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Jeffrey Meyers on Edgar Allan Poe, Gothic Horror, & HalloweenOctober 30, 2024 - 11:44 am
Mountain State Modifications: Tiffany Uses ESA Flexibility to Pivot Quickly For Her Son’s EducationOctober 24, 2024 - 12:11 pm
Study Published by Pioneer Institute Shows Massachusetts Learning Loss Among Nation’s WorstOctober 24, 2024 - 10:31 am
U-TX at SA’s Catherine Clinton on Harriet Tubman & the Underground RailroadOctober 23, 2024 - 11:30 am
Award-Winner Tom Segev on Israel’s Founding Father, David Ben-GurionOctober 16, 2024 - 11:59 am
Pioneer Institute Study Finds MCAS, Education Reform Have Significantly Improved Academic AttainmentOctober 16, 2024 - 11:46 am
McAnneny October Monthly Musings – Ballot InitiativesOctober 11, 2024 - 2:17 pm
Homeschooling with Hope: Katie Switzer’s ESA ExperienceOctober 10, 2024 - 11:24 am
Lynch Foundation’s Katie Everett on School Finance Model for Catholic Schools & School ChoiceOctober 9, 2024 - 11:30 am
Pioneer Institute Study Finds Wide Range of Approaches to Compliance with MBTA Communities LawOctober 6, 2024 - 9:12 pm
The Boston Globe: State’s focus is too narrow for job creation
/0 Comments/in Oped: Economy, Opeds /byWe need a new approach to put the hundreds of thousands of unemployed Massachusetts citizens back to work. We need to stop picking winners and losers, and stop making such concentrated, publicly funded bets on specific companies and industries.
Governor’s Budget & Plan for Cities
/0 Comments/in Blog, Blog: Healthcare, Middle Cities/ Urban /byWhen it comes to the aspects of the Governor’s agenda that impact cities, the press has focused on two elements: 1) Cuts in local aid in the budget and, 2) The push to lower the union threshold in order to allow, or perhaps force, municipalities into the state’s Group Insurance Commission. While those certainly are newsworthy, there are two smaller intiatives that move the Commonwealth in the right direction on two fronts: A) local performance management and B) regionalization. Pioneer has been a vocal advocate for the state to be more aggressive in promoting these policy goals. Our Middle Cities Initiative has worked with 14 municipalities to improve data collection, to drive accountability and transparency– in order that local officials […]
Governor Patrick’s Budget on Health Care: Playing Around the Edges
/0 Comments/in Blog, Blog: Healthcare, Healthcare /byMedicaid (MassHealth) The Administration is feeling the heat with the increase in Medicaid (MassHealth) spending. Without a doubt something needs to be done—as spending now accounts for almost 40% of the overall budget. That’s less money for schools, for cops, and for roads. I, among others, think the Administration is being too optimistic on how much they can save by tweaking things on the edges. Will they really get almost $10 billion from rebidding Medicaid contracts? The budget grants the MA Secretary of HHS authority to change benefits and eligibility in MassHealth when possible— however her actions are restricted by the many constraints placed on the state by the federal government in the stimulus and Obamacare. 33 Governors sent a […]
Implications of the Harvard Pilgrim-Tufts Merger
/1 Comment/in Blog, News /byToday’s news brings word of a potential merger between Tufts and Harvard Pilgrim. For this observer, it raises the question of how much more concentrated the health insurance market will become if the #2 and #3 insurers are merged? The standard measure of market concentration is the Herfindahl-Hirschman Index, which is the total of the squares of each participant’s market share. In a pure monopoly, the 100% market share translates to an index score of 10,000. In an almost total atomized market (100 participants each with 1% shares), you get an index score of 100. To give a sense of perspective, the Federal Trade Commission considers a market with an HHI of between 1500 and 2500 to be moderately concentrated. […]
Ever Met A Tax Incentive You Didn’t Like?
/0 Comments/in Blog, News /byRemarkable to read the Globe’s endorsement today of the latest ‘flavor of the month’ tax credit. The latest (remember nanotech, cleantech, life sciences, film production?) favored industry is video game production. Given the implosion of the Evergreen Solar deal, one would think that targeted tax incentives aimed at specific niche industries would have to pass a pretty high bar at this point. But the Globe apparently thinks the policy remains sound, despite the Evergreen setback. Their reasoning? The Globe falls back on its mantra-like recitation of ‘clean energy’. Clean energy is important, but it doesn’t justify high risk investments and its not going to signficantly move the employment needle. PS — In case, you were wondering — the Globe is […]