The LuLac Edition #5,035, December 1st, 2023

 

BIDEN ANNOUNCES PROPOSAL TO REPLACE ALL LEAD WATER SERVICE LINES IN US WITHIN 10 YEARS

President Joe Biden  (Photo: FACEBOOK)

The Biden administration has announced a proposal to “strengthen its Lead and Copper Rule that would require water systems to replace lead service lines within 10 years,” the White House said in a statement on Thursday.

According to the White House, more than 9.2 million American households connect to water through lead pipes and lead service lines and, due to “decades of inequitable infrastructure development and underinvestment,” many Americans are at risk of lead exposure.

“There is no safe level of exposure to lead, particularly for children, and eliminating lead exposure from the air, water, and homes is a crucial component of the Biden-Harris Administration’s historic commitment to advancing environmental justice,” the Biden administration said.

“The President’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law invests over $50 billion for the largest upgrade to the nation’s water infrastructure in history, and today’s action builds on these historic levels of funding from President Biden’s Investing in America agenda, a key pillar of Bidenomics, to replace lead service lines across the nation,” the statement continued.

 

CARTWRIGHT AND BILIRAKIS SPONSOR BIPARTISAN LEGISLATION TO IMPROVE SENIORS' ACCESS TO HEARING SERVICE

Congressman Matt Cartwright (Photo: LuLac archives)

Representatives Gus Bilirakis (R-FL) and Matt Cartwright (D-PA) filed the Medicare Audiology Access Improvement Act to expand seniors’ access to audiology and hearing services. This important piece of legislation fixes a long-standing access barrier that punishes both seniors and audiologists and increases the choices Medicare patients have when treating their hearing needs.

Under current Medicare rules, seniors are unable to access the full range of services that independent audiologists provide under their existing scope of practice, despite these services already being covered under existing law. The Medicare Audiology Access Improvement Act will end this inequity by allowing independent audiologists to directly bill Medicare for services that are already covered under the law and within their existing scope of practice. The bill also makes technical changes to remove the pre-treatment order requirement, which does not exist with any other federal or commercial payer, and further clarifies that audiologists can provide these services at Rural Health Centers and Federally Qualified Health Centers.

“Age-related hearing loss is one of the most common conditions affecting older adults. Left untreated, it can lead to other health risks, including dementia and falls,” said Congressman Cartwright. “Outdated Medicare rules make it difficult for seniors with hearing loss to get the care they need. That’s why I’m glad to be working with my colleagues across the aisle to ensure seniors can access a full range of hearing and balance healthcare services provided by licensed audiologists.”

“Medicare reimbursement policies should be patient-centered and maximize patient choice whenever possible,” said Congressman Bilirakis.  “Updating these policies to allow licensed audiologists to fully participate in Medicare will bring greater parity and provide seniors with improved access to hearing health and balance care.”

“The American Speech-Language-Hearing Association thanks Representatives Bilirakis and Cartwright for reintroducing this critical legislation, which will provide Medicare beneficiaries with more timely and robust access to hearing and balance care provided by audiologists,” said Robert Augustine, PhD, CCC-SLP, 2023 American Speech-Language-Hearing Association President. “Audiologists are best positioned to assess and treat hearing-related problems that, left unaddressed, can lead to loneliness, social isolation, depression, dementia, and cognitive decline. These all can diminish quality of life and impose significant costs on older Americans, further straining Medicare’s financial stability. ASHA looks forward to continued collaboration with these leaders and our allied partners to enact this bill as soon as possible—and to remove unnecessary bureaucratic barriers that prevent seniors from getting the hearing and balance care they need, when they need it.”

“We applaud Representative Bilirakis and Representative Cartwright for championing the Medicare Audiology Access Improvement Act to reduce treatment delays and out of pocket costs for Medicare beneficiaries seeking hearing and balance services that will improve their health, safety, and well-being,” said Dawn Heiman, Au.D., President of the Academy of Doctors of Audiology. “This landmark legislation aligns Medicare Part B policies with evidence-based practices to optimize clinical outcomes, to promote Medicare system efficiencies, and to deploy scarce healthcare workforce resources most judiciously.”

