What's New
Election, 2016: I Want To Soar Like a Hawkeye
Doris O'Brien writes: Picture yourself shaking hands with Hillary, Bernie, Martin, Jeb, Chris, Scott, Marco, Rand, Dr. Ben, The Donald, and all the other celebratory hopefuls. Can't you almost smell the slow-burning spare ribs and taste the tangy apple cider on a frosty Iowa evening? But more to the point: it's not my stomach but my political soul that makes me envy Hawkeyes. That's why I'm hankering to be in their number when the wannabes come marching in. more »
States to Colleges: Prove You’re Worth It
The idea of using outcomes — not enrollments — to guide public funding of higher education has so much bipartisan backing that both President Barack Obama and Florida's Republican Gov. Rick Scott support it. Just last week, the Florida Board of Education approved a performance-funding system for state colleges, adding to its existing system for state universities. more »
Painter, Patron, and Impressario — Gustave Caillebotte: The Painter's Eye
"Caillebotte grew up in the destruction/construction zone of the 8th arrondissement in Paris, one of the new neighborhoods built during Napoleon III's massive urban renewal project of the 1850s and 1860s. His response to the modern city was quite personal and there is something in his aesthetic that speaks directly to 21st-century urban dwellers." more »
HHS Pushes States To Negotiate Lower Obamacare Rates
The Obama administration is asking state insurance regulators to take a closer look at rate requests before granting them. Under the Affordable Care Act, state agencies largely retain the right to regulate premiums in their states. In a letter sent to insurance commissioners in every state and DC the CEO of healthcare.gov said recent data suggest that rates should not go up as much as some insurers are proposing for plans sold to individuals on the health exchanges.
more »
