem areas. The DOJ accused PPD of using excessive force, discriminating against nonwhites, treating homeless people unlawfully, violating the First Amendment, and discriminating against the mentally ill.
A PPD officer who preferred to remain anonymous told The Arizona Sun Times that there were all kinds of problems with the report. He said the consultants hired by the DOJ to visit PPD were fresh out of law school and knew nothing about law enforcement. He said they pulled a few files and didn’t interview relevant people. There was a lot they didn’t do, he said. Additionally, the cases cited in the report are old, and key details were omitted from the report, including that those cases were resolved.
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The Canary Mission’s deep dive into the hateful messaging being pushed by educators across the nation and in Pennsylvania comes at a time when lawmakers of the Keystone State are attempting to revive a school voucher program which would award scholarships to low-income students attending underperforming public schools.
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The Republicans are hoping to unseat Congressional Democrat Greg Stanton in District 4, who has won three consecutive terms. This district covers all of Tempe, and parts of Mesa, Phoenix, Scottsdale and Chandler.
The Cook Political Report lists Stanton’s seat as a solid Democrat despite CD4 having a “D+2” rating. This means on average, a Democratic candidate in this district would perform 2 percentage points better than the national average for Democratic candidates. Pundits say, this slight edge should be beatable with the right candidate. This district is labeled “solid Democrat” instead of “lean Democrat” due to Stanton’s incumbent status and significant war chest of $1,517,082.
Republican consultants believe the key to defeating Stanton lies in the significant number of independent voters, which is a huge 34% in all registered voters.
Republicans are entering 2024 with a registration advantage and can highlight Stanton’s consistent alignment with President Biden by showcasing his voting record. The lawmaker votes with Biden almost 100% of the time.
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Tennessee remains $523.7 million short of the original budget for tax and fee collections through the first 10 months of the fiscal year.
The May numbers were $29.5 million short of the budgeted amount but $52.4 million head of May 2023.
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In a poll of 600 likely voters in Arizona, run by North Star Opinion Research, Trump leads by double digits, up 10 points in a multi-candidate field. The top three candidates are Trump at 42%, Biden at 32%, and Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. at 13%.
Trump also leads a two-man race by 6-point margin, 48-42%, with 11% undecided.
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Ten more alleged Minneapolis gang members have been charged in federal court for various crimes including illegal possession of firearms, possession of a machine gun, and drug trafficking, announced U.S. Attorney Andrew M. Luger in a Tuesday press conference.
Luger was joined by Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara and FBI Assistant Special Agent in Charge Leah Greeves in announcing charges against the “10z” and “20z” (pronounced “tens” and “twenties”) gang members who they say operate mainly in the area of East Franklin and Chicago avenues in south Minneapolis and are part of a two-year crackdown on gangs in the city.
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One of Wisconsin’s Republican lawmakers is not giving up on his idea for a time limit for kids when it comes to social media.
Rep. David Steffen, R-Green Bay, this week announced his Wisconsin Kids Online Safety Act.
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Tuesday’s Republican primary race for Virginia’s 5th Congressional District between state Sen. John McGuire and incumbent U.S. Rep. Bob Good is still too close to call.
McGuire holds a razor-thin lead of 313 votes, according to the latest numbers from the Virginia Department of Elections. Good, chairman of the Freedom Caucus, is holding on to hope that lingering votes will save his seat.
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A partially federally funded South Carolina Agency is changing its name as it doubles down on its enforcement of crimes targeting the state’s vulnerable adult population.
South Carolina’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit is changing its name to the Vulnerable Adults and Medicaid Provider Fraud Unit. State officials said the agency experienced a 30% increase in reports from law enforcement thanks to an outreach effort targeting local agencies over the past two years.
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A concurrence from the House of Representatives is all that stands in the way of reinforcing Ohio hospital requirements to provide transparency in pricing.
Both the Senate and House passed slightly different versions of House Bill 49, which requires hospitals to comply with the federal price transparency law. This includes maintaining and making a public list of standard charges for services a patient can schedule in advance.
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Georgia’s unemployment rate increased slightly in May, hitting 3.2%, up from a revised 3.1% in April, and a leading Georgia business group said inflation is still challenging many businesses.
However, the Peach State’s unemployment rate was lower than the national unemployment rate of 4%, Georgia officials touted.
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The immigration wave at the southern border is a crisis of national security, and Michigan is not exempt from its effects, a recently retired Border Patrol chief says.
Former Chief Chris Clem, who is visiting Michigan as part of Americans for Prosperity’s “Secure Borders, Secure America” tour, served more than 27 years and under five presidents as a U.S. border patrol agent. He was promoted to Yuma Sector chief in December 2020, right before President Joe Biden took office.
