Columns

28 Delays, and Counting, to Health Reform

For the second time in about a year, the Obama administration gave companies, including small businesses, more time before they must offer affordable  health insurance to almost all their full-time workers or pay a tax.

The New Obamacare Red Herring

Beware of a new argument from health reform backers that people are seeing policies canceled due to "ordinary turnover" in individual and small group plans.

The President’s Healthcare Gamble

Obama gambled one-sixth of the U.S. economy that he could convince young people to sign up for something that they didn't want. His gamble didn't -- and won't -- work.

A Sickening Increase in Medicare Premiums

Next year, thanks to a perfect storm of circumstances, some retirees could see their Medicare Part “B” premiums go up by more than 50% while 70% of retirees see no premium increase at all.

Bringing Sanity to the Health Insurance Market

Studies have concluded that when we have too many health insurance choices, we make bad decisions, meaning we pay for more insurance than we need or we don’t buy enough.

The Affordable Care Act One Year Later

This time last year there seemed to be a new catastrophe or scandal every day related to the roll-out of the Affordable Care Act, a.k.a. ObamaCare:  many predicted the federal website would never be up and running by the looming deadline, the cost kept escalating, private contractors publically blamed bumbling bureaucrats and vice versa. 

Will ObamaCare Create a Retirement Stampede?

The ACA makes it easier for older people to get health coverage, but will it lead to a stampede of older workers saying farewell to their employer-sponsored plans and hello to early retirement?

Is Cancer Insurance Worth the Money?

Dave Says: Health insurance can significantly reduce your health-care bills, but is getting supplemental insurance worth the added costs?

Big Miss in September Jobs Report

The September jobs report is in, and it’s a big miss at 148,000 jobs created, when economists had expected as much as 180,000.

Commodities Hit 1970 Lows

As commodities continue to get pounded, with the majority in a severe downtrend in November, U.S. manufacturing, led by the struggling energy sector, has been pushed into a recession. 

Low Wages A Head-Scratching Puzzle

The increasingly-confusing split between strong job growth and weak wage growth will once again be front and center Friday when the January jobs report is released.

When Will More Jobs Mean Higher Wages?

Millions of new jobs and a rapidly falling unemployment rate have yet to translate into higher wages and bigger paychecks for most American workers.

Market Bric-A-Brac

Like the wayward son returning home from a land faraway, our equity market – after a recent retest of the August lows – came to its senses and began an unremitted sprint back of 6% in a matter of five days. 

Fed Will Shrug Off GDP Road Bump

A sharply lower fourth quarter GDP reading isn’t great news but it isn’t enough to alter the Federal Reserve’s projected timing for raising interest rates.