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Daily Archives: February 16, 2017

Politico posts 19-page internal GOP policy brief on Obamacare repeal and replace

Via Politico: Internal GOP Talking Points and Plans for Replacing Obamacare – Policy Brief and Resources – “Obamacare has failed. Six years after the enactment of Obamacare, here’s what we know: This law has failed the American people. Insurance markets are collapsing. Premiums and deductibles are soaring. Patients’ choices are dwindling. The law has failed to deliver on its core promises. The law is only getting worse. While we could simply allow the law to collapse, that would not be fair to the American families struggling under Obamacare. The truth is, left unaddressed, the situation would only get worse – with even fewer coverage options and even higher costs.

  • Repeal is relief. That’s why, when the House returns after President’s Day, we will act to repair the damage done by Obamacare by repealing the law and replacing it with a better system. We will deliver on our promise to the American people.
  • A stable transition. Our efforts will ensure protections for the most vulnerable, and there will be a stable transition period to a patient-centered health care system that gives Americans access to quality, affordable care.
  • We have a better way. Our replacement plan ensures more choices, lower costs, and greater control over your health care. Specifically it:
  • Moves health care decisions away from Washington and to where they belong: with patients, their families, and their doctors,
  • Provides coverage protections and peace of mind for all Americans—regardless of age, income, medical conditions, or circumstances,
  • Gives patients the right tools, like Health Savings Accounts, to make their health insurance more portable and affordable,
  • Allows those who don’t receive insurance from an employer or government program to have access to quality coverage,
  • Breaks down barriers that restrict choice and prevent Americans from picking the plan that is best for them and their family,
  • Modernizes and strengthens Medicaid to protect the most vulnerable…”

Membership of the 115th Congress: A Profile

Membership of the 115th Congress: A Profile, Jennifer E. Manning, Senior Research Librarian. February 10, 2017. “This report presents a profile of the membership of the 115th Congress (2017-2018) as of January 4, 2017. Statistical information is included on selected characteristics of Members, including data on party affiliation, average age, occupation, education, length of congressional… Continue Reading

Senate Judiciary Democrats Demand Retention of All Documents Related to Trump, Russia

“All nine Senate Judiciary Committee Democrats today called on the White House, the Justice Department and the FBI to preserve all documents related to communication between Russia and all Trump officials and associates, as well as all documents related to Russian interference in the 2016 election. Letter to White House Letter to DOJ, FBI In… Continue Reading

More Than 1 Billion YouTube Videos Have Automated Captions

AdWeek: “Caption this: YouTube announced Thursday that its automated captions have been used on more than 1 billion videos, and its users watch more than 15 million videos with automated captions per day. Product manager Liat Kaver made the announcement in a blog post, saying that Google launched captions for videos in September 2006, and… Continue Reading

Interactive: Compare Proposals to Replace the Affordable Care Act

Compare Proposals to Replace The Affordable Care Act – President Donald Trump and Republicans in Congress have committed to repealing and replacing the Affordable Care Act (ACA). How do their replacement proposals compare to the ACA? How do they compare to each other? –  Plans available for comparison: The Affordable Care Act, 2010 (PDF) Rep. Tom… Continue Reading

Total Household Debt Climbs to $12.58 Trillion, Approaches 2008 Peak

Federal Reserve Bank of New York – Household Debt Edges Up as Auto, Credit Card, and Student Debt Climb –  “The CMD’s latest Quarterly Report on Household Debt and Credit reveals that total household debt increased by 1.8% in the fourth quarter of 2016, rising $226 billion to reach $12.58 trillion, only 99 billion shy… Continue Reading

The moral dilemmas of the Fourth Industrial Revolution

World Economic Forum: “Should your driverless car value your life over a pedestrian’s? Should your Fitbit activity be used against you in a court case? Should we allow drones to become the new paparazzi? Can one patent a human gene? Scientists are already struggling with such dilemmas. As we enter the new machine age, we… Continue Reading

Please support DataRescue and other open access archive efforts

“DataRescue events create trustworthy copies of federal climate and environmental data, while the Internet Archive, datarefuge.org, and a consortium of major research libraries holds these copies. See our sister project at www.librariesnetwork.org. See also: “Orientation to DataLumos – ICPSR’s archive to preserve valuable government data. Join us for a webinar on Feb 17, 2017 at 12:00… Continue Reading

Animal welfare data deleted by government restored to public by Russ Kick

Follow up to previous posting – Animal welfare information wiped from USDA website – news via TIME on the freedom of information evangelist Russ Kick – “An Arizona man who has published thousands of animal welfare documents on his website since the government purged the once-public information is pledging to keep digging up data until… Continue Reading

AALL joins 60 advocacy groups calling for open access info on government websites

Via AALL: On February 14, 2017 “the American Association of Law Libraries (AALL) partnered with OpenTheGovernment.org and more than 60 other public interest groups and associations on a letter to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), asking OMB to issue guidance reminding agencies that they are required under the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C.… Continue Reading