“Advancing this legislation is necessary to remove outdated barriers that prevent older Americans from receiving the hearing health and balance care coverage that they need and deserve,” explains American Academy of Audiology President, Bopanna Ballachanda, PhD.  “Treating hearing loss and balance disorders improves an individual’s ability to communicate and connect with loved ones, decreases risk for falls, and results in a greater overall quality of life.  Passage of this cost-effective legislation will give patients timely access to these services and strengthen support for seniors’ mental health and mental acuity in the process.”

 

 STUFFING THEIR POCKETS: CASEY RELEASES GREEDFLATION REPORT EXPOSING BIG FOOD AND AGRICULTURE BUSINESSES FOR HOLIDAY PRICE-GOUGING

THE PRICE OF FOOD HAS RISEN FASTER THAN MOST OTHER GOODS, LARGELY AS A RESULT OF GREEDFLATION

 

BONELESS CHICKEN PRICES INCREASED AT DOUBLE THE RATE OF OVERALL INFLATION, WHILE POTATO PRICES ARE UP 60%

 

TYSON FOODS, SMITHFIELD, AND OTHER BIG AGRIBUSINESSES HAVE REPORTED RECORD PROFITS AND HAVE BEEN ACCUSED OF ILLEGAL PRICE FIXING

 

READ CASEY’S REPORT “STUFFING THEIR POCKETS: HOW BIG FOOD AND AGRICULTURE BUSINESSES ARE MAKING YOUR HOLIDAY MEALS MORE EXPENSIVE” HERE

 

CASEY ALSO SENT LETTER TO FTC AND USDA URGING THEM TO INVESTIGATE POSSIBLE UNFAIR PRICING PRACTICES OF MAJOR CHICKENS

Senator Bob Casey 

U.S. Senator Bob Casey (D-PA), Chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Subcommittee on Children & Families, released a new greedflation report entitled “Stuffing Their Pockets: How Big Food and Agriculture Businesses Are Making Your Holiday Meals More Expensive.” The report examines how the agribusiness companies that process Americans’ food have increased prices for everyday staple foods and raises questions about why those price increases are necessary. As the holiday season approaches, the report examines how the price of food has risen faster than most other goods, straining family budgets and taking a bite out of holiday celebrations. Prices for many holiday meal staples, including chicken, pork, and potatoes, are rising faster than headline inflation, earning companies billions and costing consumers. Some of these companies have a history of engaging in price-fixing, colluding to raise prices, anti-competitive conduct, and touting their ability to raise prices without limit.

“As Pennsylvania families prepare for the holidays, they’re seeing higher prices on everything from chicken to pork to potatoes,” said Senator Casey. “These higher prices are the result of greedflation—big food and agriculture businesses are gobbling up Pennsylvanians’ paychecks simply because they can. I’m taking steps to fight back so we can make corporations pay their fair share and put more money in the pockets of working families.”

 

While inflation has stressed family budgets in recent years, data shows that it has recently moderated. Despite this drop, consumers are still feeling pinched because many corporations continue to raise prices on consumers—not to offset inflation—but to increase their own profits. This practice, known as greedflation, is costing American consumers more than ever. Senator Casey’s previous report on greedflation found that corporate profits accounted for all the inflation in the first year of the pandemic recovery (roughly July 2020 to July 2021) and 41 percent of inflation overall in the first two years of the post-pandemic recovery (July 2020 to July 2022). Today’s report goes in depth on the disproportionate greedflation hitting the prices of holiday food staples. Read the full report on “Stuffing Their Pockets: How Big Food and Agriculture Businesses Are Making Your Holiday Meals More Expensive,” here.

In the report, Senator Casey outlines his strategy for fighting inflation, which includes stronger enforcement of existing consumer protection laws. Today, Casey sent a letter to the Federal Trade Commission and United States Department of Agriculture requesting that the agencies use all necessary resources to investigate possible unfair pricing practices of major chicken and pork processors in the United States. Read Senator Casey’s letter here.

