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Our Old Friend Film Tax Credits
/0 Comments/in Blog, News /by Steve PoftakThere’s a state commission that’s currently examining all the so-called “tax expenditures” that the state offers. The commission has said it wants to review the collection of tax expenditures and eliminate those that don’t make sense. Its also held out the possibility of a eliminating a number of targeted credits in exchange for a zero-sum cut to the overall tax rate (an outcome to be hoped for). May I nominate one expenditure to make? The Film Tax Credit. These credits have been controversial from the get-go. Proponents point to growth in employment due to the credits. Opponents counter that any industry receiving millions in tax credits would likely see some improvement. Its also a relatively small number of jobs (~5,000 […]
Some lessons for virtual learning
/0 Comments/in Blog, Blog: Education, Blog: Virtual Schools, Jim Stergios, News, Related Education Blogs /byThere is so much energy in the virtual learning space right now, with a number of products that are maturing and others that are continuing to grow exponentially. The free Khan Academy has provided almost 100 million exercises, now boasts about 3.5 million discrete users, and is growing at a rate of about 300,000 users a month (with the pace of growth increasing). That opens up all kinds of possibilities in terms of partnerships, branding and funding. That product is going worldwide fast, and branching out into many new academic areas. Getting the promise of digital learning right is going to be a challenge on a number of fronts. One challenge is that the two tons of money going into […]
Will Mass Set up a Basic Health Plan under ACA?
/2 Comments/in Blog, Blog: Healthcare, Healthcare /byThe Connector held its annual retreat this past weekend, and since the omnipresent Health Care for All (HCFA) representatives were not in attendance to write up a summary, I thought I would provide an overview of what was discussed at the meeting, and outline some of the future challenges for the Connector. The agenda can be found here. Basic Health Plan The Connector is seriously thinking about offering a basic health plan, an option in the ACA, and is one of the few states in the nation to be doing so. (When the Connector posts the slides from Saturday, I will link to them for more detail on the different circumstances being modeled.) With a BHP the federal government would […]
Will the ACA Bankrupt the Mass Connector?
/0 Comments/in Blog, Blog: Healthcare, Healthcare /byThe Connector held its annual retreat this past weekend, and since the omnipresent Health Care for All (HCFA) representatives were not in attendance to write up a summary, I thought I would provide an overview of what was discussed at the meeting, and outline some of the future challenges for the Connector. The agenda can be found here. State Budget Considerations The Commonwealth will have to finance state mandates that are over and above the federally set essential health benefits (EHB). The Connector has identified at least 7 current mandates that are unlikely to be in EHB. The Legislature will need to reopen the discussion over mandates. 40,000 legal immigrants will be enrolled back into Commonwealth Care due to a […]
Obamacare Means Big Changes for Romneycare
/0 Comments/in Blog, Blog: Healthcare, Healthcare /byThe Connector held its annual retreat this past weekend, and since the omnipresent Health Care for All (HCFA) representatives were not in attendance to write up a summary, I thought I would provide an overview of what was discussed at the meeting, and outline some of the future challenges for the Connector. The agenda can be found here. The main theme of the retreat was the Affordable Care Act’s (ACA) impact on the Massachusetts reform. Connector staff, confirmed what Pioneer’s research has shown, that the Connector we know today will look very different by 2014. Here are a few of the examples of the policy discussions ahead: The Connector will need to figure out changes to the individual mandate (MEC […]