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Southern Arizona continues to see major busts of illicit drugs.
Two separate incidents in Yuma and Tucson on June 6 resulted in 138 pounds of drugs including fentanyl and methamphetamine by Arizona Department of Public Safety troopers, according to a news release.
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The next major transportation plan is out and PennDOT wants the public to comment on it.
The Statewide Transportation Improvement Plan was released to the public this week, laying out how the agency plans to spend almost $29 billion in the next few years to build “a safe and reliable transportation network that connects Pennsylvanians to opportunities and services,” according to an agency press release.
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Gov. Ron DeSantis signed two bills on Thursday intended to support Florida veterans and their spouses.
House Bill 725 expands the eligibility for admissions to a long-term care facility for veterans to include spouses and surviving spouses of qualifying veterans.
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A Democratic plan before the Ohio Senate would raise business and income taxes to establish universal health care throughout the state.
The legislation would give every Ohioan access to comprehensive health care without a co-payment or deductible and coverage could not be denied for preexisting conditions.
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Arizona has avoided potential abortion law confusion with the conclusion of the legislative session.
Since the session concluded on Saturday night, all normal legislation without an emergency clause signed by Gov. Katie Hobbs will go into effect on Sept. 14. This also includes the May repeal of the abortion law that was created in 1864 and re-codified in 1977 that banned abortion in nearly all circumstances.
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An Arizona Court of Appeals panel of three judges issued a 23-page unpublished decision last week, affirming a trial court’s dismissal of Kari Lake’s Rule 60(b) second election lawsuit. The court claimed that Lake’s Rule 60(b)(3) motion, which means requesting a second trial based on newly found evidence, constituted merely relitigating her first election lawsuit.
The court said that instead, “The focus must rather be on the fraud or misconduct that prevents a litigant from trying otherwise meritorious claims.” However, the court ignored Lake’s evidence of misconduct and affirmed the high standard the trial court judge set for election contests, which is not found in Arizona case law.
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Arizona U.S. Representatives Andy Biggs (R-AZ-05), Paul Gosar (R-AZ-09), and Eli Crane (R-AZ-02) sponsored a resolution introduced on Tuesday that would rescind subpoenas that the House Select Committee on the January 6 Attack sent to multiple aides of former President Donald Trump.
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The Arizona Senate failed to pass a ballot initiative that would designate drug cartels as terrorist organizations.
House Concurrent Resolution 2038 passed the House with a vote of 31-28 in February but failed in the Senate 15-14 with all Democrats voting against the HCR and Sen. Jake Hoffman, R-Queen Creek, being absent on Saturday.
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Estate planning could get a little easier in Michigan if a bill that cleared the Michigan House continues to move forward.
Sponsored by Rep. Doug Wozniak, R-Shelby Township, HB 5110 allows income trusts to convert to unitrusts, and vice versa. A unitrust gives a fixed percentage of the assets to the recipient per year, while an income trust provides a steady stream of income.
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Lawmakers at the Wisconsin Capitol say Milwaukee Public School’s financial crisis will cost their schools as well.
Republican Rep. Jerry O’Connor, R-Fond du Lac, said MPS’ recently approved property tax increase will shift the way that state school aid dollars are spent.
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Pennsylvania crematories can officially lower standard operating temperatures to save money and reduce environmental emissions.
Gov. Josh Shapiro signed the legislation Monday, which drops the temperature from 1,800 degrees Fahrenheit to 1,600 degrees. The small change garners big results, according to the funeral industry.
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The latest defense budget passed Friday authorizes over $920 billion in spending and contains significant investments in Virginia.
The commonwealth has one of the biggest military populations in the U.S., and the defense industry comprises a large portion of its economy.
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Maricopa County is taking a victory lap for taking steps toward wiping out some pension debt in this year’s budget.
The Public Safety Personnel Retirement System and Corrections Officer Retirement Plan, which is used for law enforcement when they retire, will have $500 million sent its way for “unfunded pension liabilities.” This came after a vote in which every member of the Board of Supervisors agreed to tackle the debt.
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A petition was presented to the Hopkins School Board during a June 11 meeting, calling on the board to provide a safe environment for students in Hopkins Public Schools following a violent incident that occurred at the end of May.
“We, the undersigned members of the Hopkins Public Schools community, are deeply concerned about the violent assault last Thursday against a transgender student at Hopkins High School,” the petition reads. “Just two days prior, there were three fights at the high school and the police were called to prevent a fourth.”
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Georgia continues to report tax collections lower than a year ago, with May’s collections down by more than 1% as the state heads toward the end of the fiscal year, new numbers reveal.
