October 4, 2013
It’s Friday!
Six reasons to sign up for the Georgia Legislative Policy Forum TODAY:
6. Justice for all. When’s the last time you had a discussion with a Supreme Court justice? Bring your best questions for Justice David Nahmias and test his jurisprudence.
5. One billion dollars. That’s the estimated savings every year if Georgia if were to adopt a new patient-centered model for Medicaid. Find out how.
4. Inspiration. Moise Brutus lost three limbs and almost lost his life in a wreck three years ago. Meet him; hear the inspiring story of how a public policy change helped this Medicaid patient conquer his disabilities.
3. Jobs we can’t export. One in every four jobs in Georgia is in the service economy. More than that, they are opportunities for upward mobility and entrepreneurship. A discussion on “The Essential Economy” discussion will tackle issues surrounding this quiet but crucial part of our economy.
2. Game Changer. Risky. Revolutionary. Those are the words being used to describe Georgia Tech’s recent announcement of a $6,000 online master’s degree in computer science. Speaker Rich Demillo is at the center of this new disruptive innovation as he directs Georgia Tech’s Center for 21st Century Universities, a living lab for fundamental change in higher education.
And the Number One Reason: Learn to cut to the chase! Have you noticed? Unlike sound bite-happy big-government proponents, people who push for less government often lose their audience with long-winded, academic explanations. It doesn’t have to be that way. John Kramer, Vice President for Communications at the Institute for Justice, is one of the most sought-after speakers among free market organizations. Learn how his organization personalizes the plight of Americans affected when government gets in the way.
Events
Friday, October 11: The fourth annual Georgia Legislative Policy Forum, 7:30a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Renaissance Atlanta Waverly. Last year, hundreds of Georgia’s legislators, businesspeople and interested citizens attended to hear national policy experts discuss free-market solutions to Georgia’s challenges. Speakers include: Georgia Supreme Court Justice David Nahmias, Fred Cooper, Chairman of Cooper Capital, Florida House Health Appropriations Chair Rep. Matt Hudson, Carol Steckel, director of the North Carolina Division of Medical Assistance, Tarren Bragdon, President of the Foundation for Government Accountability, former Georgia State Senator Sam Zamarripa, John Kramer, Vice President for Communications at the Institute for Justice and Dr. Rich DeMillo, director of the Center for 21st Century Universities at Georgia Tech. Information and registration: http://tinyurl.com/lma9kpt.
Quotes of Note
“The Department of Education has deemed 95 percent of its employees as ‘nonessential’ and furloughed them. One of the great things about our federal system of government is that when people in Washington can’t get along, the rest of the country can get by quite nicely.” – Paul E. Peterson
Health Care:
ObamaCare by the numbers:
304 – The average monthly dollar cost for the lowest-cost “silver” health insurance plan offered under the Affordable Care Act in Georgia. Bronze covers 60 percent of expected costs, silver covers 70 percent and platinum covers 90 percent)
95 – The dollars an uninsured person will have to pay in penalties in 2014 (up to a family maximum of $285, or 1 percent of family income, whichever is greater).
34 – The states with federally run exchanges or a state-federal partnership launched on Oct. 1. Georgia has a federally run exchange.
18.4 – The percentage of uninsured in Georgia, based on the Census Bureau’s 2012 American Community Survey, which is a snapshot in time.
5 – The insurance companies participating in Georgia’s exchange.
4 – The “navigators” certified to guide Georgians through the health care exchange when it launched on October 1.
2 – The groups that received federal grants to train 100 navigators for Georgia.
Taxes and regulation
Expanding government: Citizens Against Government Waste named Rep. Doris Matsui (D-Calif.) Porker of the Month for her increasingly vocal support of a proposed expansion of the Lifeline Program, popularly referred to as “Obamaphones,” to include broadband connections. Created in 1985 to provide discounts on landline service for qualified, low-income individuals, the program expanded to include pre-paid wireless service plans in 2005. Bankrolled by the Universal Service Fund fee, which is a hidden tax in every monthly telephone bill, Lifeline’s budget grew from $667 million in 2000 to $2.1 billion in 2012, even though 96.2 percent of Americans now have access to phone service.
Education
A new study published in Education Next shows that students participating in the Louisiana Scholarship Program actually improve integration in both the public schools students leave and the private schools in which they enroll. Someone should inform the U.S. Department of Justice, which alleges that the use of private school vouchers by low-income students fails to conform to federal school-desegregation plans.
Social media
Foundation in the news: Senior Fellow Ronald Bachman’s op-ed on the Affordable Care Act appeared in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution on October. 1. “Patient engagement and health literacy are more likely to emerge through products and services offered through private marketplaces than government exchanges,” Bachman wrote.
Facebook: The Foundation’s Facebook page has 2,140 “likes.” Join us at facebook.com/GeorgiaPolicy to view daily policy news, views, updates, Quotes of Note and event photos.
More than 1,050 Twitter followers get their Foundation news at twitter.com/gppf.
Ask your high school or college student to like the Foundation’s Student Outreach Scholarship page on Facebook at facebook.com/GeorgiaPolicySOSProgram.
The Forum: Find recent posts in The Forum, the Foundation’s blog, at georgiapolicy.org/category/the-forum/.
Visit www.georgiapolicy.org to read our latest commentary, “How Do You Spell Confusion? E-x-c-h-a-n-g-e-s,” by Ronald E. Bachman.
Have a great weekend!
Kelly McCutchen and Benita Dodd
FRIDAY FACTS is made possible by the generosity of the Georgia Public Policy Foundation’s donors. If you enjoy the FRIDAY FACTS, please consider making a tax-deductible contribution to help advance our important mission by clicking here. Visit our Web site at www.georgiapolicy.org. Join The Forum at http://forum.georgiapolicy.org/. Become a fan of the Foundation on Facebook and follow us on Twitter at twitter.com/gppf.