In the letter, Senator Casey wrote, “Families in Pennsylvania and across the Nation deserve to know whether these high prices are the result of genuine economic pressures on the industry, or whether they arartificial actions taken to enrich those at the top. Inflation is real, and we owe it to working families to ensure that we are taking every action possible to prevent bad actors from making it worse for their own gain.”

https://www.casey.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/stuffing_their_pockets.pdf

 

 FITCH UPGRADES PENNSYLVANIA’S CREDIT RATING FROM ‘AA-’ TO ‘AA,’ CITING COMMONWEALTH’S “SOLID” ECONOMY AND ADMINISTRATION’S SOUND FISCAL MANAGEMENT

THE ANNOUNCEMENT MARKS THE THIRD POSITIVE AFFIRMATION OF THE COMMONWEALTH’S RESPONSIBLE BUDGETARY MANAGEMENT SINCE SEPTEMBER – BUILDING ON MOODY’S AND S&P GLOBAL UPGRADING THE COMMONWEALTH’S RATING OUTLOOK TO POSITIVE.

 

Governor Josh Shaprio (Photo: LuLac archives)

Governor Josh Shapiro announced that Fitch Ratings has upgraded Pennsylvania’s credit rating to ‘AA’ from ‘AA-,’ building on positive credit rating outlooks from Moody’s and S&P’s Global Ratings in September. This fiscal progress comes as the result of a growing economy, balanced 2023-24 budget, and responsible financial management by the Shapiro Administration since taking office.

Pennsylvania’s credit rating was upgraded as a result of “recent use of revenue surpluses to build its reserves to historical highs” and Fitch’s expectation that substantial reserves will be maintained in the near term. Fitch’s assessment found that Pennsylvania deserved the credit rating upgrade thanks to “improved operating performance, as well as a low long-term liability burden and broad flexibility to manage spending pressures, which offset modest baseline revenue growth and a historically contentious decision-making environment.”

“Fitch Ratings becomes the third credit rating agency since September to affirm that our Commonwealth is on sound financial footing thanks to our commonsense investments and responsible budgetary practices – creating opportunity for Pennsylvanians and continuing to set Pennsylvania up for success,” said Governor Josh Shapiro. “My Administration will continue to work with leaders in both parties to make smart investments that responsibly manage taxpayer funds while strengthening Pennsylvania schools and businesses, creating safer communities, and supporting our law enforcement and first responders as we build an economy that works for all.”

“With our third positive affirmation in the last three months that Pennsylvania is on the path for economic and financial success, it’s clear that our responsible investments are working to keep the Commonwealth on a sound fiscal trajectory while supporting Pennsylvania families,” said Secretary of the Budget Uri Monson.

The announcement is the latest affirmation that that Pennsylvania’s economy is strong under Governor Shapiro’s leadership and that his Administration’s sound fiscal management is setting Pennsylvania up for long-term success. In September, the Governor announced that Moody’s reaffirmed Pennsylvania’s Aa3 issuer credit rating and upgraded the Commonwealth’s rating outlook to positive from stable. Later that month, S&P Global Ratings also improved Pennsylvania’s outlook to ‘positive’ from stable and affirmed its A+ long-term rating.

The Commonwealth has also been awarded the Distinguished Budget Presentation Award for the Annual Budget for fiscal year 2023-24 and the Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting – the highest form of recognition in governmental accounting and financial reporting – from the Government Finance Officers Association.

 

 

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1954

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In Sylacauga, Alabama, a four-kilogram piece of the Hodges Meteorite crashes through the roof of a house and badly bruises a napping woman, in the first documented case of an object from outer space hitting a person…….The first Hyatt Hotel, The Hyatt House Los Angeles, opens on the grounds of Los Angeles International Airport. It is the first hotel in the world built on an airport property…….Red Scare: The United States Senate votes 67–22 to condemn Joseph McCarthy, for "conduct that tends to bring the Senate into dishonor and disrepute."…..The Taiwan-United States Mutual Defense Treaty is signed…… The first Burger King opens in Miami, Florida…and 69 years ago the number one song in LuLac land and America was “You'll Never Walk Alone” by Roy Hamilton.