Georgia officials said the state’s net tax collections in May surpassed $2.4 billion. However, that is a decrease of 1.1% or $26.3 million compared to last May, when net tax collections approached $2.5 billion.
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Bernie Moreno, the Republican nominee in the Ohio U.S. Senate race, condemned the Biden administration’s executive order to allow illegal alien spouses and children to apply for lawful permanent residence without leaving the country.
To be eligible under Biden’s Tuesday executive order, “noncitizens” must have resided in the United States for 10 or more years and be legally married to a U.S. citizen while satisfying all applicable legal requirements as of June 17, 2024.
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Customers of one of Florida’s largest utilities had the opportunity to voice their opinions during a public hearing held by Florida regulators last week.
The Tampa Electric Company filed a petition with the Florida Public Service Commission in April to increase base rates for 810,000 residential, commercial and industrial customers in Hillsborough County and portions of Polk, Pasco and Pinellas counties.
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The Ohio Republican Party launched a new initiative on Monday aimed at turning out the Republican vote for the November 5 general election.
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Another member of Congress has warned a terrorist attack is imminent. This latest warning comes after a former CIA director argued that similar warning signs exist today that did before the 9/11 terror attack occurred.
U.S. House Intelligence Committee Chairman Rep. Mike Turner, R-Ohio, told CBS News’ Face the Nation Sunday, “We are at the highest level of a possible terrorist threat” resulting from Biden administration policies.
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Reform on Alzheimer’s Disease and similar conditions took another step toward the Pennsylvania governor’s desk last week.
Leaders in the House Aging and Older Adult Services Committee hope to build momentum behind the issue after a plan laid out in 2014 to address the many obstacles facing those seeking care has largely fallen flat.
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Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes slammed the state’s budget that passed the state legislature late Saturday night.
The Democrat specifically expressed concern with opioid settlement funds being heavily allocated toward the Department of Corrections, Rehabilitation, and Reentry and even took aim at fellow Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs.
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Georgia owns several railroads, thanks to a 1977 law allowing the state transportation department to financially help railroads to continue rail service that would otherwise be abandoned. The Georgia Department of Transportation’s Intermodal Division manages the state-owned short lines, including the contracts with lessees and administers taxpayer funding.
The Georgia Department of Transportation’s 2021 State Rail Plan executive summary said the state “serves as the epicenter of rail in the Southeast with connections throughout” the country.
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Both legislative chambers left town this week after advancing sweeping educational reforms likely to wind up – in some form – woven into the state budget due June 30.
While the plans don’t necessarily clash, Senate and House leaders do. The ideological strife will boil down to the estimated return on investment.
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Ohio schools could get $600 million to build new facilities, and the state fairgrounds is in line for more than $200 million if the Senate’s plan for part of the state’s capital budget is approved.
Senate Bill 292 was introduced Monday ahead of hearings planned for Tuesday.
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Georgia continues to report tax collections lower than a year ago, with May’s collections down by more than 1 percent as the state heads toward the end of the fiscal year, new numbers reveal.
Georgia officials said the state’s net tax collections in May surpassed $2.4 billion. However, that is a decrease of 1.1 percent or $26.3 million compared to last May, when net tax collections approached $2.5 billion.
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Contractors and large employers in Ohio are a step closer to being required to verify the immigration status of employees after the House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed a bill to require the use of E-Verify in hiring.
House Bill 327, which passed 85-6, now heads to the Senate.
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A recently-released policy memo by The Buckeye Institute exploring the rising costs of healthcare in the U.S. found that the largest single driver of costs in the industry is rising hospital costs.
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Late Saturday night, lawmakers signed a controversial budget deal, which is now on its way to Governor Katie Hobbs where she is anticipated to sign it. Hobbs, House Speaker Ben Toma (R-Glendale), and Senate President Warren Peterson (R-LD12) negotiated this bipartisan agreement, excluding both Democratic leadership and Freedom Caucus members from the negotiation table.
Republican leadership praised the Arizona Fiscal Year 2025 state budget for its conservative fiscal discipline, addressing a $1.4 billion shortfall without raising taxes, and prioritizing public safety and school choice.
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The Gibson County sheriff has been indicted on 22 charges for improperly profiting off inmate labor.
Sheriff Paul Thomas was indicted on charges of theft, forgery, computer crimes and official misconduct.
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An Ohio lawmaker is looking for support to return land in western Ohio to formerly enslaved people denied to them during the Civil War.
In a letter to Republican Gov. Mike DeWine and other state agencies and elected officials, Rep. Dontavius Jarrells, D-Columbus, wants the governor to support exploring all options to address what Jarrells calls the historical injustice faced by the Randolph Freedpeople.
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