More Medicare Fraud
How is this not illegal? Select Hospitals Reap a Windfall Under Child Bill – New York Times
Despite promises by Congress to end the secrecy of earmarks and other pet projects, the House of Representatives has quietly funneled hundreds of millions of dollars to specific hospitals and health care providers under a bill passed …
Road Logic — As Seen on Slashdot
As seen on Slashdot
Garbage collection is fine as a private service, but roads? What would possibly improve by letting individual profit-seeking companies control where and when you are allowed to drive?
It’s a simple answer. Individual profit-seeking companies only make a profit if you can drive when and where you want. Right now, only …
Airport Security — Expensive and Worthless
Do you feel safe about taking a flight? Do you think that another 9/11 style attack couldn’t possibly succeed? Do the TSA regulations and onerous security procedures make you feel safer? If they do, they shouldn’t. We’re just as much at risk as we were six years ago.
Hot Air > Blog Archive > A Pilot …
Regulation Burnt the Cuyahoga
A few days ago, I wrote about government regulators preventing progress. You may be interested in another example.
My mother was born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio. By itself this fact is not particularly exciting. But, when I was younger, I learned about the burning Cuyahoga River. Once I realized what had happened, I never lost …
Road Blocks to Improvement
Quick — how do you increase the wealth of a nation and improving living standards for everyone? I’ll tell you how. First, create a stable system of laws that apply to everyone and make sure that everyone knows what they are. This creates a level playing field where neither income nor social status prevent justice …
More on 'Convoluted Tax Schemes'
Three months ago, I reported that Jim Doyle wanted to hike the hospital tax in order to give hospitals more money. Well, he still wants to. Only now we know that the amounts the hospitals will supposedly receive, is less than Diamond Jim hoped for:
UW Hospital had been projected to gain $23.3 million …
Why a Postal Monopoly is a Bad Idea
The U.S. Postal Service raised it’s rates for first-class mail today. No longer will you be able to buy a $0.39 stamp. The day of the $0.41 stamp is upon us. The rate hike is annoying, but ultimately not all that relevant to my life. Aside from thank-you notes and renewing license plates, I don’t …
Protecting the Troops
For our troops fighting the war in Iraq, the number one threat isn’t gun battles with terrorists, it’s improved explosive devices left by the roadside. IED’s cause fully 70% of American casualties in Iraq. This has been known for a while. What’s also been known for a while is that Hummers do little to protect …
Convoluted Tax Schemes
Wisconsin Governor Jim Doyle has a plan to give more money to hospitals. It’s very simple — in order to pay them more, he first has to tax them more. The Wisconsin State Journal gave a breakdown of the plan:
It works like this: The state imposes the tax on hospitals, leading to an …
Economist Insight: Hurricane Insurance
Reaping the whirlwind:
If prices are rising, that should be a signal to people and businesses to avoid settling in risky areas. The economic centre of the hurricane business is Florida, which is both the most vulnerable part of America and the most valuable. In 2004 the total value of insured coastal property in …