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Rand Paul Introduces Healthcare Freedom Legislation

"The Health Marketplace for All Act of 2024 [S 5298] would allow any membership organization -- which includes wholesale clubs (such as Costco), credit unions, and churches, among others -- to offer an ERISA health plan to its members 'across state lines -- regardless of an employment relationship.'... The Health Savings Account for All Act [S 5297] would give millions of Americans access to a health savings account (HSA) regardless of income or insurance coverage so that patients can take advantage of the tax-free growth and withdrawals when spending on qualifying healthcare services."

Making a Killing in American Health Care: a Step-by-Step Guide

"Do you want to be the highly-paid CEO of a hospital/'health' system? Do you need to pay for a new $356 million medical campus? Master this how-to guide and you'll be on your way."

Five States Win $839 Million Obamacare Lawsuit

"Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is leading a five-state coalition that ... won an $839 million judgment against the federal government ... [The ACA] requires medical providers to pay a Health Insurance Provider Fee (HIPF). Even though the ACA exempts states from paying that fee when providing health care, ... [HHS] created a regulation requiring states to pay the fee anyway, a fee that is styled as a tax on the states.... [Judge Reed O'Connor struck down the] HHS rule because it violates the plain language of the ACA law. O'Connor ordered the federal government to pay Texas the $305 million that the Lone Star State had paid in HIPF fees, as well as the fees of the other states, for a total of $839 million." [Texas v. U.S., No. 15-151 (N.D. Tex. Aug. 21, 2018)]

Sen. Rand Paul on Paul Ryan's 'Obamacare Lite'

"[Sen. Paul] said there are four major reasons that Ryan's bill is wrong; specifically that it creates an entitlement program, that it does not effectively handle Obamacare taxes and even keeps the Cadillac Tax indefinitely, the keeping of Obamacare's individual mandate, and the keeping of Obamacare's risk corridors -- but simply renaming them."

Obamacare Rates to Skyrocket 50-75 Percent in Arizona

"Blue Cross Blue Shield of Arizona will sell marketplace plans in every county but Maricopa, hiking rates up to 51 percent while Centene Corp. will sell 'Ambetter' plans in every county in the state with rate increases of up to 74.5 percent ... Seven out of ten Arizonans reportedly get subsidized coverage."

Cook County Pension Liability Skyrockets from $6 to $15 Billion

"Cook County, Illinois -- which includes Chicago -- was just forced by its actuaries to restate its unfunded pension liability from $6 billion to $15.3 billion.... To put the importance of this stunning change of financial solvency in perspective, the entire annual payroll for all 22,000 Cook County employees is about $1.5 billion. That means that the pension plan's shortfall is ten times the annual payroll."

Public Pension Debt Jumps 84% -- Total Now $4.8 Trillion

"[The Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research] Pension Tracker estimates the total public pension debt on a 'market basis,' where all monies are invested in safe 20-year maturity Treasury bonds offering a constant yield of 2.18 percent, at about $41,219 per household, or about $15,037 per person.... [and] the total public pension debt on an 'actuarial basis,' with an estimated variable future investment return, is $8,872 per household and $3,231 per person. Pension Tracker also finds a disproportionate impact on the 'average' pension debt calculations due to the extraordinarily large impact of the 'market based' pension debt per household for three states -- Alaska, Illinois and California[.]"

Obamacare Insurance Premiums to Jump as Much as 51%

"According to states that have released rate requests, New Mexico's market leader Health Care Service Corp. is asking for an average premium spike of 51.6 percent; Tennessee's top insurer BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee wants an average spike of 36.3%; Maryland's market leader CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield is requesting an average spike of 30.4%; and Oregon's top insurer, Moda Health, is seeking a 25% spike."