Archive for September 29th, 2014

29
Sep
14

A Tweet Or Two

By Nerdy Wonka 67 Comments
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29
Sep
14

McAllen, Texas Saved $20M On Healthcare?! Thanks ObamaCare

By Nerdy Wonka 115 Comments
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NYT: A Health Care Success Story

IT may have been the most influential magazine article of the past decade. In June of 2009, the doctor and writer Atul Gawande published a piece in The New Yorker called “The Cost Conundrum,” which examined why the small border city of McAllen, Tex., was the most expensive place for health care in the United States. The article became mandatory reading in the White House. President Obama convened an Oval Office meeting to discuss its key finding that the high cost of health care in the country was directly tied to a system that rewarded the overuse of care. Five years later, the situation has changed. Where McAllen once illustrated the problem of American health care, the city is now showing us how the problem can be solved, largely because of the Affordable Care Act that Mr. Obama signed into law in 2010.

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The problem was that doctors in McAllen were responding to reimbursement incentives in the American health care system that rewarded activity rather than value. The more procedures and visits a doctor billed, the more he got paid. The Affordable Care Act was designed to change that. One of its provisions created the Medicare Shared Savings Program, which rewards doctors for keeping their patients healthy. Participation in the program requires primary care doctors to create networks, called accountable care organizations, or A.C.O.s, to better coordinate patient care. These networks are reimbursed for delivering high-quality care below a baseline of historical Medicare costs. In 2012, doctors in McAllen formed the Rio Grande Valley Accountable Care Organization Health Providers, and signed up for this experiment. The early results are in, and they are stunning: From April 2012 to the end of 2013, the Rio Grande Valley A.C.O. saved more than $20 million from its Medicare baseline. These changes didn’t just save money; they also improved patients’ health. From 2012 to 2013, the number of patients achieving control of their diabetes rose 11.8 percentage points. The number receiving vaccinations rose 12.2 percentage points.

More here

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29
Sep
14

More Positive Economic News? Thanks, President Obama

By Nerdy Wonka 128 Comments
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NYT: Business Spending, Exports Spur Big Bounce In U.S. Economy

The U.S. economy grew at its fastest pace in 2-1/2 years in the second quarter with all sectors contributing to the jump in output in a bullish signal for the remainder of the year. The Commerce Department on Friday raised its estimate of growth in gross domestic product to a 4.6 percent annual rate from the 4.2 percent pace reported last month. The United States is bucking a spate of weaker overseas growth with the euro zone and Japan slumping, and growth in China slowing as well. the expansion in consumer spending, combined with strong business investment,

was nevertheless enough to push domestic demand ahead at its fastest pace since 2010. That suggests the economy’s recovery is becoming more durable after output slumped at a 2.1 percent rate in the first quarter because of an unusually cold winter. So far, data covering manufacturing, trade and housing suggest that much of the second quarter’s momentum spilled over into the third quarter. Growth estimates for the July-September quarter range as high as a 3.5 percent pace. When measured from the income side, the economy grew at a 5.2 percent pace during the second quarter…export growth was raised to an 11.1 percent pace, the fastest since the fourth quarter of 2010, from a 10.1 percent rate.

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Jason Furman: Third Estimate of GDP For The Second Quarter Of 2014

1. Real gross domestic product (GDP) increased 4.6 percent at an annual rate in the second quarter of 2014, the fastest pace since the fourth quarter of 2011, according to the third estimate from the Bureau of Economic Analysis. The strong second-quarter growth represents a rebound from a first-quarter decline in GDP that largely reflected transitory factors like unusually severe winter weather and a sharp slowdown in inventory investment. Growth in consumer spending and business investment picked up in the second quarter, and residential investment increased following two straight quarters of decline. Additionally, State and local government spending grew at the fastest quarterly rate in five years. However, net exports subtracted from overall GDP growth, as imports grew slightly faster than exports.

Real gross domestic income (GDI), an alternative measure of the overall size of the economy, was up 5.2 percent at an annual rate in the second quarter. 3. Over the past four quarters, real GDP has risen 2.6 percent, faster than the 2.0 percent annualized pace observed over the preceding eight-quarter period. Looking at four- and eight-quarter changes to smooth some of the quarter-to-quarter volatility, it is clear that many components of GDP are showing improvement. The growth rates of consumer spending, business investment and exports have all picked up, and the pace of declines in the Federal sector have moderated a bit. In addition, the State and local government sector has turned positive, after several years of steady cutbacks. One area that has slowed over the last four quarters is residential investment, although it did rebound in the second quarter.

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29
Sep
14

Chat Away

By Chipsticks 119 Comments
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On This Day: Senator Barack Obama on the tarmac near his campaign plane in Reno, Nevada, September 29, 2008

29
Sep
14

Rise and Shine

By Chipsticks 100 Comments
Categories: All Photos and All Videos

On This Day – Pete Souza: “When a White House staff member leaves their job, the President usually invites the staff member and his family to the Oval Office for a family photo to thank them for their service. Here the President walks with William Jones, son of departing aide Luke Jones, before a family photo.” Sept. 29, 2011

• • •

Today (all times Eastern)

10:45: The President meets with HUD Secretary Castro, Roosevelt Room

12:0: White House Press Briefing

3:30: The President attends a DNC fundraiser, Washington

7:0: Hosts Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India for a private dinner, VP Biden also attends

• • •

President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama arrive on stage for the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation Annual Phoenix Awards dinner, September 27, 2014

• • •

The Week Ahead

Tuesday: The President will host Prime Minister Modi at the White House.

Wednesday: The President will host Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House. In the afternoon, the President will welcome – sorry Tally – Sporting Kansas City to the White House to honor their 2013 MLS Championship. In the evening, the President will travel to Chicago where he will spend the night. Further details to come.

Thursday: After a couple of events in Chicago, the President will return to the White House. That evening, the President will deliver remarks at the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute’s annual awards gala in Washington.

Friday: The President will attend meetings at the White House.

• • •

60 Minutes – President Obama, part one

60 Minutes – President Obama, part two

60 Minutes Overtime – President Obama: “That’s how we roll.”

Overtime Original: How Syria became “ground zero for jihadists”

Transcript here

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Your Morning Adorables:

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MoooOOOooorning!

29
Sep
14

Early Bird Chat

By Chipsticks 107 Comments
Categories: All Photos

On This Day: President Barack Obama gives Make-a-Wish child, Chase Kerr, a high-five during a greeting with Chase and his family in the Oval Office, Sept. 29, 2009 (Photo by Pete Souza)

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